The news in movie cameras – and I’m talking about the huge for-pro-motion-picture-kind – is that ARRI, Panavision and Aaton have all ceased production of film-based cameras. This may come as sad news to some, but it shouldn’t because hot on the tail of the end of movie film cameras, the digital realm is promising some unbelievably...

Some products are introduced to market that can only do one thing, but if it can do that one thing well, it’s worth the buy. This particular product cannot be bought yet, but I imagine it soon will be available because it is a great idea. The Throwable Panoramic Ball Camera is actually not one but 36 mobile cameras. You take the ball, literally throw it in...

Most people believe email started with the BBS in 1978, but seven years before than in October 1971, Ray Tomlinson developed SNDMSG ("Send Message") that allowed a message to be sent from one computer to another. He’s also responsible for the @ in an email address because he believed it created a sense of place. The Good I still to this day get a...

Some utility programs out there are must-have, like Sizer. For the mouse, there aren’t many really great utilities other than from-OEM software like IntelliPoint for Microsoft mice. There is, however, a mouse utility program that many of you would consider a godsend, WizMouse. What WizMouse does is very simple in that it allows you to use your scroll...

At best, the maximum file size attachment for email is 30MB and at worst 5MB. Yes, believe it or not, there are still little mom-and-pop ISPs that do not allow over 5MB file attachments in email. But even if you and the people you routinely send mail to can accept 30MB file attachments, should you? The answer depends on what you’re trying to send. This...

The mighty VLC is the player of choice for many regardless of whether you use Windows, Mac or Linux since it runs on all three. Choosing different skins (which you may known as “themes”) however isn’t exactly a straightforward thing to do. However once you know where to go and how to apply a skin, it’s easy. See video below to see how...

In this, the first edition of reader mail, I cover a question asked by Steve, and it’s a doozy because it’s very "involved", as they say. Hey Rich, you got some great stuff. My question is this. I use to have outlook express for my email. I just got a new cpu w/windows 7 and now they want me to use Windows Live for my email. I have not (as...

While assuming is never a good thing (how often have you heard "Assume makes an ass-out-of-u-and-me"?), there are certain things I can safely assume the PCMech audience knows without having to overly explain it. For example, if I say "USB device", you know that’s a piece of hardware that plugs into a USB port, and furthermore you know...

Managing what notifications go where is a bit of a balancing act concerning modern communications, and unfortunately there’s no cure-all solution because everyone’s schedule is different. In addition, there are those who like to be notified of everything all the time, while others would prefer more "polite" notifications that don’t...

If you post videos to YouTube, you most likely keep local copies of your videos and back them up somewhere. However there are times when the videos you keep locally may be lost for some reason. Fortunately you can download backup copies of the videos you posted to YouTube, if you know where to find it. For whatever reason, YouTube hides the download option for...

The biggest drawback to buying a wireless print server is price. At present, for a set-it-and-forget-it type of wireless print server that has reliable connectivity, you’re going to spend at least $70. That’s a deal-breaker for many because to spend 70 bucks on top of what you spent for your printer and ink/toner simply isn’t justified. Yes,...

There is the belief, particularly in the electronics industry, that absolutely nothing is made here in the USA. Not true, there is. But before I get into that, it’s sad that Americans actually have to search for USA-made electronics. It shouldn’t be that way, but it is. Maybe we’ll get back to making more electronics here one day, but...

The death of Steve Jobs this week has brought about a ton of stories about the life and times of the man in the technology industry. Apple as a company brought about several game-changer products including iPod, iPad and iPhone, but before all the i’s, the one that started it all was the Macintosh. Now granted, the preceding Apple II line of computers was...

If you’ve ever participated in a LAN party, they’re pretty awesome. A bunch of people get together with computers and one box acts as the gaming server. Lag is basically nonexistent, and that’s just plain cool. You may have the idea that you want to run your own public, as in "public to the internet", gaming server. I recommend...

There are some instant deal-breakers for me when it comes to modern computer monitors. Things that just make me shake my head and say, "What were they thinking?" Here are 5 of them. 1. All button controls hidden on the side This is when every single button (including the power button) for the monitor is recessed into the side to complete what the OEM...

Steve Jobs has died. He left a large and positive mark on the world. Whether you use an Apple product or not, his vision has had a HUGE influence on the entire world of computing. As Apple said, the world is immeasurably better because of Steve. Rest in peace,...

More people are reading books on computers, phones and gadgets these days, but at times it can be a hassle finding a good selection, much less a free selection of good eBooks. One place that has a good wide selection of books to read – all for free – is Project Gutenburg. The area you’ll probably want to start in is the Top 100, which list the...

"Oh. Great. Another Flash Player. Why should I get this one?" This one you should actually pay attention to because there are two notable improvements. First is the fact there’s a native 64-bit version – and that’s great since many of us (yours truly included) are using 64-bit CPUs with 64-bit Windows these days. Second, it’s...

Most people know about CTRL+Plus, CTRL+Minus and CTRL+0 (zero) to increase, decrease and reset font sizes when using a web browser, but with the Firefox extension Stylish, you can not only customize size but also which font to use on a per-website basis. Check out the video below for details on how it’s...

What’s the advantage of an unlocked phone? When you have a phone that’s unlocked, it means you can use any carrier the phone is compatible with. Important note: Check the details of each phone (links are provided below) to see which carriers the phone will work on. Ordinarily most people think phones of this kind are ridiculously expensive at $300 or...