CompuNotes
Notes from The Cutting Edge of Personal Computing
September 12, 1997
Issue 99

+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
To subscribe, send an e-mail to listserv@peach.ease.lsoft.com
   SUBSCRIBE COMPUNOTES-L FirstName LastName
To unsubscribe, send an e-mail to listserv@peach.ease.lsoft.com
   SIGNOFF COMPUNOTES-L
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

CONTENTS
My Notes:
1=> Our 100th Issue and Simple Advertising!, mailto:pgrote@i1.net
2=> This Issue's Winner!

News: 
3-> News of the Week, mailto:pgrote@i1.net

Reviews:
4=> Product: Shivers II - Harvest of Souls - games/adventure
Reviewed By: Jerry Eichelberger, mailto:ike@mslawyer2.com
5=> Product: NetGear 16 Port Hub - EN116 - hardware/network
Reviewed By: Patrick Grote, mailto:pgrote@i1.net
6=> Product: Windows Annoyances - book/windows
Reviewed By: Patrick Grote, mailto:pgrote@i1.net
7=> Product: Necrodome
Reviewed By: Doug Reed, mailto:dr2web@sprynet.com
8=> Product: Inside Windows NT Server 4 - Administrators Resource Edition - book/networking
Reviewed By: Patrick Grote, mailto:pgrote@i1.net

--- BEGIN ISSUE

1=> Our 100th Issue, mailto:pgrote@i1.net

Wow! 100 issues of CompuNotes and a handful of issues when we were CyberNews. Our next issue is our century mark and it will be the best CompuNotes ever!

We'll be introducing our regular column section, our article section and we will have a surprise interview with someone we all now if you own Windows 95 and access the internet!

We are going to publicize the heck out of our 100th issue and make sure everyone who is on the internet knows about it! We've decided to accept limited advertising in the next issue to defray the costs of publication. For those interested in potentially reaching 100,000 users, please send a mail message to ads@compunotes.com. You will receive via an autoresponder the information. Don't miss the opportunity!

Since the next issue will be so special we'll be publishing it on September 29th! Inside the issue will be a special contest in which our readers have a chance to win over $1000.00 in computer software, hardware and books! Stay tuned to the next issue to learn more! Pass this issue onto your friends so they can play as well!

---------------- Take a Few Moments to Read -------------------
VirtualBusiness.News       "Hard core 'How-To' for Small Business"

Improve cash flow, reduce expenses, save time, money and headaches. If you're a businessperson who wants practical info to help boost your productivity and profits without a lot of hype, VBNews is for you. Software reviews, networking tips, and feature articles about every phase of business, from people who've been there. No theory. No bizopps. And no trouble finding the articles between the ads.

Subscribe Today! Send any email to mailto:VBNews@just-business.com
---------------- Take a Few Moments to Read -------------------

2=> Winner!
This week's winner: jhorton@ATTMAIL.COM.

3=> News, mailto:pgrote@i1.net

Ira Magaziner then man who brought us national health care talks about competition in technology . . . Oh, great . . .
<http://www.techweb.com/wire/news/1997/09/0911magaziner.html>

Todd Rundgren believes in audio over the net. Do you?
<http://www.netinsider.com/profile/trundgren/interview>

Darn! When will Microsoft Slow Down? Exchange 5.5 Plans . . .
<http://techweb.cmp.com/internetwk/news/news0911-5.htm>

Ok, who forgot to kill Bob? Microsoft is back . . .
<http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/6783.html>

...and these idiots are from my town of St. Louis . . .
<http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,14184,00.html?nd>

4=> Product: Shivers II - Harvest of Souls - games/adventure
Reviewed By: Jerry Eichelberger, mailto:ike@mslawyer2.com
Reviewed On: Pentium 166, 32 MB RAM, Windows 95b, 12X CDROM
MSRP: $50

Shivers II is easily one of the most interesting and fun action/adventure games I have ever played. Everything that makes a game great is in here: absolutely stunning graphics, great music and sound effects, an interesting plot, and enough puzzle solving skill to keep you challenged.

