Secrets of New Media Networking, Software & Apps Reviews

Counting your pennies with Skype -- turns out you have to

2012-02-01T05:15:00.000-08:00

Skype is a wonderful online software program that lets you connect for free computer-to-computer to others who have Skype accounts. And, it also allows you to use your computer through Skype to call telephones around the world for a small fee.
The fee Skype advertises is 2.3 cents per call in the United States, land lines and cell phones. The rates vary for countries around the world.
Sounds pretty simple.
The problem is that Skype isn't always honest. It's kind of like one of those movies where a low level bank employees figures out a way to take a few pennies from each transaction and steal them to another account. Eventually, those few pennies build up and make a fortune. In the movie "Office Space," that exactly what three of the company's employees did.
But that's not what Skype should be doing, and it does.
Recently, Skype sent me a note saying that if I did not use my "Skype Credit" (which is like a bank you can put into your account to cover any calls you make, they were going to remove it. All I had to do was call any number even if it is just for "one second" and the credit would remain good for at least six months (180 days).
Sounds simple. Okay. I'll waste my time to accommodate their needs.
I have $11.59 centers in credit on my account. So, I figured I'd call my cell phone on my table in front of me.
It worked, as it always does.
But I noticed that my credit dropped from $11.59 to $11.52. That was a 7 cent call. A lot different from the 2.3 cents they advertise to get people to use their system.

Call landlines and mobiles worldwide from:

2.3¢/min

That's their Ad on their web page!

The actual cost of the call was $.072 or 7.2 cents.

By my math -- and I went to the Chicago Public Schools folks -- that's a difference of 3.9 cents above what they advertised.

How many people have an accounting department to go over every call they make to insure that Skype is being honest. We're not banks. But Skype apparently thinks we are. And they must also think that we don't care about a few pennies.

But, it's not about the pennies as much as it is about the principle of honesty.

-- Ray Hanania
www.TheMediaOasis.com

Few things work as promised, but Hauppauge's HD Video Recorder for Windows is Phenomenal

2012-01-29T15:33:00.000-08:00

I wanted to have a system to be able to record programs off of my Comcast Cable TV DVR, but Comcast and the video industry have done everything they can to deny homeowners from recording live broadcasts with today's new technologies like the Blue Ray DVD players.

I've tried everything and nothing worked, until I came across the Hauppauge's HD Video recorder which literally not only allows you to grab High Definition video right off your TV set through your Comcast Cable Box (on any box, DVR or satellite slave), but it also allows you to copy anything you watch on TV, movies, news and more.

Many times I want to be able to watch a movie on my cell phone or on my iPad that I have purchased on Comcast Cable's Pay per View system.

The Hauppauge HD Video recorder does it seamlessly and in high quality. Wow!

Better yet, it is simple to install. And, it was the Comcast people at Best Buy who told me about it and recommended it. Okay, I can forgive Comcast for the way it has transformed from a great cable TV system to a greedy everything by the dollar system -- they literally will offer a movie free on one channel and try to make you pay $2.99 to see the same "OLD" movie on another channel, all at the same time.

The system comes with a HD PVR. It offers those 5-pin multi-color HDMI video cables with plug in to the back of any Comcast Cable Box and then plugs in to the HD DVR box from Haupauge. You then connect the Hauppauge HD PVR Box using a USB cable they provide -- Hauppauge provides ALL the cables you need, unlike Sony, Samsung and most other systems that make you go out and buy the necessary cables at additional costs -- to a USB plug on your computer.

Then, you install the software which loads up a Recorder program and even a Comcast Cable TV Program Guide which is updated instantly online.

Turn on your TV and cable system, find a movie you want to record -- a TV show, anything -- and then run the software with the Hauppauge HD PVR plugged in to a power source. Load the recording software and it open a video window that displays the exact same image on your computer that is on the TV, with a two second delay. Lower the volume on either the TV or the computer, and hit "Record."

Video files are large so I suggest you purchase a 1 Terra-byte standalone USB port hard drive (about $90 or so at Best Buy) and save the file which is in MP4 format there.

The program also allows you to create a DVD of the recording you just made, or just save it for future use.

This is a NECESSARY PURCHASE folks. You can't live without. It is the absolute best option considering that they are now going to be producing gadgets and gizmos to allow you to get around the ridiculous treat-me-like-a-criminal recording obstacles and barriers that the greedy movie and cable TV industry is insisting to impose on us.

Seriously, folks. We pay a monthly subscription for what? So that we can watch loads of worthless commercials on Cable TV (cable TV was supposed to be paid and free of commercials) and then pay more to watch most movie options. That's double billing.

Go out and get this. And if you can't find it, go to www.HaupPauge.com and order it online. It will literally be the best $199 you have ever spent.

It has other options, too. You can connect it to your XBox system and record your game play or record video through your system.

Here's what the manufacturer writes about this NECESSARY FOR A DECENT LIFE piece of equipment:

HD PVR: the ultimate high definition video recorder for video game play plus cable and satellite TV
Record your video game play in HD onto your PC's disk drive. Or record your favorite TV shows from your cable or satellite TV set top box in HD. HD PVR has a built in H.264 high definition recorder. Great video quality, great system performance!

HD PVR: $199.-

New! HD PVR Gaming Edition, with all the cables you need to connect your Xbox 360 or PS3 game console. Special price: $199.-!

Now available from Fry's, Best Buy and Micro Center stores in the U.S.
In Canada, you can buy HD PVR at Future Shop, Best Buy Canada and London Drugs.

-- Ray Hanania
www.TheMediaOasis.com

MaxMySpeed.com (CyberDefender Corporation)

2011-12-11T16:47:00.000-08:00

Last year (December 2010) I saw the commercial about getting my computer fixed for free from MaxMySpeed.com (Cyber Defender). I went to the site, downloaded the software and was told that my computer was slow, but to actually have it fixed, I had to pay the $44.

I did and was disappointed.

Click here to read my original post.

After complaining and getting no satisfaction, I removed the software. It was worthless.

Click here to read my follow up post.

MaxMySpeed.com officials then tried to respond to my blogs claiming I would not post their comments (not true. All of their comments were posted. But because I am a journalist and they are not, I posted their entire response not just in the comment section but also as a new blog post.

Click here to read their response in the blog post.

In their response, they urge readers to decide for themselves by going to the Better Business Bureau's Cosumer Protection Website Trustlink.com.

Click here for a link to the BBB Consumer Protection Review of CyberDefender/MaxMySpeed.com.

You can go there and read my very angry review of what they just did.

My recommendation is to NOT do business with CyberDefender or MaxMySpeed.com.

Clearly, after the dispute and complaint and my official request to cancel the software, they have proven themselves to be very untrustworthy.

3:15 PM:
I'm on the line with a representative and they indicated they would "Opt Me Out of the Auto Renewal" and would refund my money. At least they are being fair. We'll see if they keep that promise!!!!

3:30 PM: I received an email fromt hem confirming that the account will be closed and their second billing will be refunded. BUT, the refund is only $37.61, which means they are taking $7 for their hassle.

Your refund in the amount of $37.61 will be applied to your credit or debit card.

That's pathetic!

Do not do business with them. Pass this web page link along. I've tried to be fair and their software doesn't do anything to speed up your computer. They buy huge commercials and are so willing to harass people for $44.

Not only are they untrustworthy - they charged me for an automatic renewal without even asking me, sending me a notice or even giving me the option to cancel when I already canceled in a high profile way a year before, but you don't even get the full refund when they credit your account. They're obnoxious (as evidenced by their insulting and dishonest response to my reporting.)

I'm proud to be able to expose them for what they are. Losers!

(I'll be talking about this lousy product on my Sunday morning radio show. Tune in.)

Click here to view another complaint about Max My Speed and Cyber Defender.)

-- Ray Hanania

The iPad and iPad2: They're great for fun and passing the time, but not much for productivity

2011-11-23T12:13:00.000-08:00

I write five columns each week, two for the Jerusalem Post and Creators Syndicate on Middle East topics and three for local Chicagoland newspapers. I also write six blogs on specialty issues (SuburbanChicagoland.com, OrlandParker.com and more).

That's in addition to the high intensity media and press release writing I do for a half dozen clients, including several that are constantly in the news.

I purchased and iPad earlier this year believing that I could take my writing more mobile. The iPad had something I couldn't easily or affordably get from my reliable Dell laptop, nationwide wireless service. Oh, they do offer nationwide wireless through the Clear network and others. But the charge is over $50 a month. That's felony grand theft. Way too much, especially considering I already pay for a cell phone and Internet access in the home. So far, no one has come up with a consolidation plan to let me get one nationwide wirless service for the cell, the home, and the computer. Affordable.

Internet access for the iPad is only $25 a month. So it was a natural.

But when it comes to writing, no matter what the App that you download (free or for purchase), the touch screen keyboard is unreliable.

I even moved up to an iPad2 thinking it would improve. Well, the iPad2 has new gizmos on it -- mainly the camera (front and back) but not much else. No worry though for me. My son and wife love the first iPad and they use it often for productive things like playing Angry Birds, skeetball and some puzzle games. Yes, the iPad is very good if you have time to kill and want to entertain yourself. You can even watch a movie on it, if you could get the iPad to more easily load your movies without having to pay the exorbitant prices from iTunes.

But for me, it is all about writing.

The iPad2 has the restrictions imposed by the late megalomaniac Steve Jobs who spent his life trying to do everything he could to control your life. He wanted to control everything for computer consumers and eliminate the need for you to have a brain where you might think for yourself. Why do that? Making his 1984 commercial a real farce. Steve Jobs was more about Big Brother than Big Brother himself. In fact, Big Brother could have learned a few things about how to more efficiently control people from Steve Jobs, the master controller.

One of the biggest disadvantages for the iPad2 user is the on-screen keyboard. It doesn't work unless you are a slow and cumbersome typist. I type fast, at "the speed of media" which means that I write to keep up with the requirements of producing news and opinion content. When you get into the fast-paced typing speeds, the iPad simply can't register the letters fast enough. So you end up with jambalaya text. Parts of words strung together without spaces -- the least sensitive in the space bar. So if you plan on using the iPad to type live comments from someone you are interviewing, it's not good enough.

