GuruNews, Volume 9 Number 3, 1-22-09

Thu Jan 22 21:16:57 EST 2009

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Vol. 9, No. 3                   

1-22-09

1 VoIP and you      

2 Welcoming the new President

3 Technology on the wane, Presidential Crackberry, Mac whack, Windows 7       review

4 Budgeting help    

5 Don't go phishing

6 Lost cameras

VoIP, or Voice over IP, has exploded in the last couple of years.  Cable companies that offer broadband, TV and telephone service use the technology, as do companies like Vonage.

Services like Skype and gadgets like Magic Jack also tap the VoIP market, but all are vastly different in cost and flexibility.

In a nutshell, Voice over IP means using your broadband Internet connection to make voice calls.  These can be between computers, from computer to telephone or from telephone to telephone with all traffic moving across the Internet.

At its base the Internet is a faster telephone network and actually runs across a common telecommunications network so nearly anything is possible.

Basically it consists of sending voice communications in data packets, like downloading a file or viewing a webpage, rather than going end to end on the old hardwired switching networks used in traditional communications.

The technology dates back to the old ARPANET, the military/university backbone that gave birth to the Internet.  It uses real time protocols to ensure timely delivery and often can't be distinguished from standard telephone connections.  In fact a VoIP connection to a standard telephone connection travels at least halfway on the switched telephone network.

All services use virtually the same technology but the implementation varies widely.  For instance:

Cable companies generally have a one-time hook up/activation fee, charge a monthly service charge, work independently of your computer and allow you to keep your existing telephone number when switching services.  Usually the monthly fee includes local and long-distance calls, caller ID, call forwarding and other popular features.

Vonage is very similar, other than it lacks any bundling discounts available to cable companies and you have to purchase the adapters, which are available nearly anywhere electronics are sold.

Magic Jack is a USB dongle that runs a small application on your computer.  It allows local and long distance calls for a yearly fee, not monthly, and can be carried with you and used on any computer with a broadband connection, which is a boon to people who stay in a lot of hotels.  Like cable and Vonage, Magic Jack works with standard corded or cordless phones.  Unlike the previous two, it requires computer access and will not function independently.  Also unlike the first options, you can't keep your existing phone number and may not be able to get a number in your area.

Skype is the oddball of the group.  It's more like a voice and video chat program that will work with landline telephones.  You chat through the software using a headset and will not allow you to hook in standard telephones.  Incoming calls are strictly through the headset.  Skype to Skype calls all free but calls to landlines are either charged per minute or require a subscription.  They do offer voice mail you can retrieve through a web site.

In my opinion if you want to have something similar to standard phone service go with cable.  It comes directly into the telco box so all the phone jacks in the house work and the price is certainly less than typical phone service when you toss in the nationwide calling at no additional cost.

Magic Jack may be the best choice for individuals, especially those that travel a lot.  It's a good backup for a mobile phone, works with any PC anywhere, works with standard phones and is far less expensive per year than any other service.

As a matter of fact, if you make a lot of long distance calls you might save a lot of money by picking one up even if you keep your landline.  $1.66 per month is pretty cheap for nationwide calling (last time I checked).

Kevin Mefford, Editor

pcguru at microdome.net

Editor's note:  It may be possible to make a Vonage box or Magic Jack active across all household jacks but it would likely involve some wiring changes.  Art experimented a little with a Magic Jack this week and didn't get a dial tone (thanks Art!) but we'll dig a bit deeper and report back on whether it's doable and what it involves.

Terry Wise

www.ratland.com

Tech News of the Week

Calling the current downturn "unprecedented," Microsoft CEO Steve
Ballmer Thursday warned Wall Street analysts that the technology
industry is grappling with a "once-in-a-lifetime set of economic
conditions":

http://www.crn.com/software/212902018

Commander in Chief Barack Obama, a known BlackBerry addict, doesn't
have to surrender his smartphone after all (only the opening paragraph
is available for non-subscribers to the Wall Street Journal----huh):

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090122-717790.html

Malware masquerading as part of Apple's iWork 09 productivity suite is
targeting unsuspecting Mac users foolish enough to install pirated
software downloaded on warez sites:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/01/22/mac_trojan_attack/

A comforting look at Windows 7 by Walt Mossberg, the Old Man of
technology at the Wall Street Journal.  This time, you get to read the
entire article:

http://tinyurl.com/d8r4aq

Copy us on the good stuff

Matthew Dattilo
www.mattstodayinhistory.com
www.mattdattilo.com

Download of the Week

Are you worried about the slowing economy or the high cost of heating your home this winter?  Do you sometimes run out of money before you run out of month?  Maybe a budget can help you get a better grip on your finances.

SimpleD Budget is a free budgeting program that is ideal for those who like to see their monthly budget at a glance. Enter all of your income and expenses, and then on a single screen you can see it all, graphically portrayed. SimpleD Budget also shows you what percentage of your budget each of your expenses occupies, so that if you need to cut costs, you can quickly see where to begin.  It's free here: http://dsbudget.sourceforge.net/index.php 

Carlita Lupino

Card57 at gmail.com

Threat of the Week

A new vulnerability announced last week would allow miscreants that hack into websites and plant what's known as an "in-session phishing attack", which would launch as a pop-up in your browser while you're on the misconfigured site.

All browsers are vulnerable to this attack method and it's especially troubling when it comes to banking and online payment service sites.  

One can only assume that programmers are working to close this flaw but in the meantime, never fill in any fields on windows that pop up while you're on financial sites.  For that matter, don't do it on any site.  If you've already logged in you don't need to do so again and, should there be an issue like a bad password or expired account, you'll be redirected to an internal link on the same page.

You can read the original story at: 

http://tinyurl.com/8zwzry.

Email Question of the Week

OK, this isn't really a question, but Matt (thepcgurus at gmail.com) thought it was interesting enough to pick this week.

The email:

So, let's say you found someone's camera.  Or you found someone's
memory stick or media card.  Suppose you are in another state or
another country.  What to do?  How to find the owner?  I just came
across this site where they post pictures found on said camera or
card, and if someone recognizes the people, they can make contact.
Bet not many people know about it, or there would be more pictures
posted, I'm sure.

http://ifoundyourcamera.blogspot.com/

Contact info and legal stuff

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