Shivers II incorporates cool 360-degree navigation for your journey through an incredible landscape. On your journey through the town of Cyclone, you will notice outstanding video embedding, beautiful morphing and lush scenery that will make you "feel" apprehensive about wandering around a "ghost" town. If you are interested in Native American myths and legends, you will especially enjoy this game.

It seems that the people of Cyclone are disappearing at am alarming rate. Cyclone is a secluded town at the mouth of Devil's Canyon. Your friends, the rock band Trip Cyclone, were in town shooting a series of music videos, and have fallen victim to an ancient Native American curse. Upon your arrival into Cyclone, you are unwittingly thrust into battle against and unseen enemy in hopes of rescuing them.

In this battle, however, there are no guns and cannons, just twelve prayer-sticks: powerful items that must be won through puzzle solving logic, which, unless used properly, will do more harm than good. Once you have solved a puzzle and obtained a prayer stick(bahos), your life essence begins to decrease, and it's a race against time to find the prayer-stick's altar. If you are too slow, you will die. Once you have entered the caves, watch out for petroglyphs; they will strike from the walls of Devil's Canyon, draining life force as well.

The puzzles in Shivers II engage on different levels. Many are of the classic puzzle mold: rearrange mixed-up balls into a proper order, solve a tangram, reorder sliding tiles to complete a symbol, etc. Clues to these individual puzzles are always close at hand, but they do require concentration, and objects from the inventory won't assist you. These puzzles are also altered for each new game, a nice tip of the hat toward replayability. (You can also custom design your own puzzles to confound your friends who may join in over the internet.)

The mystery of Shivers II is complex, but again, many clues are provided to help you. A sweet-voiced specter, answering machine messages, and the rock videos of Trip Cyclones' songs aid you throughout. And the music is great, although the lyrics are kind of strange (they do help you solve the puzzles)

Shivers II is in every way a step above its predecessor. It contains loads of imaginative, new features that make it an overall great game. The graphics in the game are richly detailed, similar to the ones in the original Shivers. The setting of a deserted desert town is a nice change in a computer game, and makes for some beautiful scenery.

I think you will enjoy Shivers II. Buy it and become the "Warrior".

Sierra On-Line
Direct Sales
P.O. Box 3404
Salinas, CA 93912
<http://www.sierra.com/>

Ratings:
Installation/Ease of Use: Gold
User-Friendliness: Gold
Quality: Gold

5=> Product: NetGear 16 Port Hub - EN116 - hardware/network
Reviewed By: Patrick Grote, mailto:pgrote@i1.net

Many of us have created for ourselves home offices where we churn out our side work or, hopefully, full time pursuits. IF you have a home office with more than one PC or a server you need network connections.

Home offices are not just for people working from home either. As most of us increase our interest in computer we find ourselves collecting more and more of them. Show of hands of how many of us kept our last computer for the kids to work on? Me. Show of hands of those who purchased another computer for the spouse. Me. You need network connections.

Of course, not everyone is a networking wizard, so the task of selecting how to connect your PCs can be daunting. Terms like coax, RJ45, AUI, twisted pair, crimper and such can scare you away from making a good decision. Fortunately, Bay Networks has made part of your decision very easy with their EN116 Ethernet Hub.

The EN116 hub is part of the NETGEAR product line from Bay Networks. Bay Networks has always been well known for their corporate networking solutions, so it is nice to see them bring their reputation for well built, solid performing products into the home office.

Why do you need a hub? Well, a hub acts as a radio of sorts for your computers. If one computer needs to talk to another, it speaks to the hub like a microphone (through a network cable) and then the hub broadcasts that conversation through the other computers attached to it through ports like speakers. Ports look just like telephone jacks and this is where the network connections plug in. The connectors look just like telephone connectors except they are a little bigger and called RJ45 or 10BaseT. Telephone connectors are called RJ11. The network connections actually carry electrical impulses to and from the hub. These electrical impulses are the "words" the computers speak to each other. The whole setup is called ethernet.