Worse is the problem with iTunes and the management of the content on your iPad. I have purchased many writing Apps. None of them fulfill my needs at all. I have one called iA Writer, which I have found comes close. But still, the keyboard is deficient. It lacks all the keys I need so I am constantly having to have to switch screens in the middle of writing from letters to numbers and characters. Some characters you must have in writing and many are on the iA Writer Keyboard without having to switch. But not enough.

Obviously, no one at Apple knows how to write to communicate. They can't even write an operating manual. There is none to be found anywhere.

I do like the iPad2 as a new way to read books. I can set the brightness and contrast and even the size of the letters. That brightness makes it easier to read. So, instead of writing myself, I am relegated with the iPad to reading everyone else's writings. I guess that would be great if I were a megalomaniac computer Big Brother tyrant. But I am not. I have more respect for the needs of human beings. Simple things, like being able to communicate efficiently.

There are no Apps that allow me to easily post to my blogs. Apple hates Windows and PCs so the iPad doesn't work well with Blogger.com (which is owned by Google) and it doesn't allow Flash because Steve Jobs had a hard-on for Adobe. I hate Adobe, too, but not enough to have gone to war with them. I am forced to use their PDF reader and Flash, which is one of the most efficient onscreen video systems available. Everyone uses it, except for Apple maniacs.

So when it comes to writing, -- I've won many awards including 4 Lisagor Awards, a Sigma Delta Chi Award and being named Best Ethnic Columnist in America from the New America Media, among others -- I have to turn to my laptop.

I did waste $99 plus tax to purchase an iPad2 keyboard, which makes the tablet format bulky and difficult to hold. It seems to me that if I have to make the iPad into a laptop just to do quality writing, doesn't that defeat the whole concept of the tablet design?

The iPad does have one other redeeming value, though, that the laptops lack. It has a battery that last up to 8 hours or more. My laptop only lasts about 2 hours. Despite the Dell Propaganda that it will last up to 5 hours, it does not.

So, I will look foolish connecting the iPad2 keyboard to the iPad2 using Bluetooth, and also charging both with separate chargers -- why can't they both charge together when connected? It doesn't make sense. But nothing computer techies design makes sense because in truth, computer techies are not human beings. They are Martians without brains. And they don't know squat about the real needs of the average consumer, and a few who are not so average, too.

-- Ray Hanania
www.hanania.com

Beware of Q-See camera surveillance systems from CompUSA

2011-11-15T19:35:00.000-08:00

The Q-See brands of security cameras are a scam. The 8 camera set with an internal 1 Terbyte Harddrive sells for about $900. It claims to have an "easy" setup on the internet. But the truth is, the set-up is impossible and invovles more than 30 confusing steps.

Clearly, Q-See was setup by a geek with no commonsense who doesn't use or need a security system and involves software designed by high tech software programmers who have normal life. The system is inoperable.

Now, they give you a card to call someone to install your system. But the cost is unbelievable, more than $200 per camera, plus another $1,500 to configure your computer system.

Here's the problem. It takes 10 days to set up your home system so that you can make the cameras display on a flat screen TV monitor. Then, it takes another 10 days to configure the DVR that manages the cameras so that you can access the video images "internally" through your home network. What that means is that they allow you to view the camera images on the TV monitor AND they allow you to use an iPad (after downloading the Super Cam HD system software after paying the unbelievably rip-off price of $10.99) so that you can use the iPad to view the images WHILE YOU ARE IN YOUR HOME.

How stupid is that? Okay, maybe it's a convenience but for $10.99 after spending $900. Forget about it. It's stupid like the idiot who designed this system.

But that's not the biggest problem with the Q-See QT$ DVR systems.

If you want to access the system from OUTSIDE of your home network, you have to follow 50 steps to configure your system so that your "router" forwards your port to only God knows where.

Are these people moronic or what? The most idiotic waste of money system I have ever purchased.

Don't buy it. You can't configure your own system. It is impossible because the "User Manuel" they provide to manage the 16 Channell CIF@480fps & D1 @ 120fps Digital Video Recorder is a worthless piece of garbage.

The User Manuel for the QT426 -- have you figured out that with all these numbers it is a scam to just take your money? -- is worthless. It has100 pages of worthless instructions that cannot be configured by any normal human being.

So, if you are going to purchase a home camera security system, DO NOT PURCHASE the Q-See models. Honestly, you will be wasting your time. Or, you will have to be wealthy like Steve Jobs (the king of consumer abusers) to afford having one of the Q-See technicians to come over and set it up for you. And the cost of them coming to your home is over $2,500 to set up their worthless system.

You are better off going to ADT and purchasing one of their remote camera systems that works better and costs far less and have security monitoring linked to the local police station.

The bottom line is that the Q-See QT426 and all of its other models do not work at all.

You might be tempted to try and follow the directions but the directions are worthless and lead you to a dead end.

For example, they try to get you to go to their web page at www.q.see.com. There, you will set up a "free" account that is even more worthless. It does nothing. You set up a domain there, to do what? Once you have their domain address, it does nothing.

I urge you not to buy this or any other product from Q-See systems. You do not want the misery of knowing you wasted your money because you will not be able to set up the system. You will have to pay the Q-See moron geeks to do it for you and you don't want to waste that money.

You will also waste your time trying to get "Port Forwarding" enabled. It doesn't matter if you have the IP address for the DVR or for your router. It will not forward. And, to make matters really worse, this is the instruction manuel they provide for "simple and easy port forwarding" instructions.

Click here

Don't even waste your time. I can't say it enough.

-- Ray Hanania
www.hanania.com

Vizio is the poor man's Flat Screen TV -- avoid them if you can

2011-10-23T20:44:00.000-07:00

When you are stuck on the RGB option on your Vizio or you get the blue screen and the warning "No Input" - Here is how to get out of that problem.

Vizio TVs have so many problems. They falsely promote their resolution as being higher than it really is.The TV picture quality is mediocre, not great. But the worse problem is that it has every kind of back input where you can plug in two HDMI, accessory modes and an RGB plug-in. The RGB plug-in is for old computers just in case you still have a crappy old reliable old computer with an RGB plug and you don't have a new laptop or even the iPad or iPad 2 -- the iPads are massively restrictive, too, and Steve Jobs made sure that in order to enjoy his ingenuity, you had to suffer through his selfish restrictions that prohibit things like Flash, or Outlook from working on his systems.

But back to Vizio, the lousy flat screen TVs that poor people purchase thinking they are saving money and getting decent quality. They won
t get decent quality. They will get all kinds of head aches.

The worst headache is when you switch using the remote from one input to another. Maybe you have a Cable Box and a Blue Ray plugged into the two HDMI inputs. I also have an old DVD/VHS player and have an HDMI splitter, which is hard to find but can be found in case you want to plug in more than two HDMI devices into any TV, Vizio or good ones.

(Vizio means Crappy in Italian, I think.)

Anyway, as you switch from "Component to component" you might discover that if you linger on the RGB Input option too long, the TV shuts off after displaying the warning "No Signal" on the crappy TV screen. (Remember, it has many component inputs and in order to switch from Cable to Blue Ray or DVD player, you have to change the "Input" option. In otherwords, you have to tell the TV where the signal is coming from.

When you switch and stop at RGB Input, and you stay on that option too long -- maybe trying to reduce the volume that you had to raise very high when playing the Blue Ray and you knew the Cable volume would double in volume just during the switch, you try to reduce the volume before switching to HDMI 1, or HDMI 2. And that's when the Vizio Quirck happens.

The TV shuts off.

And you keep waiting for the TV to "click" so that it signals that you can now turn the TV back on, because Vizio has a crappy system that requires a 10 second wait before turning a TV on that was just turned off.

So you turn the TV on and then you start clicking the Input button to change from RGB Input to HDMI 1 input, but you keep getting the "blue screen" and the words "No Signal" at the top of the screen. And then the TV turns itself off. Yes, the Vizio TV doesn't get a signal so they figure you are an idiot and it turns itself off.

What techno-moron came up with the? (Techies are morons who have no life and can program great software programs but have no idea how to make anything really user friendly or of full benefit to the consumer. They come close, but close only counts in horseshoes. ANd a Vizio TV is not a horseshoe game although you sometimes want to throw a steel horseshoe at the screen and toss it in the garbage.

But here is the SECRET to get past the stuck on the blue screen "no signal" problem. Instead of turning on the TV using the On and Off button, once 10 seconds passes, just hit the Input Button on the side of the TV and that will turn on the TV and automatically change to the next input system. If you get a "no signal" warning on your stupid Vizio blue screen, turn it on using the INPUT Key.

Maybe the morons who designed the Vizio TV would explain that in their operating manuals but I bet they don't use their products so they have no idea the kind of hassles consumers have to go through.

Have I made myself clear?

You will have this problem, so I hope you find this posting to help you resolve it.

If you click it on using the on-off button and then repeatedly try to change the Input either from the remote or the side of the TV, the TV will just go off.

Idiots.

-- Ray Hanania
www.TheMediaOasis.com

No solution to Spring Evo -- Android problems with limited space

2011-10-18T11:22:00.000-07:00

The HTC Sprint EVO has a serious problem with limited space on its internal drive where most of the apps are downloaded and run. You can only run about six apps on your cell phone before you will be forced to start deleting apps. It doesn't matter how large a SD or internal memory card you have because most apps do not run off of the SD cards or off internal memory.

There is only one solution to the HTC Evo Spring space limitations and that is to purchase another phone or to move to another system, like the iPhone. The real advantage of the iPhone is that there is no limit to the number of apps you can download and install on your system.

It's a major problem for the Spring HTC Evo android cell phones.

Worse, the Spring Company is censoring their forums to block criticism or postings about this major problem. When someone asks about it, Spring posts a response saying you need to clean up your email "Trash" forlder, but that only eliminates some of the space. And then they close the forum topic to prevent other people from piling it on them.

In reality, this will be a killer for Spring. It is a hassle to change but once it is done, it is the most effective and satisfying way to get out of this problem that Spring refuses to address.

