Spreadsheets

Spreadsheets were one of the first killer applications for personal computers. A spreadsheet consists of data in rows and column. The program makes it easier to update the calculation when changes are made, rather than having to redo everything by hand. The Microsoft Office suite include the Excel spreadsheet and other computers have similar tools. An Excel tutorial shows how to use it.

DVD

After looking at digitalizing audio for CDs the related question is how about DVDs?

Better than MP3?

After disussing MP3 compression, the question was "is there anything better than MP3?" Looking for an answer turned up some new resources that show some of the many factors involved in compressing sound. First MP3: The Definitive Guide provides more information on MP3. ITunes uses Advanced Audio Coding (AAC). One of the factors in compression quality is how many bits are used to encode each second of sound. MP3 or AAC are not implemented in only one way. The bit rate can vary and the compression details can vary.

Some people that are obviously musically well-trained have done comparisons of MP3 with AAC. See REPORT ON THE RELATIVE QUALITY OF AAC AUDIO TO MP3 PART 1 which also tests the Ogg Vorbis format and mentions the LAME encoder for MP3.

How MP3 Files Work

When I was a kid the state of the art was 78rpm records that played a song lasting about five minutes or less. I saw the advent of 45rpm record (with the hole in the middle) and long-playing 33rpm (30 minutes or so). When I was about 13 I got a tape player, but it was reel-to-reel.

So the world has changed. Now MP3 players are very popular. But what it MP3. Let's find out, atarting with How MP3 Files Work and following many of the links, including

How CDs Work
    How Analog and Digital Recording Works
          How Bits and Bytes Work (first three sections only)

Preventing Malware

Bleeping Computer is a community devoted to providing free original content, consisting of computer help and tutorials, in such a way that the beginning computer user can understand. Many computers get infested with malware (bad stuff). We will start one tutorial, Understanding Spyware, Browser Hijackers, and Dialers, and follow links within it to other tutorials and software packages.

We reference 
   How to remove a Trojan, Virus, Worm, or other Malware
   Windows Registry
   Autoruns
   Startup Database
   How to start Windows in Safe Mode
   Understanding and Using Firewalls
   Using Ad-Aware SE to remove Spyware & Hijackers from Your Computer

Google search

Google Guide is a nice interactive tutorial on how to searh the Internet using Google. In Part I, Query Input, sections we looked at include
3. Selecting Search Terms
4. Interpreting Your Query
6. Quoted Phrases
9. The ~ Operator

Technorati

Technorati searches blogs. You can claim your blog so that Technorati will include it in its search. Current items show up at the head of the search so Technorati provides a view of what people are blogging about. The "tagged web" And Using Technorati" gives some tips. It was written in 2005 so some specifics have changed. Tags and watchlists are interesting.