Mar 2001 Volume 82 Number 3 "serving the protectors"
Be protected
Computers By Mike Horsfall

Today’s wonderful technological innovations sometimes leave us in disbelief. The gifted visionaries tell us how lucky we are to have such an array of devices designed to improve our lives and provide us with much more leisure time.

Clearly, the PC – often touted as one of those “wonderful innovations” – does not seem to make life easy at all – even for those with some IT knowledge.

It’s not really the fault of the PC. Fault lies with those determined to infect our programs, access our files and ring up huge amounts of debt on our accounts. Prosecuting these criminals is a must, but the most effective treatment is prevention – once the damage is done, it’s often too late.

Every PC user, who either accesses the Internet, receives e-mail or shares files with friends or colleagues must install a reliable and up-to-date program for detecting computer viruses. But one must do more than just install such a program and forget about it. To maintain its bug-detecting ability, your anti-virus program must be continually updated, fortnightly if not weekly. And don’t neglect the work PC either – many of those also seem to be ignored and sadly outdated.

Additional protection is required to ensure your Net surfing is not placing you at further risk. While you are online, many unscrupulous individuals will be preying on you, attempting to access your files and procure your hard-earned cash. How this is done is a mystery to most of us, after all, we’re the good guys. Thankfully, there are other good guys producing programs to protect us.

Personal firewalls – once only needed on corporate mainframes – are now available for the home. Most, like ZoneAlarm, are designed to advise the user whenever another program is attempting to access the PC. The distributors of ZoneAlarm claim that the product protects users from malicious programs – like Spyware – by allowing the user to control a computer’s Internet traffic and how applications access the Internet. Go to www.zonelabs.com for more information, or simply have your browser conduct a search for others.

Microsoft Trackball Optical

After providing your PC with the necessary protection, it may be time to focus on making it more in tune with your comfort needs. While the PC mouse is a very simple device, there is a variety of styles available and designed to personalize the point-and-click experience.

One such mouse is the Microsoft Trackball Optical, an interestingly shaped device designed to remain stationary on the desktop while still providing the normal mouse features.

Being an optical mouse, there are no internal moving parts to either wear out or become caked in grime. To ensure maximum performance is delivered, the optical sensor actually tracks movements at a rate of 2,000 times per second.

The Trackball Optical features the standard left and right button in addition to a scroll wheel (which is also a button) and two secondary buttons, all of which are customizable after installing the Intellimouse software.

Retailing at about $89, it is recommended for those who have limited space and are sick of chasing the mouse around – those seriously into gaming. To truly master the Microsoft Trackball Optical, however, one will need to be patient.

Hoyle Family Games

Included in the latest range of Hoyle’s Family Games is Hoyle Casino – a realistic casino-based game that incorporates all the fun and excitement of a true-to-life casino.

Whether the stakes are high or low, the entertainment is always top quality. Playing Hoyle Casino is like bringing a true casino into your home and onto your desktop. Players can choose to play any one of the 12 favourite Vegas-style casino games with as many as 350 different game variations. Games include poker, blackjack, roulette, horse racing, craps and a host of poker machine games. Also included are interactive opponents that actually talk, whether it is giving instructions to the dealer or just making comments to other players.

The background noise and general talking that occurs at the tables or machines adds to the reality. Graphics and sound are more than adequate to maintain the player’s interest and add to the thrills and spills of a casino environment.

Hoyle Casino comes with a free rulebook and strategy guide. One can also play over the Internet.

The minimum system requirements are Win 95, Pentium 133, 16MB RAM, 4 X CD-ROM and 120 MB hard disk space.

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