Greed always trumps service.

-- Ray Hanania
http://RayHanania.wordpress.com

Here's another App that is better but not great

2011-10-08T05:53:00.000-07:00

As you know, I write a lot. I mean, a lot. I have many blogs all with very specific topic focuses. This one is about Social Networking strategies to promote my book (which is doing very well). And it also looks at software scams (andf other scams like that Flex Seal garbage that they sell on those very effective infomericlas). It also looks at iPad and Android Apps that you should try or, more likely, stay away from.

As a writer, I am always looking for a good iPad App for writing.

I've found a couple of good ones, but like all programs designed by computer tech nerds, they always come up a little short. That's because -- here I am on my soap box -- computer nerds know how to program. But they don't know the realities of the services their programs are trying to address. They have no commonsense and they lack the experience of being a real end-user. So their programs do great things that oftentimes are not worth doing.

However, that said, I like iAWriter, which is an App that allows you to write on your iPad efficiently and with a keyboard that has more options. The iPad keyboard is very limiting and cumbersome. It's not very useful at all unless all you do is type letters without any meaning, of course. These Apps don't come with many instructions but you can figure most of them out, if the programmer is halfway human, that is. It's made by Information Architects Inc. I had to pay for it but I don't recall the price -- since once it is downloaded they quickly eliminate that information.) But it is the BEST that is out there. And I have tried and deleted many.

Another App that comes close to being great is called Blogger + or BloggerPlus!. The developer is very concerned about the users which is a good thing and he has his web site there and he WANTS you to contact him for ideas to make it better. That's a good thing and says that the programmer who designed the App does care about the enduser and not just the moolah.

The web site for Blogger+ is http://bloggerplus.xmpp.kr.

The App allows you to manage your blogs and to actually post on the ones that Apple and Steve Jobs vengefully tried to keep out of their system. (Jobs didn't like Flash so he made sure it would not work on his products. Selfish ass! May he rest in peace, though.) And Blogger.com doesn't work on any of the web explorers that iPad allows you to use. (You can't use Google Chrome which is the best, just the Steve Jobs products. Crap!!!)

But BloggerPlus! allows you to manage your Blogger.com blogs and all your other blogs from other systems including WordPress. You can use Drupal (never heard of it but I might if BloggerPlus! thinks it is worth listing. And Tumblr.com and Tistory.com and Naver.com and Egloos.com and Joomla and BloggerPlus!'s own default type blog.

The only draw back if you have many blogs at one of those (I have about 15 or so -- but who's counting when you write like a banshee?) You can't just link them all automatically. So I have to link them to BloggerPlus! one at a time repeating the same process of username and password for each one (Blogger.com uses one system for each blog so it is repetitive.)

The other draw back, though it is minor, is that it doesn't add the posting scripts that you can embed in Blogger. I have a Share button at the top of each posting that is automatically embedded in my blogs and also on some my PodoMatic Podcasting script (which is very cool -- someone knew how to really design for the user with that one.)

I definitely recommend buying BloggerPlus! for iPad and iPad2 (I have both, though I let my son use and abuse the iPad while I am working with the new one.)

Again, I recommend not getting fixContacts, the App that alleges it will help you manage your contacts but is a bug waiting to happen, sadly. And that costs like $7.95. What a waste. But better I waste the money than you, my contribution to the betterment of our society.

-- Ray Hanania
http://RayHanania.wordpress.com

iPad Apps that just don't work -- Fix Contacts App for iPad -- it stinks

2011-10-07T13:04:00.000-07:00

One of the big problems with the iPad is the system of Apps. Not all of them work. They are designed by people intent more on making a buck than an application that really does address someone else's need, like a user.

So I will review Apps for both the iPad and iPad2 that I am using.

The iPad comes with a worthless "Contact" app that is unmanageable. For all the things they are saying about Apple and the late Steve Jobs, they ignore the shortcomings. It seems Apple and Jobs sped so fast to do things, they didn't care if what they were doing was sufficient, or inadequate. The "Contacts" App that comes with the iPad is horrible and not very user friendly, which means you'll need to download an App to deal with the shortcomings.

It's tragic that you pay $1,027 for a new iPad or iPad2 with 3G and the 3G only works sometimes, the system crashes often and it has so many shortcomings. It's a great idea that lacks completion, and it is certainly far short of its vision.

My first choice was to mistakenly believe that price reflects quality. Many Apps are "free," but they are intended as advertising platforms that are annoying, and the developers who don't care about you at all, believe that you will eventually purchase the premium app for money so they can become the next Steve Jobs billionaire.

One of those is "Fix Contacts" by Giacomo Balli. It csts $7.95. It's horrible. It's supposed to help you manage your contacts. Being a journalist and writer and media consultant, I have 800 contacts on an active list, and even more on a backup list I won't put on the iPad because the iPad can't manage large lists. (Another shortcoming the Jobs cheerleaders won't discuss, of course.)

The software layout is pathetic and not user friendly at all. It gives you a list of things you can do to filter your contacts. You can identify the contacts that do not have an email address or a telephone number, and then slowly and tediously -- one at a time -- highlight, then delete and then confirm delete. What a laborious waste of time process.

It brags that it is the App to clean your address book. But instead of using a bucket and scrubber, you are using a toothbrush with no soap. It takes forever. And it is limiting, too. You can't really manage your contacts.

Worse, you know how the Apps always allow you to enter a review? Well, this one offers it but like the software app, the review app doesn't work, so you can't warn anyone about how it is a waste of time.

I think some of the App developers need to hire users with commonsense to help them make their ideas worthwhile. Instead, greed drives a lot of the Apps development, by people who know how to program but have no life experience to understand the reality of what their programs need to do.

-- Ray Hanania
http://rayhanania.wordpress.com

Android EVO Sprint: Low on Space warning hassle

2011-09-24T07:21:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest problems with the Android EVO cell phone is that it has a space issue. After you download a few aps -- a few, not a lot -- it runs out of "space" on the cell phone quickly. All of the Applications are automatically downloaded to the Cell Phone memory instead of to the SD Card which has humongous room for storage but is rarely used by the cell phone.

Spring, where I bought mine, has the worst technology assistance program -- it's mindless. The economy is so bad they are taking advantage of ti by hiring unqualified people with no experience at low wages, to save money, of course. So you can't get answers from their tech support people. You can't go online either. They are hopeless. Their only solution is "Send it to us and we will check it and send it back."

Sure, why don't I take a VACATION FROM LIFE! Morons!

There is no solution to it. The Android Forums that "support" the EVO are equally worthless. They are managed by Evo and Spring employees so they insure that any real answers that expose their worthless products are deleted from the forums.

So much for free speech in America.

The only solution to the Android "Low on Space" warning is to purchase another phone from another manufacturer. The iPhone is probably your best bet. Buying the Android because you don't like Apple is a mistake.

A PS: The same day I wrote this I received a letter int he mail notifying that my "Premier" benefits were ending. I didn't know I had premier benefits of any kind. No one ever told us. And when you review the Premier Benefits that are ending, you realize they are worthless anyway. (Click here to read them.) So, nothing lost. I had to go to three Sprint stores, by the way, to get help with my phone and finally did get help from a Tech Store in Mokena.

-- Ray Hanania
www.hanania.com

Getting ripped off with FlexSeal "rubber spray paint."

2011-07-23T08:17:00.000-07:00

It is rubber spray paint and I purchased it to give it a try. The TV commercials showed someone promising that FlexSeal will help seal any cracks, breaks or anything especially in rain gutters to prevent water leakage.

I purchased two cans. Click here to read my story. But I learned that for $39.98, thw two cans are a rip-off. Don't buy Flex Seal.

Why?

It's not that the product doesn't work. It does work. But, the manufacturers are greedy. It's about money, not service. They give you a large spray can but it is only filled with 10 ounces of spray. I'm not even sure if it is really 10 ounces. It's probably less. Each can will barely cover 12 inches of a standard rain gutter before it runs out of spray.

Seriously. Flex Seal is that cheap. I sprayed the seal on one gutter bend where I had a small drip leak. Inside and on the corner. The can emptied out in seconds. Seconds! For $19 a can.

It's a serious rip-off. Don't buy it.

They offer you two cans, but you have to pay the handling and processing fee for the second can which they say is Free. But the cost of the processing and handling is equal to the cost of one, useless can of Flex Seal.

Then, they call you and try to sign you up for $100 in coupons that are worthless, which requires a subscription cost of $39 a month. You can say NO but they will sign you up anyway.

It's a scam. Don't waste your money. I waste my money to help you save yours.

These people are serious scammers. The product is not worth it. They don't lie, but they mislead.

Click here to view their web site.

The spray works. But they don't give you enough to do a good job. To fix a rain gutter with lots of problems, you would have to buy $3,990 worth of the Flex Seal. For that price, get yourself new rain gutters.

-- Ray Hanania

Sprint lg optimus has major calendar bug

2011-03-13T20:00:00.000-07:00

The spring lg phone has a major bug. When daylight savings time automatically kicked in, my cell updated on it's own. And then, it changed every calendar listing to, moving every appointment up one hour.

But sprint prevents users from posting on the chat boards without their permission so we can't discuss this glitch or software bug publicly. It-'s a major bug that needs to be fixed but they won't deal ith it.

Eery calndar entry has to be manually re-set back one hour to correct the problem, which means in the Fall when the time changes, you'll have to do it again.

That's pathetic technology.

I removed MaxMySpeed.com software from my laptop -- and it runs faster

2011-01-24T09:25:00.000-08:00

I wrote recently about the trials and tribulations I was having with that highly publicized software by MaxMySpeed.com. Supposedly they promised to speed up your computer. They invited you to have your competer checked by their software for free -- and many people, I bet, thought that the free analysis would result in a faster computer.

It doesn't.

Here is what I wrote about my poor experience with this company. Click here to read the story.

The software cost me a total of $44. It included a second software I did not order but that was billed to me anyway. When I complained -- and DID NOT download the software -- the company promised to reimburse me the $14. They never did.

Here's the company's response to my column. Click here to read the response.