The EN116 hub comes with 16 ports for connecting 16 network devices to your network. These devices are usually your PC, but can also be print servers or fax servers. The hub is equipped with an external power supply, BNC port and an AUI port. More on the BNC and AUI port later.

The unit is very sleek and well designed. It includes hardware for mounting on the wall and unlike other hubs, the ports do not face up and down vertically, but left and right horizontally. This is great for being able to watch active lights and traffic.

Active lights show if your network cable is connected to a device that is active on the network. This is a great troubleshooting feature so you can check and see if your cable is bad. The traffic light it also good to show you if your computer is talking on the network. YOu may be connected, and the port light is on, but you may not be talking.

The unit is small in footprint and resembles a very thin loaf of bread. It has the length of a regular loaf of a bread, but is as thick as a small computer manual.

Remember the BNC and AUI port mentioned? The BNC ports allow a coax cable to be attached to the EN116 hub. What a feature! This is great for people who have started their network using coax (10Base2) and want to expand using 10BaseT. The other benefit is if you run out of 10BaseT ports you can easily add a coax connection and expand your network.

The AUI port is even more special for people who want to connect a small office to a larger network. An AUI port acts like a gateway to another cabling type. For instance, if there is another network in your building that uses fiber optics you could connect to it using your AUI port. This is definitely a great feature for those small offices who need to be connected to larger networks.

Performance is the standard ethernet speed of 10mb. With two servers and five clients on the network there were no perceivable slow downs. The hub works flawlessly allowing you to grow your home or small business without any issues.

Bay Networks has a winner here! You need to grab one of these if you are expanding your network or starting a new one!

NetGear from Bay Networks
<http://netgear.baynetworks.com/>

6=> Product: Windows Annoyances - book/windows
Reviewed By: Patrick Grote, mailto:pgrote@i1.net
Author: David A. Karp
Publisher: O'Reilly & Associates, Inc.
MSRP and Pages: $29.95 and 283 pages

Before I start this review, we need to stop and let you in on something. I love books published by O'Reilly's. Everything from the content to the art work to the layout. I am an O'Reilly's fan. It's sort of like buying Sony. You know that when you buy an O'Reilly book you are buying quality. Something that isn't going to let you down.

Ok, with that out of my system you can save yourself some time and immediately run out and buy a copy of this book. Yes, $29.95 looks to be a bit pricey for the size of the book, even if there is a cool frog/toad looking creature on the front. This will quickly become a book you can't put down.

And therein lies the rub as they say. This book is so well written, so appropriate to anyone who uses Windows 95 and to a certain extent Windows NT 4.0 that you will find yourself reading this with the same compulsion you read the last Stephen King or John Grisham novel or the last prose penned by Maya Angelou. You scoff no such distinction has ever been earned by a computer book? Read on.

Before I read any computer book I always learn as much as I can about the author. Many of today's authors are less accomplished than I am in the computing field and that bothers me. Who are you to tell me what is going on? Many authors today have no real world experience? That design will never work in the real world! David Karp, the author, is the perfect person to write this book. First off, he is humorous. His acknowledgment section includes an apology for "...sounding like he just won an Oscar..." before he goes on to thank his Mom and Dad. Second, he has run one of the most successful Windows 95 web sites in the world called, you guessed it, Windows Annoyances <http://www.creativelement.com/win95ann/>. With 1.6 million visitors adding to the material I know the book will have something for me. Add to that the editor is Andrew Schulman from "there is no difference between Windows NT Server and Workstation" fame and you are in good hands.

The first chapter of the book sets the tone for the rest. Entitled SO YOU'RE STUCK WITH WINDOWS, the author explains even though Windows 95 has garnered popularity and is very functional, there are a whole bunch of little annoying things. Walking through a brief overview of Windows 95 basics and difference between Windows 95 and Windows NT you'll walk away with a better understanding of what is running your computer.

