. Tech update-------Windows Mobile 7, What is it?

No matter how hard you try to deny it, Windows Mobile (WM5 - 6.5), as stated by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, was a screwup. "Microsoft screwed up with Windows Mobile," he said, and it's clear they are heading elsewhere with the new "Windows Phone" named series.

In April of 2000, nearly ten years ago, Windows entered the mobile world with their Pocket Pc 2000 software, and it changed everything. At the time, Palm dominated, and soon afterward, they soon succumbed to Microsoft, even using Windows Mobile for their own devices!

Recently however, it's clear Microsoft hasn't been keeping up. Devices such as the IPhone, Plam Pre, and Google Android stand in their podiums with pride as WM sits on the sidelines.

In response, "Photon", aka Windows Mobile 7, was slated for 2009 (now 2010) to obviously correlate with the raving release of Windows 7. However, with all these rumors of new features, changes, and more coming, how true, or false, are some of these feature claims.

What can it do?

One of the biggest questions out there for Windows Mobile 7 is it features. This is also one of the hardest questions to answer.

Most of what we know about Windows Mobile 7 actually doesn't come from Microsoft, but rather 3rd parties who are interested in eventually using it on their handsets. From these rumors, we can deduct some of the following possibilities the device will have.

• A completely redone, brand new interface (Unlike past editions,where often just minor visual changes are made)
• Capacitive touch screens (Say goodbye to stylus use!)
• More unique methods of managing on the device (Pinching the screen, accelerometer, gestures and more)
• Strong computability with previous editions of software, including new software abilities.
• Up to XVGA screen resolutions (800x600!)

Based on photos like the one to the right, some other nifty possibilities include a new battery bar, information bar, and perhaps even the end of the taskbar as we know it, unique to WinMo since its first editions.

Can it really do it?

So Microsoft is making a lot of claims to Windows Mobile 7, but can it really hold its ground?

In all honesty, this question still remains a big one, and it can't really be answered, even though we're only 6 months away, no proof of concept has arrived.

Sure, almost everything proposed is possible (handsets clock at close to 600 MHZ and some carry as much as 128MB of RAM, this is nearly half the power of some low-end netbooks!) and probable, but it goes in a direction Microsoft has never taken. Capacitive screens are only seen with iPhones and BREW phones, could making the jump lose consumer loyalty (Which is already in a nosedive). A lot of changes are going to be made, and its still a wonder if they will benefit.

Everything is possible, but we need proof of concept to move on.

Final Thoughts

To recap, it's do or die for Microsoft in the mobile handset OS market.

For the last 5 years, they sat with Windows Mobile on nearly a monopoly. Now they hold just 7 percent of the market. What has happened?

Will they pull through with Windows Mobile 7 and deliver a reliable (Rather extensively hyped and feature-filled. Windows Vista?) OS? Past versions of WinMo were often bulky, bloated, and constantly require resets. Its time for Microsoft to change how they design their Mobile OS from the ground up.

To add more to the mix, all of this requires completely new phones. The majority of WinMo users carry their phones for years afterward, usually getting updates along the way, will they still hold?

Most importantly, They are not a phone builder like Apple and Palm. Rather, they just build the software and lease it to groups like HTC, and Samsung. It's up to them to suddenly jump on another OS after only about 6 months of profiting from Windows Mobile 6.5.

Last but not least, I'm really gonna miss the stylus.

. Tech update----- New Google 2.0 "Donut" Features

A. New Google 2.0 "Donut" Features

My most anticipated feature is the new "Android Search" function. Following suit from the Palm WebOS this application will allow users to quick search their entire phones database for contacts, apps, texts, emails, etc. While at the same time searching the web for information using the same search functions. The ability to search the users phone and web at the same time should lend itself well to mobile web users.

Text To Speech is also being worked into Android 2.0. This program will be part of the Google Voice integration that developers are working on. If you haven't used Google voice I definitely recommend giving it a try, Google has Text to speech down to a science and soon so will your mobile device.

Google Android 2.0 will also feature fully capable Gesture Support another option that will make it easier to navigate your device. Just think of the possibilities. For example If I'm looking for my buddy John's phone number rather than typing in his name or scrolling through my contacts list I can just draw the letter "J" on my contacts screen and pull up all the names starting with that letter. If the program works as well as other device it will also mean better gaming controls and faster virtual email entries.

Support for CDMA networks. We know this technology is on the way after Sprint CEO Dan Hesse announced that the company will soon be offering a Google Android based cell phone, most likely from Samsung or HTC. Currently the Android mobile OS only supports GSM, that will all change with Android "Eclair."

Conclusion

Google Android 2.0 promises to offer plenty of new functionality. The features I've listed above may increase in number as beta testers make additional suggestions and as Google decides on new technologies for their newest releases.