The scan they ran claimed I had 90 registry errors. Wow. My virus software told me that. Still, once it told me about the errors, and then said I had to buy the software to fix the problem, I decided to test the software.

It doesn't work. It really stinks.

The first thing it does is take care of itself. It inserts it in your startup file so that the software automatically runs in your memory when you start up your computer. That slows the system down, of course.

Even when I removed it from my startup file, it kept reinserting itself.

I ran the software several times and first cleared up the errors the "free" run claimed were slowing my system down.

Sure enough the registry problems RETURNED. More than 80 registry errors within two days. I ran it again. Presumably cleaned up the errors. And sure enough, they returned.

So what exactly does the software do?

It didn't speed my computer up.

Don't buy it. In my opinion, it doesn't work.

MaxMySpeed.com responds to my criticism of their terrible software. Don't Buy It recommendation!

2011-01-08T06:40:00.000-08:00

HERE IS THE RESPONSE FROM CYBER DEFENDER SUPPORT FOR MY COLUMN criticizing MaxMySpeed.com, which I think STINKS! They tried to post it as a COMMENT but comments are limited tounder 4,200 or so characters including spaces. So I will post their comment here, even though my recommendation is to NOT subscribe to their service. They misled me into believing the service was free and THEN I could purchase it. They scanned my system and then insisted I purchase to repair. When I did that, I discovered that they system had me purchase a SECOND Software which I did not want and I DID NOT DOWNLOAD. And that billing was promised to be reversed and it never was.

AND WORSE. when I downloaded and ran the SCAN AGAIN, after I ran it through their web site, my system did NOT run faster despite the software identify many registry errors and correcting them.

-- Ray Hanania
(Here is their email to me in response):

Dear Customer, You recently requested assistance from our Support Center. Below is a summary of your original request, as well as our response.

If this resolution is not to your satisfaction, you may reply to this email within the next 7 days to reopen the case.

Thank you for allowing us to be of service to you. Regards, CyberDefender Support

Dear Mr. Hanania, we attempted to post this message as a reply to your recent blog, however it would appear our responses continue to be deleted. We are therefore opting to reply via email until a public response is posted.

On behalf of CyberDefender Corporation, we’d like to thank you for your personal appraisal of our company and brands. We always appreciate hearing feedback from real individuals like you, and not necessarily from those who might have a degree in a computer technology-related field, or something of the like. It is a refreshing change of pace to engage in discourse with an experienced professional like yourself, and a comedian and satirist no less.

However, we can see from what you posted that you have either been misinformed, or are simply confused as to the nature of our company, products, and services, and perhaps the industry altogether as a whole. It’s our sincere hope that we might enlighten you with facts, if only to prevent similar occurrences from arising in the future. Unfortunately, several of your points must be contested, as they have basis neither in truth nor reality, and the content ultimately demonstrates an article of guesswork and hypothesis.

You begin by stating that “like all sleazy sales people,” CyberDefender has employed a “catch” to our Registry Cleaner’s free scan. This leads us to believe that you are under the impression that our offering a free, limited trial version of the software is deceptive, or “sleazy” in some fashion. Never in our advertisements do we state that the service is free. We establish quite clearly that the initial diagnoses are free. That is why we state therein “…get your free diagnosis,” and not “…get your free software.” This is the nature of the majority of free, limited trial versions of computer software. One need only browse a website like Cnet’s Download.com to understand that an overwhelming amount of the products they offer consumers for download are only “free to try,” yet ultimately cost money to unlock the full capabilities of a given program. A popularized term for such software is “demo,” meaning the software is only a demonstrative version, and not a fully operational version.

You also state that visiting MaxMySpeed.com prompts a “sleazy sales pitch” at potential customers, and declare that a site which utilizes automatically playing media such as audio and video “means there is trouble a brewing.” This statement struck us as most bizarre, not due to the increasing presence of “sleaze” in your article, but since it is not at all peculiar for websites in this day and age to feature media which plays automatically, especially when it comes to advertising. Several extremely popular, high-traffic websites such as Youtube.com and MySpace.com have each likewise employed the same method, but the list of entities which feature automatically-playing media numbers in the thousands to tens-of-thousands, and perhaps even beyond.

It must be noted that as we were writing this message, we downloaded and installed a fresh copy our Registry Cleaner software in hopes of mimicking your own tests. The initial scan of which took about a minute. Now, based on your claim that the “’free’ scan takes a long time,” it would seem that your PC may be an ideal candidate for optimization services. But regardless, a more valid concern than what you have expressed would be if the registry cleaning software performed its scans in an extraordinarily short period of time. Windows registries are dynamic, sir, and will be different from person-to-person. This depends not only on the registry size, status and condition, but the various hardware components of an individuals’ computer, both factoring into each person who running a scan more than likely experiencing one either shorter in length or longer in length than the next.

You mention that “registry errors do not necessarily slow your system down.” With this, we whole-heartily agree. However, for the sake of your argument, it might have been best to try and research some absolutes instead of indefinites, since your pertinent statements thereafter can only be partially true - certainly something a respected journalist would desire to steer clear of, that realm of publishing half-truths without genuinely researching that which he desires to advocate against.

We are a bit surprised with your distaste of CyberDefender products, and perceived preference of Norton-Symantec. The perceived preference comes from your admission of using Norton software on your computer. The surprise comes from the fact that CyberDefender’s own Senior Vice President of Product Development Sarah Hicks and Vice President of Engineering and Threat Research Brian Yoder are both executive alumni of Norton-Symantec. Sarah Hicks is the former Vice President of Product Management for Symantec, where she spent over 11 years contributing to and leading the teams responsible for developing Norton AntiVirus, Norton SystemWorks, Norton Internet Security, and N360, and Brian Yoder functioned as Senior Software Designer for Norton/Symantec, serving on the development team responsible for Norton Utilities, Norton Commander, and Norton Desktop. Moreover, he was the Director of Product Development and Architect at Earthlink, Inc., working with the vastly popular ISP for four years prior to joining CyberDefender. These, as well as the rest of our executive board, all have an extensively proven track-record in the industry, and have worked extremely hard to make that so. If this were not the case, CyberDefender would not have brought them on board. If they did not see CyberDefender as a legitimate, serious player in the world of PC-optimization, they would not have come aboard. These are literally the very same minds which brought you the very anti-virus and PC optimization software you are using today.

We are a bit surprised with your distaste of CyberDefender products, and perceived preference of Norton-Symantec. The perceived preference comes from your admission of using Norton software on your computer. The surprise comes from the fact that CyberDefender’s own Senior Vice President of Product Development Sarah Hicks and Vice President of Engineering and Threat Research Brian Yoder are both executive alumni of Norton-Symantec. Sarah Hicks is the former Vice President of Product Management for Symantec, where she spent over 11 years contributing to and leading the teams responsible for developing Norton AntiVirus, Norton SystemWorks, Norton Internet Security, and N360, and Brian Yoder functioned as Senior Software Designer for Norton/Symantec, serving on the development team responsible for Norton Utilities, Norton Commander, and Norton Desktop. Moreover, he was the Director of Product Development and Architect at Earthlink, Inc., working with the vastly popular ISP for four years prior to joining CyberDefender. These, as well as the rest of our executive board, all have an extensively proven track-record in the industry, and have worked extremely hard to make that so. If this were not the case, CyberDefender would not have brought them on board. If they did not see CyberDefender as a legitimate, serious player in the world of PC-optimization, they would not have come aboard. These are literally the very same minds which brought you the very anti-virus and PC optimization software you are using today.

As per your claims of padding the billing charge, it would seem you are referring to our website’s checkout page. When a customer is interested in purchasing products or services directly through our online medium, we do display a purchase price which reflects the total cost of the desired item, plus that of complementary software we feel would benefit the consumer has desired to purchase. No consumer is forced to purchase these suggested items, and all it takes is a simple un-checking of a checkbox to opt out. Furthermore, we only ever recommend one software product in this fashion and a backup CD copy of their desired software, meaning there are only two checkboxes involved in these projected totals. This, like aforementioned concepts, is nothing new, nor is it anything that CyberDefender alone employs. All that is demonstrated by your inclusion of encouraged marketing and its transparently implied maliciousness/unethical behavior is a lack of well-rounded experience in online ordering, and perhaps a touch of worldly naïveté. Another testament to this is your claim that CyberDefender wants “to sell you their own virus scan” upon checkout. This is an outright fabrication, as CyberDefender has provided our anti-virus services absolutely free of charge ever since the advent of CyberDefenderFREE 2.0 in 2007.

Should an individual accidentally purchase extra items at checkout, we will fully refund the cost of those extra items.

Your closing statements include some final points. First, that “In the end, my laptop ran just as fast and slow as it always does.” If that is the case, and you honestly see no improvement in your PC within 30 days from purchase, we are more than happy to supply you with a full refund in accordance with our satisfaction guarantee. This guarantee is included on the checkout page of every software purchase on our site.

Secondly, you state that “The registry scan didn't do anything.” We certainly hope you weren’t under the impression that simply scanning your registry would enhance the performance of your computer, as that is not how the product, or any registry cleaner, is designed to work. Or that even cleaning your registry once for the purpose of testing bring about immediate and everlasting flawlessness in your PC. It is the active and regular maintenance of Windows Registry which warrants to most beneficial, noticeable, and lasting results. This is reflected throughout our site, most pertinently on our Registry Cleaner’s product page and CyberDefender.com’s Frequently Asked Questions Knowledge Base. It is also common knowledge in the world of registry cleaning.

Thirdly, you postulate that “All those testimonials from the happy girl and happy guy voices on the commercials are paid, and don't represent real consumers.” All of our customer testimonials, whether in television advertising, or online consumer websites, represent real consumers in absolute. We implore any interested in truth to visit our profile at the Better Business Bureau’s Consumer Protection website Trustlink.com (http://trustlink.org/Reviews/CyberDefender-205958423), whence they may read legitimate reviews from legitimate CyberDefender users. Accusations attempting to implicate otherwise are baseless and serve only to provide libel in defamation attempts.