Continuing onto the second chapter you start to get into the ins and outs of customizing your work habits under Windows 95. As the author states, "The ideal user interface should adapt to you rather than the other way around-but this isn't a perfect world, and the Windows interface is far from ideal." Thus begins a look into Explorer and other items concerning the interface. Each section is bulleted with tips directly underneath. For each tip there are notes and other issues which address items you wouldn't have thought of. My favorite tip from this section was adding a shortcut to device manager to my start menu. I have never seen this tip before and it really helped.

The third chapter addresses that file we all love to hate, the registry. I highly recommend everyone read the section entitled GETTING TO KNOW THE REGISTRY. The author does a wonderful job of explaining it. The section I found most useful was the COMPACTING THE REGISTRY.

The fourth chapter, ADVANCED CUSTOMIZATION TECHNIQUES, is all about fixing the problems with the way Windows works for you and is very meaty. everything from preventing programs from change file associations to cleaning unwanted entries from the new button are covered. My favorite tip was hitting SHIFT when inserting a CD turns off auto run for that CD. I like AUTO RUN for some CDs, but others, like Windows 95, I don't need it.

Maximizing Performance stars as the fifth chapter and is broken into three sections: Fine Tuning, Upgrading and Improving Work Habits. fine tuning walks you through your devices and offers tips such as ensuring you are using Windows drivers instead of DOS drivers. Upgrading is a section I thought could have used a little more work. After my motherboard debacle I now know to deinstall the chip drivers from the old motherboard before installing the new one. This section is more of an overview of what you can upgrade and how it affects Windows performance positively instead of warning what upgrades can do to your system in a negatively. Improving work habits was perfect! I now know how to load DOSKEY automatically when I start a DOS session and how to speed up the start menu.

Chapter six is Troubleshooting and is very valuable for those of us who struggle with Windows and cannot find obvious answers to problems. After you get past the pretentative maintenance section you get very hard information on items like getting DOS games to work, creating a startup menu and more. The best section, though, is RESTORING WINDOWS AFTER A CRASH. I have these tips photocopied and taped to my desk, lest I forget the sage advice when I am freaking out.

Networking, of those of us familiar with the web site call it Networking Schmeckworking, is chapter seven and is extremely information packed. The chapter has sections on Setting up a Workgroup, General Networking Issues, Installing DialUp Networking and Coping with DialUp Networking. The author's ability to bring the information down to a level any user can use is best seen here. From pictures of common network cables to how to select an ISP are all authored in very understandable terms! I walked away with a solution to one of the worst problems infecting the email world today: people using Exchange and having a WINMAIL.DAT file attached to their messages! I hate this when someone does this to me and now I can tell them how to turn it off.

The first appendix is a Frequently Asked Questions format broken into the different parts of Windows.

MS-DOS CRASH COURSE is the second appendix which really helps people who are using Windows as their first operating system.

The old glossary is the third appendix, but is written in terms that actually explain concepts and items instead of acting like a circular reference.

The last appendix deals with the nebulous MSDOS.SYS file with all the commands detailed and documented.

This book is a must for anyone who wants to change Windows to suit their habits. The author's remarkable job of explaining technical material using layperson's terms is appreciated in the world of technical gibberish. For $29.95 this book is a steal if you spend any time trying to get Windows to perform for you. Do yourself a favor and tame Windows by buying this book.

O'Reilly & Associates, Inc.
<http://www.ora.com>

7=> Product: Necrodome
Reviewed By: Doug Reed, mailto:dr2web@sprynet.com
Requirements: Pentium, 8MB RAM, Win95, SVGA, 2x CDROM, sound card, 20 MB HD
Tested on: Pentium-166, 24 MB RAM, 16x CDROM, 16-bit wavetable sound card, Nitro3D graphics card
MSRP: $49.95

Necrodome is the latest first-person action game from Raven Software, the creators of Heretic and Hexen, two of the biggest games in the genre in the last few years. Necrodome takes a slight departure from the traditional action game norm by putting the player in a car and having them compete in an arena in a "capture the flag" type game where the victor must successfully retrieve the "flag" and exit the arena. While the idea behind Necrodome is an interesting and appealing one, offering a unique environment and an objective beyond shooting your opponents, the implementation is flawed enough to make it worth waiting for it to hit the bargain bins.

