FPCUG Notes for March 2020 Editor: Frank Fota ([email protected])
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
FPCUG Notes for March 2020 Editor: Frank Fota ([email protected]) SCHEDULE OF EVENTS (7:00 PM - Falmouth Firehouse, Butler Road): -- Tues, Mar 3: Technology Workshop (Josh Cockey) -- Tues, Mar 10: Board of Directors (BoD) Meeting (Patty Davis, Presiding) -- Thu, Mar 12: Annual Meeting. The FPCUG Annual Meeting will be held at the Falmouth Volunteer Fire Department, 250 Butler Rd., Falmouth, VA 22405 on Thursday, March 12, 2020, at 7 PM. Please attend this meeting and consider running for office. You can make a difference! One Director, one Trustee, and all of the Executive Officers (i.e., President, Vice President, Secretary, and the Treasurer) will be elected or reelected at the meeting. Contact Patty Davis ([email protected]) or a BoD member if you are interested in serving in one of these positions. We will also accept nominations from FPCUG members at the meeting. The public is invited and refreshments will be served. -- Tues, Mar 17: All About Your Computer (Robert Monroe) -- Wed, Mar 18: Experimax Workshop – 1865-106 Carl D. Silver Parkway -- Thu, Mar 26: Windows All Workshop (Jim Hopkins) FEBRUARY GENERAL MEETING RECAP The FPCUG drew a small but enthusiastic crowd to view three TED talks: computer scientist Supasorn Suwajanakorn presented “Fake Videos of Real People -- and How to Spot Them,” Professor of Physics at TU Delft, Leo Kouwenhoven, discussed quantum computing, “Can we Make Quantum Technology work?” and Navin Reddy, CEO of the distance learning company Telusko, discussed “Blockchain: The Underrated Technology.” 1 SHARE A MONITOR WITH MULTIPLE COMPUTERS Dual monitor computer setups are all the rage these days. But what if you have no space for a second monitor and want to use more than one computer with the same monitor, keyboard, and mouse? Consider a KVM Switch. KVM stands for Keyboard, Video, and Mouse. A KVM switch allows you to connect multiple computers to the switch and utilize the same keyboard, monitor and mouse. I use a KVM switch with a home server running the Debian Linux-based Open Media Vault, a Windows 10 notebook computer, and a Windows XP gaming computer (for games that just won’t play on a 64-bit system). Some KVM switches use a 15-pin VGA connector others use a digital video interface or HDMI connector. The higher the desired resolution, the more expensive these switches become. My monitor is an Acer 23” (1680 x 1050) and the KVM switch I use is manufactured by IOGEAR. It has 4-DVI ports and came with 4 sets of cables. It can also share speakers. If you are interested in a KVM switch, a wide selection is offered at Amazon.com. Terry Hollet provides some of the advantages of various KVM switches in the article, “How To Share Monitor With Multiple Computers” at Daves Computer Tips. CHINA’S SURVEILLANCE STATE REVEALED AMIDST CORONAVIRUS FEARS Writing for Reuters, Yingzhi Yang and Julie Zhu detail the story of a man from Hangzhou who returned home from a business trip to find the police wanted to speak with him. They tracked his car from a location that reported a few cases of coronavirus. They requested he shelter in place for two weeks. At 12 days he became bored and left his home. The police and his boss contacted him because a surveillance camera with facial recognition spotted him and alerted the police and the man’s boss. China’s surveillance network is omnipresent. The Chinese can reportedly scan the streets for people and recognize them even when masked. If an infected passenger boards a train, Chinese surveillance can identify them and the people sitting around them. Mobile phone apps can warn individuals that they have come into contact with infected citizens and produce maps with the location of the infected. You would think that the Chinese people would object but according to the authors, “…Chinese citizens seem to be accepting the extra intrusion, or even embracing it, as a means to combat the health emergency.” Cameras with thermal imaging are currently being tested to identify people with fevers. Thermal imaging technology has been available but its use to spot the infected is new and in response to a request by China’s Industry Ministry to Artificial Intelligence (AI) companies and research institutes to assist in combating the coronavirus. Would most Americans accept such an assault on privacy to combat an outbreak in the United States? 