Mr. Hanania, we maintain upwards of 8-million active subscribers, up 3-million from the previous year. We understand it might be difficult for someone of your stature to relate to such numbers, but it should be no surprise that some of these nigh 8-million individuals have decided to post positive feedback of a product and service they use and appreciate. If one still cannot fully grasp this, we suspect a dose of humility will help clear the mind.

You close by stating “If you promise a free scan give people the free service.” We apologize, but that simply is not an economical or sensible business practice. We offer a free computer diagnosis; we provide a free computer diagnosis. We offer a service; we sell a service. This shouldn’t be alarming in the least, as it has been acceptable business practice for well over 100 years in this country (providing/selling what is offered as is offered). America wasn’t built on businesses doling out free products, but on a functional business-to-consumer relationship, providing the general public with products or services they wish to purchase under their own accord.

Thank you,
CyberDefender

Is R Tabera a terrorist or just a telephone scammer?

2010-12-29T15:21:00.000-08:00

Visit this link:
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-954-537-5248/2

The fact is that a scammer named Tabera is calling Americans and hoping to get them to give him $500 for a phony cruise. They call every day and they claim that you can call a number to get them to stop, but there is never a live voice on the line. It is computer driven.

Why isn't the U.S. Justice Department investigating this foreign based terrorist solicitor?

Why should I have to call them to get off the list? And what right do they have to call my home number and harass me every day?

I think they are terrorists and I have tried to ask every time I answer the phone but no one answers when you pick it up. They insist you call them to register (and pay) for the cruise line they claim you won by registering on the Internet, which is an outright lie.

Stop the terrorists.

The Justice Department should act. I am reaching out to them to file a formal complaint.

XMasTrade.com is a spam scam web site ... beware

2010-12-27T06:08:00.000-08:00

The message claims to be from one of your friends. It asks you to go to www.XMasTrade.com to purchase a new iPad. It's a phishing site that the U.S. Attorney should shut down.

Here is the spam message that the web site sent out using my email address:

hey
Just received my ipad from this website www.Xmastrade.com Total price $660US all charges included .I've now spent the better part of a day playing with the new iPad, and while it excels in many things there are still some things anyone considering buying one should probably keep in mind.

This thing is very fast, opening and closing applications is quick, the screen is incredibly responsive, there is no lag while typing, and the built in Safari browser does a great job of quickly loading even graphic intense pages.
If you want to get one. you can check it out.Take care.

I shall take this opportunity to wish you a Blessed Christmas and a healthy and happy New Year.
Regards,

Ray Hanania

BEWARE folks.

If you get the email, complain to your email provider and to the Justice Department.

-- Ray Hanania

Max My Speed dot Com (www.MaxMySpeed.com) doesn't work. Watch the billings, too

2010-12-10T05:02:00.000-08:00

(UPDATED: DEC. 11, 2011. Click here to read lastest news on this software scam.)

Whenever you see a commercial on TV claiming unbelievable things, it is unbelievable. Yet, in the interests of helping people, I decided to go online and try out MaxMySpeed.com, the CyberDefender software that sells for $19 and change.

The commercial says you can get a free scan, and it is free, of course. But like all sleazy sales people, there is always a catch. I like companies that are honest and direct and don't have those false loss leaders and misleading promises that are incomplete. The MaxMySpeed.com CyberDefender promise is misleading.

When you go to their web site, right away they throw the sleazy sales pitch at you. An audio program automatically runs with a video of a salesman on the bottom right side of the screen.

That should have been a sign right away. You put audio that starts automatically on the site, that means there is trouble a brewing. You have to put your mouse over the video image to display the controls to "pause" it. You can't turn it off.

When you run their "free" scan of your system, it takes a long time. And it will come back and report hundreds of registry errors that they claim are slowing your system down. Registry errors do not necessarily slow your system down. Most major ones can be fixed using your virus software. I use Norton and run a registry fix often. But Norton identified 42 major problems. MaxMySpeed.com identified 942, alleged registry errors. And that sounded like a lot.

Once they identify the errors, you can click "Fix" and the software then takes you to a credit card page where you have to purchase the software upfront.

A good software company would let you runt he scan for free and not pay to prove that they do what they promise. Not MaxMySpeed.com CyberDefender. You have to trust them and buy their software.

So I decided to try it. After all, that's what I do. Buy and sample software and give you a review based on my experience to help you decide if it is worth doing yourself. In this case, you have to pay the $19 to buy the license and then download and then install the software.

When I ordered the software, I discovered that they automatically pad their billing charge. So, when I ordered the $19 software license, it automatically added three more programs to the bill bringing it to nearly $80. I was shocked. I had to delete the choices they made for me. They want to sell you their own virus scan and they want to sell something else.

That something else wouldn't delete from my order and I ended up paying more than $44, including $9 for the CD -- downloading software without buying the CD is a mistake. When your computer crashes, you can't reinstall the software on a new computer and they make you purchase a new license.

I called the company and they promised to credit me something like $19 more. But why did I have to go through that?

In the end, my laptop ran just as fast and slow as it always does. The registry scan didn't do anything. All those testimonials from the happy girl and happy guy voices on the commercials are paid, and don't represent real consumers.

My advice, don't buy it. My advice to the company, stopping scamming people. Be honest. If you promise a free scan give people the free service. Don't play games with people. That's not a good way to do business and be successful. It is a way to make more money. But not a way to build confidence and trust.

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

The Chicago Newsroom Weekly TV Program: The old and new media

2010-10-14T14:43:00.000-07:00

The Chicago Newsroom Weekly TV Program: The old and new media
Hosted by Ken Davis
In this week's program, Ken Davis is joined by Sun-Times columnist, Esther J. Cepeda, Thom Clark, President, Community Media Workshop, Ray Hanania, independent columnist, and Neil Tesser, Chicago jazz writer. The panel discusses "The New News", a report on the state of Chicago's online media.This program was produced by Chicago Access Network TV.

# # #

iPad -- what a rip-off

2010-10-09T06:16:00.000-07:00

Being a technology addict, I purchased the iPad. I've ignored the iBooks and all those readers they sell because I just can't get used to reading a book on a computer screen. I prefer the real pages. And when I'm on a beach, it's one thing to get sand in the pages of the book but another to get sand inside your computer. And a book doesn't need a battery that has to be recharged -- or if the light is too bright, you can actually read the pages better than the glare you get on a computer screen.

Yet despite all that and knowing that computer developers are geeks with no lives who know nothing about regular people and design programs and apps that look great in concept but have no practical usage because the developer has no practical usage for themselves, I bought an iPad.

Here's what it does that great. It has a touch pad screen that allows you to shift from one group of menus to another.

Here's what it does that sucks. You have to download most of the aps, and most cost money and they all come from iTunes. The ones that are free generally require you to download an upgrade that costs more money in order to get it to work properly.

You're familiar with Aps.

But here's the other problem. The iPad doesn't replace your computer. There are some Aps that allow you to connect to your computer, like watching the movies you have downloaded on your computer, laptop or PC from the iPad using wireless -- but, they only let you watch movies purchased -- yes purchased -- from iTunes.

You know what iPad really is? It's an Apply sales person who you now have invited in to your home who constantly pushes you to spend money at Apple's iTunes store.

So greedy and selfish of Apply. But isn't that what Apple and Macs are all about. Money. So little really applicability. It's a financial umbilical chord from your checkbook or credit card to Apple and without it, the iPad is worthless.

Sure, you look cool carrying it around and using it at a restaurant. Wow! No, you don't look cool. You look like a sucker.

There's more. The computer technology developers really are morons. They have all the answers and none of the answers. Their programs are designed from their perspective on need, which has nothing to do with the needs of the users or the masses of people.

For example, you want to search for an App. There are something like 1,565 total aps that appear on the screen about 12 at a time. You touch the next button ... next .... next ... you get to about 300 and finally find one that looks interesting. You click it. Read it. Discover it's crap. Then hit the return button. And badda bing (easier to spell that voile) ... it takes you back to the beginning. And you have to sit there and tap the next key over and over again to get to where you were so you can continue the search. I haven't been past App 320 yet and not sure I will ever make it.

Oh. I can search. Another genius idea from the stupid technology developers. But, what do I search for when I don't know what they have? Maybe I connect what I want with what they have, but it ain't easy.

It doesn't have a camera or recorder. It's difficult to connect to a printer. There's an App that let's you connect to Canon printers. I have a brand new one, but it won't work because my printer is not on the list.

Once you download the App how do you get rid of it? Right. Like some genius technology writer who never thought that all of their great Apps that they write might be worthless to us average pee-on like me. So it's almost impossible to get rid of something you have placed on your screen and pretty soon it gets crowded.

They give you some basic software. I use Outlook on my laptop, but of course, Microsoft Word and Outlook hate Apple -- they used to be BFFs, Apple and Microsoft, but no longer. A modernday competition between Sony BetaMax and VHS garbage that has long been replaced by CD and DVD pay-through-the-nose technology.

So I synced my laptop Outlook files to the iPad and then, of course, you run in to the problems that geek technology writers always miss when creating their genius. My iPad loads all my emails. But to delete them, I have to do it one at a time in several key strokes. Or, finger strokes. Swipe the email to the left and a button pops up asking me Delete? Yes, moron. I have to tap the red Delete button. For every email. And I get a lot of emails. Of course, geek technology writers who have no friends do not get much email so why would they care that it takes one hour to delete 350 email messages on an iPad.

Wow. Technology.

Now, it costs $100 a year to protect the iPad from internal problems. Not if you sit on it and crack it, for example. But if the technology fails, as it will.

And, it costs $25 a month to connect to the AT&T WiFi 4G. Which is not reliable, by the way. But who cares at Apple? The point is they offer it so why are you complaining that it doesn't work? Working is not the goal of the Apple iPad.

The goal is money. To soak every possible penny out of your pocket. And you pay, what? $1,100 for the iPad and the service and protection in the first hit? And they got you for the rest foy our life. A monthly subscription of $25 that you pay so you can look cool while you simmer in your now deteriorating mind as the software does what it wants, not what you want.