Let me say first and foremost that I am a big fan of first-person games, if you hadn't guessed by my reviews of Descent (I and II), Dark Forces, and Quake. What makes these great games isn't just the action, the sounds, or the graphics, it is a combination of the three that draws the player in. The initial levels are tough, but not so tough that the average player isn't drawn in and left wanting to improve in order to complete the game. I'm even a big fan of Raven's previous projects - Hexen is a huge favorite of mine, with its unique weaponry and the role-playing elements. The premise of Necrodome sounds appealing - a futuristic, gladiator-style combat with cars. The addition of an objective added just the right touch- not just mindless violence, but more of a mission (ala Dark Forces). Necrodome also throws in the ability to play as a team, with one player as the driver and the other manning the turret.

Essentially Necrodome takes place in "a United States of the near future; a post-apocalytic society starved for violent entertainment." Apparently all the people dying during the war wasn't enough! The Necrodome is the most violent and popular of all the sports in this dark future. Gladiators drive armored combat cars called Raiders in specially constructed Arenas with the goal of retrieving the "flag" and successfully exiting the Arena. In the single player game, you compete in some 30 different Arenas on your way to becoming Necrodome Champion. Along the way you will face a variety of opponents, including other gladiators driving Raiders, your basic grunts, and a wide variety of armored cars and tanks including the "Hover Tank", a nasty floating tank that fires rockets. To help you along your way, there are various weapons strewn about the landscape that you can pick up and use, as well as "Flash Gear" that includes everything from a shield restore, napalm, and a baby nuke. You can also play via network or modem, including the Total Entertainment Network (subscription info and free time are included with the game). Necrodome can only be played with up to three additional opponents - a stunning low in this day and age of Quake and Descent where 16 players and up is not uncommon.

So I booted Necrodome up with great expectations. Right away I was disappointed. Among first-person games there are what I would call two different styles of aiming - relaxed and strict. In relaxed games like Quake and Doom you simply have to be pointing in the right direction; in strict games you must be right on target. Relaxed is easier because less aiming is required, making it easier to get the kill before they kill you. But I have occasionally found strict games that I did like - Descent being probably my favorite. Necrodome is a strict shooter that doesn't work for me. I popped into the first arena and began moving around. Right away I encountered a shotgun toting grunt who began blasting away. I tried to aim at him but it was almost impossible - trying to drive a car and aim a gun at the same time is no easy task, and while I kept missing, he kept hitting. After a couple of hits, boom, I was without a car! Leaving the burning wreckage, I thought, okay, that sucked, but at least now I'm not moving so fast and I can aim! Wrong! By the time I sighted the enemy and leveled my gun - boom - I was dead. Ouch! Lesson learned: Necrodome is very tough! After a lot of practice I finally got the moves down and was able to handle the car better. Be prepared though - you will die a lot in the early going (Remember the old quote - "We learn by doing" - well in Necrodome it should be "We learn by dying "). I don't remember any other first-person game that was so tough in the early portions of the game.

Beyond that there really isn't that much to say. The graphics are superb when running off the 3D graphics card; motion is smooth and both the background and objects in the arena are well done. The overall effect of the futuristic gladiator combat is very well carried off; the intro is poor by today's standards but does set the mood for the game. Sound effects are good but hardly spectacular; in both the graphics and sound department I would give Necrodome an average score.

All in all, I have a tough time recommending Necrodome. Despite the idea of putting the player in a car, there is very little original about Necrodome. There is the capture the flag part of each arena, which does add a new element to the game, but more often than not you end up killing everyone else anyway.

