Happy Halloween everybody!  As always, we try to see how to fit this little thing we like to call technology fit into the real world.  So, how can you integrate a little “trick or treat” action today?  Below are some fun computer activities for Halloween:

If you plan to have guests visit on this goulish day, feel free to play a free Halloween spooky movie.  You may also load a spooky Halloween screensaver for entertainment.

One of the best sites, Wolfstone, we’ve seen discusses the history of Halloween, how to haunt, and how to create scary props.

For playing a fun Halloween game on the computer, you collect pumpkins before the spiders and creatures catch you in Halloween Heist.

Our last computer site we’ll leave you with is for the kids.  After all, Halloween is for children.  This arts-and-crafts website provides instructions for building different types of pumpkins, critters, and animals.

The smartphones with Windows operating systems have not been so popular.  This is due to the Treos and Blackberries taking the market by storm, and well, because they typically make better phones.

This time, this Windows Smartphone called Shadow has jumped to the top of the smartphone class.  Its interface and ease of clicking buttons and navigational tools makes it a phone to check out.  It basically looks like a typical cell phone until you start clicking around and seeing navigational buttons appear.  The Shadow contains a jog wheel (iPod-like) that is easy to use and won’t make your thumb sore.

This smartphone is full of features:  e-mail, calendar, 2.0 megapixel camera, drop-down keyboard, notes, media player, a nice graphical display for images, supports up to 4GB storage, and plays music.  The audio is not crystal clear, but it is difficult attaining iPod-like sound on a phone.

Recently, RealPlayer has shown to have vulnerabilities in its software that may allow hackers to spread spyware through it.  For example, 24/7 Media, a top online advertisement company, had its server compromised by having hackers spread spyware and pop-ups to its visitors.  The hackers created malicious files in the form of e-mail attachments. 

Mac and Linux computers are not protected from this RealPlayer vulnerability.  Any computer with RealPlayer installed on it must be protected from this hacking potential.

You can protect yourself from such malware by updating RealPlayer to the latest updates.

Please make sure that whatever your operating system, you install the latest updates as this can be automated and save you a lot of time and aggravation.

Leopard is out in the market.  So, how has it fared thus far?

There are three ways to install Leopard on your current mac. 

1. Buy a new mac with Leopard already installed on it.
2. Upgrade your current Mac OS to Leopard
3. Archive and Install - this means to back up your files first and install a fresh copy of Leopard

We originally thought Options 1 and 3 are the way to go since having a clean copy of Leopard is the way to go.  Why?  If you have any existing corruption or issues with the your current Operating System, it may be carried over to your upgraded Leopard operating system.

However, from the tests performed, option 3: Archive and Install, has shown from 15% of our cases where it would freeze and not allow further processing or installing.  50% of the time would run through fully, but would lag and take about 45 minutes to complete although meeting the recommended RAM and processor requirements.  The rest of cases went through smoothly probably due to have over-qualified hard drive space and RAM requirements.

It is recommended to back up your important files first to an external hard drive or DVDs before installing Leopard.  Sometimes, the archive feature doesn’t work well or freezes.  Hey, it’s better to be safe than sorry!  Then, our results show upgrading to Leopard is a more stable bet for now. 

Leopard is now available for macs.  This is the Mac OS X Version 10.5 operating system released from Apple.  This new operating system touts over 300 new features geared towards auto-backups, enhanced desktop, and easy mac-file sharing.

So, what’s the best way to get your hands on Leopard?  Should you go to the store?  Buy online? 

The regular price from Apple is $129.00  For online enthusiasts, Amazon and MacMall drops the price down to $109.  You may also buy Leopard in stores at CompUSA for $99.99 after a mail-in rebate.  The CompUSA rate seems to be the cheapest although we’re not big fans of waiting 2-3 months for a rebate.

Going to the store or buying online will give you the same media and box from the above vendors.  Some online sites just provide the OEM version, or the CD without the box.  It doesn’t really matter which way you choose to purchase.  It is up to you and your preference.

It’s not easy to find software or drivers for your computer.  When you reinstall Windows on your   computer, there are usually hardware parts, such as the wireless card, internet port, or sound, that still need to be set up.  This means you need to find the exact software to install that will allow your computer to recognize these devices.  People typically refer to this software as drivers or software drivers.

How do you find drivers?  The easiest way is from the CDs that come with your computer.  But, as you can probably attest, either the CDs didn’t come with your computer or you lost them.  Then, the only ways to retrieve them is by calling up your manufacturer (i.e. Dell, Toshiba) and asking for them or downloading the drivers from the Internet.  It makes sense to call up your manufacturer for your drivers if you are in warranty since they’ll ship it to you for free.  If you are out of warranty, you might as well get them off the Internet.