But what choice do we have in human society? The laptops will be outdated soon. Everything will be on a cell phone and iPad or iPod or iPhone. And it will cost you through your iAss.

I had two laptops die on me over the past six months, laptops that were only 2 years old, just beyond the warranty periods, of course. Sitting in a pile reminding me of the thousands Apple and Microsoft already yanked out of my pocket like new teeth that only needed a cleaning but were extracted without anesthesia.

Such is our lives? Maybe that should be the new soap opera, one that laments that computer plagued world of today. Computer Daze of our Lives.

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

Too many social networks to "twitter" to? Try this new service, Ping.fm

2010-09-15T09:08:00.000-07:00

I post blurbs about my writings, columns and morning radio show to about 20 social networks. Each social network has a different constituency. Some overlap but I have to reach them all in order to push readership of my syndicated columns and audience interest in my morning radio show. It's the new journalism, folks.

The social media isn't merely about reconnecting with classmates, former girlfriends or wives, but also people who want to follow your activities and efforts. And, if you are a writer and media host, like I am, it's a mandatory necessity.

Until now, I was able to link my Twitter account to post my Tweets to both Twitter and Facebook. But then, I would have to go to the many other social networks where I have presence and repost to each, one at a time in order to reach the breadth and depth of my media audience.

That's changed, thanks to Ping.fm.

Ping.fm is a free online social networking time saver. I now post to Ping.fm what I might normally have posted laboriously one at a time to Twitter and then the 20 or so other social networking sites. Ping.fm allows me to link all of the sites and the one post now broadcasts out to all of them.

And, even more beneficial is the fact that Ping.fm will automatically take long links and compress them into shorter links with fewer characters allowing for more informational newsie text to go along with the link.

Now, one post to Ping.fm and all of the followers and friends and business pals get the message at the same time. I didn't have to change my Twitter feed to Facebook, though I could have. It might have been a little complicated to do. So instead of adding Facebook to the feed, I just post to Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, GoogleBuzz, Yahoo Profile and a bunch of them.

The response was almost immediate with higher traffic to the downloading of my podcasts from the radio show and higher hits on column postings.

Try it. It is definitely a great service.

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

Ning Network is Nang. The owners move from social networking to greed

2010-09-12T09:45:00.000-07:00

Ning is no longer a free network that they once promised to be. Now that they have gotten a lot of support, they have decided to impose monthly fees (really ridiculous amounts, actually) in order to keep your network going. So all the 18 months of work I am my network of 36 journalism associates is not out the window.

No pay, no play.

Ning sucked. It was limiting. It boasted that if offered all these great options but they mostly don't work or never did what was promised. You can bring people together and create chat rooms and put your profile on the Ning Network. Wow. Big deal. You can even blog there, although the blog is not automatically indexed on any search engines like Google.

I can do all of that for Free on Facebook where I have 2200 friends who share my interests and read my many columns on Middle East peace, social networking media (like this blog) and on US politics, including in CHicago where politics and the retirement of Mayor Richard M. Daley has sent the Chicagoland region rocking.

So why would I pay to get far less from Ning?

Because they are not social networkers at all. They are geeks. And Geeks like to write fascinating programs that do fascinating things that THEY think normal people like to do but the fact is that because they are geeks, they are not normal people so they have no idea what a normal person needs in terms of a software program.

That's the failing of companies created by Geeks. They think they know and write all these press releases about what they know, but the truth is they know squat, which actually is probably more than what they know.

The best software programs and online systems are those written by Geeks who are directed by people's needs, not their bean-counting vision of what they think would be cool. Geek crap is not cool.

Ning is even less cool today.

Send the Ning Nang back to internet Sing Sing.

They suck

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

(distributed by the Hanania Media Network)

Anapod's Explorer for the iPod is a worthless software program that doesn't do what it promises

2010-04-25T08:29:00.000-07:00

I purchased Red Chair Software's Anapod Explorer for $29 online. I hate to download software that doesn't send a backup, but the iTunes software that controls your iPod's life is so oppressive and terrible, you just have to keep trying to find an alternative.

Microsoft and Apple have one thing in common. They are about greed, money and control. They don't want you to control your computer. They want to control it like they own it so they can decide for you what software can run and what software can't run, so they can protect their money. It's all about money for most computer software tech designers and programmers. They are all dictators and tyrants, but one day we will find a Gandhi who can fight for the rights of the oppressed computer users.

So, I tried Reds Chair Software's Anapod Explorer for the iPod. And it sucks. The concept is good but it doesn't work. Worse, they have poor tech-support -- virtually nil. And like all bad software designers, they simply do not know what consumers really want and need, but they do a great job of writing programs that work for them -- I doubt any of them even use an iPod.

The software supposedly creates a Window's Explorer. It has to be loaded with the computer and on your System Tray so you don't have any choice to run it like a program when you need it. Instead, it sits in wasted memory for the few times you might use it.

I want to copy songs and movies that I have legitimately purchased but that iTunes doesn't want me to copy for backup and expanded viewing. I downloaded Avatar for $14.99 from iTunes (it took six hours and I have high speed internet -- volume was the problem, which is typical of iTunes challenges that you want to escape.). I want to make a copy so I can watch it on my DVD and HD TV.

I could have purchased the DVD and then ripped it to my iPod, but I thought why not try buying off the internet and then copying it so I have a hard copy when my computer fails -- all computers are made to fail specifically so the computer technology industry can sell you more computers. When they are not thinking of ways to limit the future expansion of your laptop and computer, they are thinking of ways to make lousy computers good for only a few years, if that much even.

I installed Anapod's Explorer the way instructed. But they fail to tell you to reboot your computer so the software installs on your system tray. After the usual trial and error, I figured that out on my own.

I ran the software and it shows my iPod directory and my computer directory. And I right clicked the movie, Avatar and tried to move it to a new window on my computer -- and it doesn't work.

So, the claim that Anapod's Explorer turns your iPod into justa nother hard drive that can be managed is baloney.

I'll keep looking for a new software program. But in the meantime, save your money, Don't buy Red Chair Software's Anapod Explorer. It doesn't work.

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

Corel DVD Copy 6 -- does a poor job of copying and does not copy your legally purchased videos

2010-03-13T11:39:00.000-08:00

Corel DVD Copy 6 brags that it can copy anything. But it can't. Worse, the quality of what it does copy is poor at best. It costs only $49 but that's $49 you should not spend and keep in your savings. But there is a great alternative that you should purchase and that I have tried.

Corel DVD Copy 6 also does not copy legally purchased DVD's that you may have bought and wish to transfer to your iPod.

Many people believe the software will allow you to convert DVD's to your iPod format but the quality is so poor, it's sad.

Don't buy the software. I'll waste my money. You save yours.

But, you can and should purchase Magic DVD Ripper (and also a Copier). This software allows you to make backup copies in the event that your original DVD is damaged or fails to work as they OFTEN do. The movie industry is intentionally making cheap copies of BlueRay and DVD because they want you to purchase new ones.

Click HERE to get information on Magic DVD Ripper & Copier. It costs $39 for the ripper and an additional $10 for the Copier and for $9 plus shipping they'll actually send you a CD that actually works, unlike the Corel DVD Copy 6 which does not work properly.

Magic DVD Ripper will seamlessly copy your legally owned DVDs and you can convert them to formats for viewing on your cell phone and your iPod. Just "rip" the DVD and "save" it to the iTunes "Library" directory under Movies. Then sync your iPod.

The quality of the copies is amazingly clear and formatted for viewing on the smaller screens.

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

iPad: Another dumb idea by a bunch of tekkies who don't know crap about what real people want or need

2010-02-02T04:08:00.000-08:00

Computer technicians are the real war criminals in this world. They are real robber barons. But most of all, they are the Kings with no clothing. And its the public that acts like drugged up lemmings. Every time some stupid Geek throws out another stupid do nothing technology "advancement," the public goes Lazy Ga Ga and jumps with joy to unload another chunk of massive change to purchase the equipment.

Why?

Why are we as Americans so stupid and wasteful? Why do we allow the computer geeks to run our lives so they can line their pockets with billions?

Sure the Apple iPad sounds like a great idea. But so does the iPhone and so did the laptop and so did the PC and so did the lightbulb that Thomas Edison invented.

But the drive to create new technologies is missing a lot: Human compassion. Human need. Human respect. Morality. Principle.

Over the last quarter century, I have been on the cutting edge of spending on high tech crap. I would buy a computer and literally within months it would be outdated. I'd have to buy another. It's been like that since I purchased my first computer, the Coleco Adam and then the IBM PC Junior, and then the IBM XT and on and on until today's sequence of modernday rip-offs has been invented.

None of these brilliant technologies are created with the needs of humanity in mind. It's all about the billions that robber baron thieves like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates who came up with their criminal enterprises in their stupid garages like Geek Gang members.

They are making billions for a reason. They produce worthless junk that only lives up to 30 percent of the promised services. Part of the reason is that they produce new junk so fast because they know how stupid people are. They know the secret of Western civilization is that we like to spend money. Spend money on what? Who cares? Just spend the money. It's not about who has the best car or the best home any more in today's race for the elusive American Dream that is more dream than reality. It is about who can spend more money faster. And the place to spend is on worthless, shortlived computer junk. Junk that not only fails to deliver a full load but also fails to last.

Computers are behind the new industry promise to consumers: We make and sell this junk and you buy it at your own risk. We no longer warranty our work because we know it is worthless. So we will sell you a warranty for $250 in order to insure that the high priced crap you just bought from us will work.

The iPad is the icon of idiocy. Here is a mobile Laptop that doesn't open with a touch screen TV. Can you use it to make a phone call, no, but they are telling you it will be better than the iPhone they sold you last year to watch TV on a tiny screen -- maybe they have a deal with the eye industry which last year jacked up their prices of glasses and contact lenses because so many people are going blind from looking at these tiny screens to watch worthless crap on YouTube that would look better on a big screen TV if the worthless crap had any social redeeming value. But very little on YouTube has any social redeeming value. Except that it helps to ruin your eyesight and drive up the eye doctor industry.