Raven Software <http://www.ravensoft.com>
Necrodome is being marketed by Mindscape/SSI
Mindscape
88 Rowland Way
Novato, CA 94945
415-897-9900
<http://www.mindscape.com>

Installation: Gold
Ease-Of-Use: Bronze
Quality: Bronze
User: First person action gamers who simply cannot get their fill

8=> Product: Inside Windows NT Server 4 - Administrators Resource Edition - book/networking
Reviewed By: Patrick Grote, mailto:pgrote@i1.net
Authors: Drew Heywood, et. al.
Publisher: New Riders
MSRP and Pages: $69.99 and 1150 pages

First off, this is a huge book by anyone's standards. It is hard bound and is 1150 pages. The pages aren't loaded with unnecessary graphics or art work. Each page is cram packed with information you as a network administrator for Windows NT 4.0 need.

The first 960 or so pages is dedicated to Windows NT 4 server. the last 250 or so pages is dedicated to Introducing BackOffice. I am usually against mixing topics like this, but for this book it really works out well. The Introduction to BackOffice is well written and only gives the administrator a basic understanding of how each component works and how to install them. No space is wasted on tweaking or walking through all the options, which is better found in other books. This section is for administrators whose bosses ask them if IIS supports SSL connections (yes) and whether Exchange ships with a Lotus Notes gateway (no). The section on secure transactions is only half a page, but does a great job explaining what IIS can do. The section on gateways for Exchange is less than a quarter page.

The meat of the book is on Windows NT 4.0 Server. The chapters are many, 25, and are broken into sections with their own page numbers listed in the table of contents. This is a neat feature so you can zip right to the information you want or need. Finding information through the index is simple as the index itself is 40 pages in length.

THe chapters fall under sections, which are really well designed. The sections are:

Getting Ready for Windows NT: The chapters in this section concern understanding networks, introducing Windows NT Server, your job as a Windows NT administrator, planning and installing network media, selecting hardware for NT and installing Windows NT hardware.

The Basics: Install Windows NT Server, managing the network configuration, understanding user accounts, groups, domains and trust relationships, managing domains and trusts relationships, managing users and groups, sharing drives, directories and files and managing print services.

Installing and Using Clients: Using Windows and DOS Clients, using Windows NT clients and using TCP/IP.

Management: Managing disk storage, backing up files, managing the server, monitoring and managing the network, using the remote access server, managing directory replication, Windows NT Server and NetWare, Windows NT Services for Macintosh, and planning a Windows NT clustering strategy.

These section are superbly written. Unlike other books, I found no misinformation in any of the sections. I was particularly impressed by common use of diagrams to explain concepts and screen shots to explain functions. Another impressive touch the book sported was the addition of NOTES. Notes were used to highlight an important item or additional information.

There were a couple of areas where I felt the book touched on areas too briefly. One was the configuration and purpose of the SERVICES file and the lack of a troubleshooting section. Most impressive were the chapters on planning a Windows NT Server installation and defining a clustering strategy. The book really does cover everything well, including a perforated checklist for ensuring you have everything you need before installation.

I am not used to New Riders publishing such an authoritative tome which is well edited and written. They are quickly becoming a credible source for information.

NewRiders
<http://www.newriders.com>

+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
Managing Editor: Patrick Grote -- mailto:pgrote@i1.net
Assistant Editor: Writer Liaison: Doug Reed--
mailto:dr2web@sprynet.com
Archives: ftp://ftp.uu.net/published/compunotes/
Website: <http://www.compunotes.com/main.html>
e-mail: mailto:notes@compunotes.com
fax: (314) 909-1662
voice: (314) 909-1662
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
CompuNotes is: Available weekly via e-mail and on-line. We cover the
PC computing world with comprehensive reviews, news, hot web sites,
great columns and interviews. We also give away one software package a
week to a lucky winner for just reading our fine publication! Never
dull, sometimes tardy, we are here to bring you the computing world
the way it is! Please tell every on-line friend about us!
CompuNotes
B440
1315 Woodgate Drive
St. Louis, MO 63122
notes@compunotes.com
(C)1997 Patrick Grote
+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
END OF ISSUE