You may find the appropriate drivers by going to your manufacturer link below:

• Acer
• Compaq
• Dell
• eMachines
• Fujitsu
• Gateway
• HP
• IBM
• Lenovo
• Sony
• Toshiba

Leopard is the newest operating system that will be released by Apple on October 26, 2007.  As always, Apple insists you need it.  But, do you really?

For $129, Leopard will give you the following 5 new features:  Boot Camp, Time Machine, Parental Controls, a robust Desktop, and strong Spotlight search.   The price seems to validate going ahead to purchase Leopard for these nice features.

Can you run Leopard on your existing mac?  Yes, if you have at least 512MB RAM, 9GB of free hard drive space, and a DVD drive.

You may even save on a 5-license deal with Leopard.  You can buy 5 licenses for just $199. 

Overall, the price seems to be targeted well for swaying the fence sitters out there.  Seems like a worthwhile upgrade to us.

Ubuntu is a version of Linux.  In case you don’t know what this is, it is an alternative operating system to Windows and Mac.  Ubuntu’s new 7.10 version, Gutsy Gibbon, will be released this Thursday.  Ubuntu is open source, meaning that it is free and open to the community offering fixes and updates that everyone can us.

Is Ubuntu for you?  Here are some advantages of using Ubuntu so you can decide for yourself:

- It’s free!

- You will receive the latest updates every 6 weeks

- Free security software for at least 18 months

- Built-in PDF creator

- Advanced support for multiple monitors

- It’s typically virus and spyware-free like macs

The only downside (or upside based on how you look at it) is any support is usually found by going on forums since there is no familiar Dell-support style help.  But, if you feel up to the task or just frustrated with Microsoft, Ubuntu’s Gutsy Gibbon might be for you!

After the initial craze of the iPhone, New York Computer Help has reviewed some of our tests with the iPhone.  A few of our technicians used the iPhone for a full month as their main handheld device.  They have paid specific attention to how the iPhone faired for the phone, e-mails, and Internet.  Here is how they summed up their results:

Internet use:  Amazing!  No handheld, such as the Blackberry or Treo, comes close.  The Internet on the iPhone is the real deal - no emulator or pseudo-Internet browser.  No problems with online banking, stock quotes, graphics, and instant messaging.  A real joy!

E-mails: For Exchange-based systems or POP3 (i.e. gmail, hotmail, MSN, etc)., no problems at all accessing e-mails and folders.  Lotus presents and issue but you may view the webmail portion of it although it doesn’t show folders.  The other big issue is sometimes you cannot change the layout of the phone for html or graphic-intensive messages.  That means that some newsletters only show up in portrait view instead of landscape view which is tough on the eyes.

Phone:  The phone was no better or worse than other cell phones.  The quality was good, but suffered in non-reception zones like with all phone providers.  The cool part was the visual voice mail part - the iPhone gives you a list of numbers that you may call back, delete, return, listen to and in any order.  This makes it easy to get back to messages.

Of course, the iPod is great, but that’s what you’re paying the extra cost for.  The camera was okay, but definitely not able to replace a regular digital camera.

Overall, the iPhone is worth getting if you use the Internet intensively, listen to music, and do occasional e-mailing.

Recently, Matt Lauer from NBC’s morning show has been very keen on reviewing computer security.  He has spotlighted credit card fraud, hackers, and now hotel computer security.  All topics are very important to note and at the least, pay some attention to for your protection.  However, are we getting to paranoid about computer security?

Earlier this week, Matt Lauer interviewed a security expert who said to “clean your tracks” after using a hotel computer.  Many hotels provide work center computers for guests and although very accessible, they also leave you very vulnerable, as suggested by the security expert.  He went on to explain how to clean your cookies, temporary internet files, and recycle bin.  The security analyst also warned not to make online credit card transactions because the next computer user just might look to steal your identity, or credit card number.

We agree wholeheartedly with this analysis, but we question why NBC is staging such dramatic warnings and security precautions.  There was actually a whole 5-part series showing these credit card predators and their on-the-run lifestyles.  We understand the ramifications and consequences of security risks on the Internet, but do we really need to be hit over the head with it?!

Our recommendation is to use good common sense.  If you’re going to a hotel, don’t go on your banking website and don’t make online purchases.  Plain and simple.  If you make online purchases at home, make sure your anti-virus and anti-spyware software is updated and running.  We don’t mean to trivialize computer security and its effects, but by using good common sense instead of scare tactics by NBC, our computing lives may go on in an orderly fashion.