G. 10 Ways to Make Your Laptop Run More Efficiently

Here are a few simple tips that you can use to make your laptop run faster, and last longer:

1. Defragment your laptop on a regular basis – at least once a week. Your computer breaks all of your files up into many pieces, and scatters them throughout your hard drive. What defragmenting does is take all these mixed and scattered pieces, and re-organizes them neatly into a space where they can be easily accessed more quickly – The Best Free Defragmentation Tools.
2. Cleaning your Registry is a must. One of the most important parts of Windows is the registry. Fatal errors to your laptop can occur from disfiguration or corruption of this section. The most common cause of registry problems is buggy software installation. Keep your registry clean and consider getting and running a registry cleaner from time to time. There are many of these programs available online, and some of them are even free – Keep Your Registry Clean With Mr.Fix – Registry Cleaner.
3. Unclutter your hard drive of unnecessary programs and files such as entertainment, games, music, pictures, etc. If you allow them to add up, these files can clog the hard drive and slow it down. If your hard drive is too full, it can also cause problems with your computer’s RAM and processing capability. This can lead to significant slow-downs and frequent crashes – Windows Cleanup for Fast and Fun Cleanups.
4. Get good virus protection. You need to run a good anti-virus program and spyware/adware program at least once a week, if not more. Many people do this every day at start-up. Most of these programs are able to run automatically on their own schedule without your assistance, which can save you a lot of time – The Best Free Antivirus and Malware protection.
5. Empty the recycle bin regularly. It doesn’t do you a lot of good to delete all that unnecessary junk if it’s just going to sit in your Recycle Bin. No one likes taking out the trash but it needs to be done! – Recycle Bin tips and tricks.
6. Erase temporary Internet Files. This cannot be stressed or emphasized enough. Every time you go to a site on the web or open a file, a temporary copy is made and kept in your hard drive. They may be called "temporary" but they’re there for a long time. The more you have on your system, the more they’re going to slow down your laptop. Whether you’re running Firefox, Chrome or Internet Explorer, find out how to clear your browser’s cache, and do it regularly – Delete Internet History, Cache and More.
7. Get rid of unnecessary startup programs. Many programs want to start running as soon as you boot up your computer. Although these programs may not always be visible on your desktop, they’re still running in the background and sucking up your valuable RAM. This can significantly slow down the laptop as time goes by. Find out how to modify your "msconfig", and manually remove these programs from launching on startup. You won’t be removing them from your computer, just preventing them from running every time you start up your computer – The Best Startup Managers.
8. Keep your laptop running cool. Avoid keeping your laptop directly on a soft surface such as your bed or couch. It needs to be able to breather freely and allow air to circulate. Otherwise, your processor might overheat, causing slow-downs, crashes and even physical damage to components.
9. Uninstall unused programs. Any programs that are not being used are just taking up space on your hard drive. Please note that deleting a program folder is not the same as uninstalling. Make sure to properly remove programs using the Uninstall function in your Control Panel. Otherwise, you could just end up creating more problems – Best Uninstallers for Windows.
10. Upgrade your RAM if necessary. If you have a tendency of having many large programs all opened at once, you may not have enough RAM on your system. Look into purchasing some new RAM. Prices are very reasonable, and it’s a cost-effective way to increase the speed and efficiency of your laptop.

If you follow the advice listed in this article, you can possibly get an extra 2 or 3 years of life from your laptop before you’ll need to replace it.

But remember… before doing any kind of work on your system, it’s vital that you create a backup copy of all your most important data. This way, you’ll be prepared in the unlikely event that something goes wrong.

SHUTDOWN USING MOB

A. To do this, all you will need is Microsoft Outlook which should come with Microsoft Office, which most people have. This will need to be on the computer wish you wish to shutdown.

So, this is how you do this:

1. First, you need the batch files to perform the Shutdown, Hibernate etc. You can write them down yourselves or can download them from here.

2. Extract them to your C:\ drive so the path to the shutdown batch file is C:\sms_functions\shutdown.bat (Important this is a must the path must be exact) or you can modify the rule once you import it to point to the new destination, it's your call.

3. Open up Microsoft Outlook. Make sure that you have already configured it for your email.Now we will need to make it so that Outlook checks your inbox about every minute (1 minute for testing time can be increased if a delayed shutdown is desired). You can do this by going to Tools: Options.

4. Then click the Mail Setup tab, and afterwards, the Send/Receive button.

5. Make sure that the Schedule an automatic send/receive every... box is checked, and set the number of minutes to 1. Now you may close all of these dialog boxes.

6. Now go to Tools: Rules and Alerts... Next click the options button in the upper right hand corner and press the Import Rules button.

7. Now select the shutdown.rwz file that was found in the zip file named sms_functions that you downloaded.

8. Now, when you send a message from your phone to your e-mail address with the subject smsshutdown%%, your computer will shutdown.

You can also make your own rule, so that you can use your own batch file, and may specify the phrase you want to trigger the action.