The iPad is supposed to help you read a book. Why? I like the way we read books now. Instead of improving the publishing industry we've turned to smoke, mirrors and magician tricks to convince the brain dead public consumer that it's better to spend $1,000 on an iPad rather than $35 to buy a book. You can download the book. Who cares?

Has anyone not noticed how unreliable the Internet has become these days.

I am waiting for a computer genius -- an oxymoron -- to invent a computer that someone buys that can be upgraded to the latest standards and technology for a few pennies, rather than throwing it out and having to buy a new computer every year. Literally every year folks if you haven't noticed in your blindness caused by the new advertising PR spin doctors who are riding on the hips of the computer geeks out there like Gates and Jobs.

I'm waiting for the computer genius who builds a computer that REALLY WORKS and that can be expanded at little cost to keep up with the new gadgets.

But that would mean a computer genius who has set aside the fast buck industry to provide a real service to humanity. A Gandhi for Geeks, maybe. Someone willing to fight for the rights of us poor schmucks who have been convinced by hi-tech television graphics to believe in something that is just a fantasy to make money for someone else.

Will some one please hit the Control-Alt-Delete buttons on this system? It's a Twilight Zone of nightmarish computer failures, internet disconnects and busy signals without the signal any more.

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

The real software piracy is by the software manufacturers and retailers

2010-01-17T04:02:00.000-08:00

ANyone who uses computers on a regular basis -- all of us -- knows this sad pathetic fact: computer programmers and software developers are Geeks who do not know anything about being a normal human being. They are locked in a black box of self-awareness with no real experience in the real world. So, they program software based not on what real human beings need, but rather based on what they think we would need. And, of course, they wouldn't know because software programmers are not human at all.

That goes for the people who build Dell Computers -- the worst investment you can make in buying a computer, and those who run the few software stores left that that you can physically enter.

Some software retailers absolutely know nothing about computers. I mean absolutely nothing. The problem is they are only a few retail stores left in the world where you can speak to a human being -- okay a computer programmer is a sub-human, but still a sub-human at least allows you to focus your rage when you purchase software that doesn't work and then you can't return it because, well, the software industry is deivwn by so much greed they assume that you, the consumer will be a thieving crook like them. They assume that any return is a theft.

The computer industry lacks ethics, too. They sell garbage and then force you to purchase service packs, updates and warranties. They dodn't even warranty the products they make, which on its face shows you that they know the crap they sell doesn't workm otherwise they would stand by their product. They don't stand y their produts because the PC people use MACs and the MAC people use PC's, mainly so they can steal from each other. The software industry is a den of thieves. Theft is the hallmark of their culture.

Again despite my better judgement, I went to one, CompUSA, in Orland Park and purchased what I thought was a copy of Office Basic with Word, Outlook and Excel. It was only $186. Only! They said it was a "license"and that all I had to do, they insisted over my better judgment, was to go to the Office web site and download the software and then enter the license. No, that's not the case, of course. But I didn't learn that until AFTER I purchased the software -- which means no return. No exchange. No support. No accepting blame. The software license only works for software that is pre-installed on new computers, not downloads. Fortunately, they have a very smart -- and consumer compassionate manager -- who did allow me to pay another $216 to purchase the actual software, which they did have. (Imagine Word and Outlook costs over $400 to purchase from rip-off Microsoft. Pathetic.)

I went to Amazon.com to purchase what I finally learned was a full working copy of Office 2007 for $316, cheaper than the $399 that Microsoft sells it for online. They will send me the software the old fashioned way, on a CD Disk mailed.

That's the other problem with the industry today. They are cheap bastards. They don't give you CD's any more under the phony claim that you don't need it. you DO need it on a CD because we all know laptops are unreliable. They crash and you lose your software and you have to reinstall it and they play by the 20 percent rule to underwrite their greed. That rule is simple. If you fuck with people enough, 20 percent of them will just give up and their misfortune is the software industry's profits.

That's how Bill Gates is really the anti-Christ. His billions didn't come from hard work. It came from a system that he set up that is filled with loopholes to allow his company to shove it up your ass. All day and everyday that you are stuck with their inefficient software. He thrives on that 20 percent of profit that is literally tilen from the public. The public buys software and for most, it doesn't work right. Then, 20 percent just give up and go someother route, never recovering their money because the new system is based on the no return policy. That 20 percent is the profit that makes them billionaires.

Oh, and this all explains this new phenomena, you know, the one where the computer manufacturers are telling us they have cut down the cost of laptops. Well, they haven't cut down the cost of laptops. Instead, what they have done is eliminate the software that was bundled with the computers. That software costs a fortune, of course. So they eliminate the software and now you have to buy it when you buy their worthless laptop computers.

They only way we are going to change this is to take matters into our own hands. We need to fight back and make them pay for their theiving ways.

-- Ray Hanania
http://www.radiochicagoland.com/

BEWARE: Microsoft LifeCam 3.0 -- It has issues

2009-12-31T07:30:00.000-08:00

I purchased the Microsoft LifeCam 3.0 camera from Best Buy, which has okay policies regarding the return of malfunctioning software and hardware, although I will test out their so-called Black Tie product insurance soon.

Microsoft LifeCam 3.0 has some great features including very good video imaging. BUT, and this is a major BUT, the camera ONLY allows audio input from the camera itself. So, if you are using a headset with an audio or are directing audio through your computer to someone on SKYPE or other online social networking assets, this WILL NOT WORK.

The designers produced a great quality image but failed to consider real application needs -- something most computer software and hardware technical designers always seem to do. They know how to program sophisticated software and build sophisticated hardware but they know nothing about making those products usable to the public.

This product is NOT worth buying and we recommend avoiding it.

The product costs $79 and has been reduced to $59 in part because of consumer negative reactions.

MICROSOFT LifeCam 3.0
AVOID PURCHASE
Lacks proper audio options and requires all audio to go through the outside camera. It is inhibitive especially if you are in a public place. The camera grabs the surrounding noise and does not allow you to use a headset and mike which would allow for better audio quality.

BEWARE: Honestech VHS to DVD 4.0 Hardware Software Review

2009-12-31T07:21:00.000-08:00

Don't buy Honestech VHS to DVD 4.0 Deluxe. It costs $87.00. I purchased it at CompuUSA (Don't buy software or hardware there either).

The software is not compatible with most Windows systems including Vista. When I tried to get more information, Honestech Technical support was non-existent.

When I tried to return the hardware to CompUSA, they refused to take it back even though they told me that hardware returns were permissible. Their excuse: CompUSA (in Orland Park, Illinois) said that the hardware included software and they cannot accept returns on ANY software even if it is a part of a hardware product.

Honestech VHS to DVD 4.0 Deluxe
RATING: POOR
Wasted money: $87.79 including TAX

STORE CAUTION: CompUSA. Service is poor, software and hardware may not always work. They do not stand by their products. They will selll them to you but if they do not work, they will not exchange the dysfunctional product.

Community Media Workshop Oct 28 on ethnic media employment and more

2009-10-15T03:25:00.001-07:00

Community Media Workshop's ethnic news media workshop.

The Community Media Workshop is holding a workshop for journalism students in the Chicago area to learn about the ethnic news media and the possibilities for internships, freelancing, or, hopefully, jobs. The meeting is from 3 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday Oct. 28^th at the eighth floor at 1104 S. Wabash, on the campus of Columbia College.

At the session, you'll meet college graduates who have found jobs with the ethnic news media, editors or news directors who are looking for interns or freelancers, and offer some advice about how the ethnic news media might be a stepping stone in this incredibly fast changing world of journalism.

There are over 300 ethnic news media outlets in the Chicago area and they range from giants like Univision to pioneers like the Chicago Defender to up and coming print, radio or television outlets that serve a growing number of Asian, Latino and African immigrants here.

The Community Media Workshop is a more than 20-year-old non-profit that has been helping Chicago communities and organizations make their voices heard.

For more information, contact Steve Franklin

at 312 369 6400

Clash between mainstream media and New Media comes out in full Hollywood swing

2009-09-13T11:51:00.000-07:00

One of the best movies out this year is "State of Play," starring Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck and Helen Mirren. It's now on DVD. It's a funning thing about Hollywood Movies. I rarely go to see the blockbusters at the movie theater any more. I wait until they come out in DVD. I enjoy them more. The only time I go to the big screen theater mow to see a new Hollywood release is to see the animated films with my son.

State of Play is basically about a Blackwater mercenary operation being investigated by a congressman (Afflek). Crowe plays a reporter for a Washington newspaper (The Globe, modeled after the Washington Post). But while the murder, mayhem and conspiracy theories make for great drama right out of the front pages of today's news, a secondary theme involves Crowe, the old fashioned, mainstream print reporter, who bumps heads with the newspaper's new lead blogger, played by Rachel McAddams.

Watching the new media tussle with the old media is a direct reflection of today's trend in journalism. The only problem, of course, is that Hollywood still favors the mainstream media (it's mainstream afterall) and they make the new media out to be untalented, unethical and always after the salacious headline rather than the facts.

Don't they say that about the mainstream news media?

-- Ray Hanania
http://www.radiochicagoland.com/

Blg World Conference Oct 15-17 in las Vegas

2009-09-04T03:45:00.000-07:00

The big Blog World New Media Expo/Conference will be held this year in Las Vegas Oct. 15-17. Here's the link:

http://www.blogworldexpo.com

The conference showcases some of the best cutting edge thinking on how to improve your blog, network and get the word out. The conference is limited mainly to the insiders but by participating you can help expand their narrow roster of experts to include more voices and more experience.

-- Ray Hanania

www.RadioChicagoland.com

DePaul explores new frontiers of journalism with courses on Twitter and more

2009-08-31T08:54:00.000-07:00

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Aug. 31, 2009

Media Contact: Deborah Snow Humiston

312/362-8508, dsnowhum@depaul.edu

DEPAUL EXPLORES THE NEW FRONTIERS OF JOURNALISM WITH COURSES ON TWITTER, ENTREPRENEURIAL JOURNALISM

DePaul University's College of Communication is exploring the new frontiers of journalism through courses on Twitter, entrepreneurial journalism and backpack reporting, providing students with cutting-edge knowledge in this rapidly changing field.