2 HUAWEI HAS BACKDOOR TO MOBILE NETWORKS GLOBALLY Huawei helped build phone networks across the globe that they can reportedly access using backdoors intended for law enforcement. According to Corrinne Reichert at CNET, “The details were disclosed to the UK and Germany at the end of 2019 after the US had noticed access since 2009 across 4G equipment…”. Huawei has offered its equipment at reduced prices but the use of Huawei equipment comes with a price; the loss of data security. China cried foul concerning their ties with Huawei and claimed that the allegations are a smokescreen for US spying on other countries. The UK approved Huawei to build 5G infrastructure in limited locations with some conditions last month. The US urged the UK to ban the construction entirely. Huawei was added to the United States Entity List in May 2019. The Entity List restricted the importation of Huawei equipment because they were believed to be “…involved, or pose a significant risk of being or becoming involved in activities contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests of the United States.” President Trump followed this action with an executive order that banned the company from doing business in the United States. SMARTPHONES ARE RUINING OUR SOCIAL LIVES The scene at left is likely familiar. It seems that every waking moment of our lives must be filled with data of some kind or another. If it’s unessential, it must be entertaining. Seen any good cat videos lately? Social Media is driving this endless stream (pardon the pun) of data. Writing for Daves Computer Tips, Marc Thomas says, “…the ubiquitous mobile phone has become so much more than a device. It’s become an extension of our very beings and for most of us, indispensable, but for many, an addiction.” I purchased a Google Pixel 3XL phone because of its exceptional camera. I use the phone primarily for voice/text communication and weekday access to Waze, a GPS enabled traffic app. I use the phone occasionally for photography, access to email, and the internet (e.g., audiobooks, YouTube, internet radio, and Facebook). For most of us, the old adage, If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” applies. We find ourselves pulling out our phones when waiting for anything. I see it at the hospital where I work; people walking the halls like zombies with their heads buried in their phones. There are large bins of linen and trash, hand trucks with supplies and equipment, someone’s going to get hurt! I suppose the current generation of young adults grew up with a “smart” phone in their hands and it’s hard to wean them away from them to engage in one on one conversation. What can be done? Many senior leaders in our government ask that phones are checked at the door or turned off for important meetings. Perhaps this could be practiced at the dinner table or at other times when personal interaction is required. Unless you’re a doctor, security staff, or a first responder, you can silence your phone so that it simply vibrates. If a call or message is important, you can respond at a more convenient time. Mr. Thomas enlightened me to a new tech term, “Phubbing.” According to Techopedia.com, “Phubbing is a term created by the combination of the words phone and snubbing. It refers to a person interacting with their phone (or other device) rather than interacting with a human being.” HOW RUDE! 3 SMART SHOPPING FOR MODERN SOLID STATE DRIVES Shopping for a modern Solid-State Drive (SSD) can be confusing. You need to know the connectors on your motherboard because there are a number of drive connectors and storage memory types. A good explanation of SSD types is provided by Christopher Harper at PCGuide. A question persists that needs to be answered, especially when you consider the high cost of a “faster” SSD and the more reasonable cost of a 2.5” SSD with Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) connector: is the difference between a SSD with high benchmark read/write speeds and a SSD with nominal read/write speeds noticeable? An interesting test was performed by Linus Sabastian at Linus Tech Tips with three computer experts and with the exception of the drive type, three virtually identical computer systems. The difference in performance between the three computer systems was imperceptible. Linus notes, however, that there are reasons to consider a high- performance SSD. What should you consider when shopping for a SSD? Consider purchasing a SSD with: 1. Higher quality flash memory – This allows more write/erase cycles (i.e., longevity). 2. A quality controller and firmware – This affects the performance of the drive as it nears capacity. 3. The amount of DRAM cache on the drive – This affects speed. Linus says that a SSD without DRAM cache performs like a mechanical drive. Most of the web shopping sites I’ve visited do not specify the DRAM cache on the SSDs they sell. You may be able to identify the DRAM cache size via PCPartPicker. Linus adds that you should consider the applications beyond gaming or video editing that you intend to use. Some applications can take advantage of the drive speed and your personal performance will improve by using a high-performance SSD.