This fall, DePaul University journalism alumnus Craig Kanalley will teach what is believed to be the first college-level journalism course focused solely on Twitter and its applications. Kanalley is a digital intern at the Chicago Tribune.

It is one of several innovative courses offered by DePaul's College of Communication to help prepare students to work in the burgeoning digital landscape. Other journalism courses include niche journalism, reporting for converged newsrooms, backpack reporting and entrepreneurial journalism.

Kanalley said his course, "Digital Editing: From Breaking News to Tweets," is about learning how to make sense of the clutter of the Web, particularly in situations of breaking news or major developing stories, and how to evaluate and verify the authenticity of reports by citizen journalists.

"Thousands share information about these stories and how they're affected through Twitter every day, and there's a need to sift through this data to find relevant information that provides story tips and additional context for these events," Kanalley said.

Students will especially focus on the social networking platform Twitter and apply concepts discussed in class to Kanalley's live journalism Web site Breaking Tweets (www.breakingtweets.com), which integrates news and relevant Twitter feedback to create a one-of-a-kind Web experience for readers by providing eyewitness accounts of breaking news stories from around the world.

Since its launch in January 2009, the site has gained an international following and had more than 300,000 page views; it has been praised by new media analysts as a major player in the social media field. Iranian authorities blocked Breaking Tweets because of its reporting on the Iranian election, and in May, the site broke a story on the attempted attack on the royal family in Holland before the story was picked up by BBC or CNN.

In April, Kanalley was named one of the 100 top collegiate journalists by UWIRE, a community-driven service for student journalists. He was one of four DePaul students who covered the presidential inauguration via Twitter and live blogging, which ran on the Chicago Sun-Times' Web site as the "D.C.

Project."

Other College of Communication new media courses include:

* Niche Journalism: Examines the explosion in magazine and trade publication journalism that targets specific audiences with content designed exclusively for them.

* Reporting for Converged Newsrooms: Equips journalists with ability to assemble and produce stories that can be published and distributed across integrated media platforms.

* Backpack Reporting: Gives students the practical experience they need in news gathering and distribution within the converged landscape of electronic newsgathering.

* Entrepreneurial Journalism: Focuses on how journalism students can create their own place on the Internet and become known as content specialists in particular niche areas.

DePaul's College of Communication is the fourth-largest provider of bachelor's degrees in communication in Illinois and second-largest in the Chicago area. It is the second-largest provider of master's degrees in communication in the state. It offers undergraduate programs in communication studies; journalism; media and cinema studies; public relations and advertising; and communication and media. Graduate programs include journalism; public relations and advertising; media, cinema and society; and organizational and multicultural communication.

###

Distributing your press releases for free

2009-08-29T15:11:00.000-07:00

A blog is about the best place to include a press release that will then be available on Google News instantly. The best blog system to use is Google's Blogger.com, which is free to set up. You can set up as many blogs on Blogger.com as you want. You simply need a GMAIL account, also owned by Google.

But, you can expand the network by also submitting your press release to many free online press release aggregators, such as two that I manage to address American Arab and Middle East issues, for example, including:

Arab American Media Services

http://aams.blogspot.com/

Arabisto.com.

I also have one for mainstream news releases associated with Radio Chicagoland at

http://radiochicagoland.blogspot.com/

The first and last are Blogger.com blogs linked throughout my Internet Network, and Arabisto is a web site featuring the writings of Arab writers from around the world. All have heavy traffic.

But, there are many thata lso serve mainstream audiences that are based in their own networks.

They include:

Free Press Release at
http://www.free-press-release.com/release-features.html

PR Log at
http://www.prlog.org/

I-News at
http://www.i-newswire.com/

1888 Press Releases at
http://www.1888pressrelease.com/

The problemw ith all of them is that the basic free service is limited to placement. You have to pay extra to showcase, add an image to the release.

The best way to distribute your release professionally to the mainstream news media is through two main services, PR News Wire (PRNewsWire.com) and The Business Wire (BusinessWire.com)

They charge, too, but you are guaranteed actually distribution, whereas the free placements and even the paid services on the free placement sites like those above are merely "placed" online and then indexed in Google News.

The basic costs for a press release on PR News Wire and Business Wire start at $140 for a 400 word release distributed "statewide" in Illinois. The same release will cost about $1,200 for distribution nationally to all of the country's newspapers, radio and TV stations, and even online news sites.

Sometimes it is worth it to go professional. Although the mainstream news media is biased, the businesses that utilize them are well worth the investment, especially on a priority campaign.

-- Ray Hanania
www.RadioChicagoland.com

Neat script lets readers send links to your columns and blogs right from your content

2009-08-07T15:33:00.000-07:00

A great little script from AddThis.com allows you to place a "Share" button like the one on top of this blog on every blog post and column and content that you post on the Internet. Readers can click the script button and then send the link to the blog or column to anyone, post it on Facebook or Myspace and more.

It's neat little Java Script that easily embeds in Blogger.com layouts.

It also allows you to track user usage. How many people emailed a story, posted it to Facebook, Myspace or Twitter.

Neat stuff and must have on your web site and blog.

-- Ray Hanania
http://www.themediaoasis.com/NMINbook.htm

No mercy for the mainstream news media

2009-07-27T08:36:00.001-07:00

The mainstream news media has been complaining about economic industry problems long before the economic meltdown hit this country. Some people feel sorry for them but as an industry, I don't feel sorry for them at all. I think the mainstream news media as an industry has brought its own demise on its own head, and if they are suffering, they deserve.

I'm conflicted a bit. While I feel sorry for many of my friends in the journalism profession and those good and principled journalists who have lost their jobs or are concerned about the decaying industry, the industry itself does not deserve any sympathy at all.

They deserve what's happening to them and instead of crying for them, especially those Americans who have victimized and excluded and slandered and ignored by the mainstream news media, the American public should be excited that the once arrogant, mighty and often dishonest news media may have to reinvent itself. And maybe even start from scratch.

Maybe this time, if they do have to start from scratch, they will get it right.

For too long the mainstream news media has violated the very principles it set up for itself, claiming to be professional when in fact they have been anything but professional. I think that the media hung the "We're professionalists" stereotype on themselves as a shield from the criticism they have earned.

The mainstream news media is not professional at all. They're whores who pimp for certain insider agenda's and they routinely deny equal voice to the voiceless who are in fact voiceless in America because the media has made them voiceless. Editors pick and chose Op-Eds and commentaries not based on the principles of free speech, equal access, Democracy and fairness but on the basis of "journalist politics."

And there is a Journalism Politics that is sinister, corrupt and the cancer that has slowly eroded the moral fiber that mainstream journalism once asserted.

They have been for years the least respected profession in America for a reason. Mainstream journalists are hypocrites who exclude facts to make the stories and commentaries they right seem more right. They use their power not to enlighten the public but to control and manipulate the public. The robber baron elitists in the media's ivory tower have done so out of pure selfish greed, while lowly editors have done it out of power corruption.

The American public, which has suffered based on their race, religion and ethnicity, has a chance to stand up and exercise true free speech without having their words distorted, filtered or excluded. Americans, with the demise of the mainstream news media, can help redefine the news media to insist on true fairness, true objectivity, true principle and true freedoms.

With the death of the mainstream news media -- and I hope it comes fast -- we can finally have a national discussion about issues without worrying about whose views are popular and whose are not. Americans are smart people. We are educated people. We do not need politicians and power brokers disguised as the Fourth Estate pretending to be caring for our interests when it fact under their stewardship the American people have been children of abused and negligent parents.

-- Ray Hanania

Author, "Secrets of New Media Networking"

www.TheMediaOasis.com

New Book details secrets of overcoming mainstream news media bias

2009-07-26T14:59:00.000-07:00

I just finished my first edition of "Secrets of New Media Networking" my collection of ideas on how to overcome bias in the mainstream news media.

It's not about putting a check on someone else's opinions that you like or do not like, but about getting your own opinions into the mainstream news media. The mainstream news media, when it comes to "certain topics," is biased. Plain and simple. I know that because I have been in the news media now 32 years, not including six years working in high school and college newspapers.

The reality is that the extremism in the mainstream bias is the primary fuel feeding the extremism that we find in communities like the American Arab community. The bias reinforces the frustrations of the public and that frustration is consumed by anger, emotion and turns into an unreasoned support of the only option they then feel is out there for them, the loudmouthed, extremists who use violence and hatred to 1) keep their followers in a continued state of frustration and 2) provoke the conflict into more conflict and greater violence which gives them a reason to exist.

If we EVER achieved a real and genuine peace in the Middle East, for example, hundreds of thousands of activists on both sides would find themselves out of a job.

I want to put a lot of those biased activists on both sides out of a job and create a new environment where peace creates a new market that creates jobs promoting reason, moderation, understanding and truly free speech.

But my book is not about the Arab-Israeli conflict, although I do use it as an example -- my personal example of how the mainstream news media bias works. My book is about how to take the bias that YOU see in the mainstream news media to motivate you to easily create an alternative using the Internet to get your message, your views and your products out to the public. It's not hard to do using web sites, blogs of different strategic focuses and topics, social media like Facebook and MySpace, and Twitter and even brokered radio and cable TV public access. It all can come together and create a powerful market place for your views.

The book also discusses the moral responsibility of the media and journalism. It's not good to simply replace one biased media with another biased media. You want to add your views to the public discussion not stereotype, slander or discriminate against the free speech of others. You want to make the mainstream news media objective, not biased towards your opinion. You MUST adhere to principle, fairness, and give others the same that you demand, an opportunity to be heard.

The best strategy to fight extremism, terrorism and violence from extremists is to insure that your strategy includes a significant component that truly expands free speech to everyone. Achieving a fair news media system will do far more to undermine the extremists than all of the military conflict that has been launched in our history as human beings on this planet.

We would have won the Iraq War long ago if we had been more sensitive to the moderates in the Arab World who were shut out of the American effort not because of the war but because the American effort never treated them with respect or respected their views.

I hope you get a chance to check out the new books. CLICK HERE TO GET more information on the book.

-- Ray Hanania