Business means projects. Getting a project is one thing, managing and finishing a project successfully is another thing. Getting a project means money flowing in to our company. However, things might turn around if we could not finish the project on time or to the requirements of our client.

These are a few problems we might face during a project: getting everybody updated on what everybody has done; client’s emails containing important information ending up with the wrong member; difficulty in estimating true project costs because time spent on project tasks are not tracked down properly; communication issue as clients and working partners are miles away. Often, failure to manage the problems will result in redundancies and time wasting, subsequently high productivity cost.

A good project needs a good project management software for tasks and getting things done. I found out that Peletonics provides an easy to use project dashboard, and most importantly it can enable us to handle all the challenges above. Remember that good project management means good productivity and ,of course, profit.

This is how Pelotonics works perfectly for projects:

1. Projects can easily be categorised into TO DO and MILETONES, and be added into the CALENDAR. Relevant Parties will be informed automatically such that everyone will know the updated status for all the tasks. If we need reports, well they are all ready for printing.

2. Pelotonics has an effective messaging system. All updates, comments and relevant files submitted by team and clients will be sent to the management portal, after which relevant parties will be informed.

3. Pelotonics provides special feature for time-tracking. We can easily identify bottlenecks and adjust accordingly before they become problems.

4. I like the friendly Overview and Dashboard pages which is best for checking updates, submitting files and messages. We can access this pages from everywhere we want. Pelotonics seems to work on all platforms (but IE7 is most recommended). Best, there is no software downloading or data synchronizing.

5. Peletonics is all about transparency and trust between project team and clients. The software accommodates the fast and updated information that can be accessed by both team and clients. Team can get prompt reply by posting a message to the client via the project management portal.

“You like potato and I like potahto
You like tomato and I like tomahto
Potato, potahto, Tomato, tomahto.”
Let’s call the whole thing off.”
- Lyrics by Ira Gershwin; Music by George Gershwin

Defining specifications for the design and development of systems and software is a lot like this classic Gershwin song and what I personally regard as the biggest cause of confusion in the Information Technology field for as long as I can remember, which is over 30 years in the industry. Some people say specifications should be based on the inherent properties of information, others believe it is based on a screen/report or file layout, yet others adamantly believe it should be based on process and data specifications. Interestingly, all are absolutely correct. The difference lies in the perspective of the person and the work to be performed. For example, how we define specifications for the design of an automobile is certainly different than how we specify a skyscraper. The same is true in the I.T. field where we have different things to be produced by different people; for example:

1. THE PROGRAMMER (aka, Software Engineer) requires precise specifications in order to develop program code (source and object). This normally takes the form of processing requirements (e.g., hardware configuration, types of transactions to be processed, volume, timing, messages, etc.) and physical data requirements (input/output/file layouts).

2. DBA (Data Base Administrator) requires precise specifications in order to select a suitable file management technique (e.g., DBMS) and produce the necessary Data Definition Language (DDL) for it. This normally takes the form of a logical data base model representing relationships between data entities.

3. THE ANALYST (aka, Systems Analyst, Systems Engineer, Systems Architect, Business Analyst) - requires specifications about the end-User’s information requirements in order to design a system solution. This is normally based on a definition of the user’s business actions and/or decisions to be supported. Following the system design, the Analyst produces the specifications required by the Programmer and DBA to fulfill their part of the puzzle. From this perspective, the Analyst is the translator between the end-User and the Programmers and DBAs.

Each party has his own unique perspective of the puzzle and, as such, requires different “specifications.” To compound the problem though, the role of the Analyst sharply diminished over the years, leaving it to the Programmers to try and determine what the end-User needs, a skill they are typically not trained or suited for. To illustrate, I am reminded of the story of the IT Director at a shoe manufacturing company who received a call from the corporate Sales Manager asking for some help on a pressing problem. The IT Director sent over one of his programmers to meet with the Sales Manager and discuss the problem. Basically, the manager wanted a printout of all shoe sales sorted by model, volume, type, color, etc. The programmer immediately knew how to access the necessary data and sorted it accordingly thereby producing a voluminous printout (three feet high) which he dutifully delivered to the user.

The IT Director stopped by the Sales Manager’s office a few days later to inquire if the programmer had adequately serviced the user. The sales manager afforded the programmer accolades on his performance and proudly pointed at the impressively thick printout sitting on his desk. The IT Director then asked how the manager used the printout. He explained he took it home over the weekend, slowly sifted through the data, and built a report from it showing sales trends.

“Did you explain to the programmer you were going to do this?” asked the IT Director.

“No,” replied the Sales Manager.

“Aren’t you aware we could have produced your report for you and saved you a lot of time and effort?”

“No.”

This is a classic example of the blind leading the blind. The user did not know how to adequately describe the business problem, and the programmer asked the wrong questions. Remarkably, both the Sales Manager and programmer were delighted with the results. The IT Director simply shook his head in disbelief.

There are substantial differences between specifying information requirements and specifying software. Both have their place, but both serve different purposes. Whereas a true Analyst investigates the underlying business rationale of the information, the Programmer lives in the physical world and is only concerned with how the software will work.

It is not uncommon to hear programmers lament, “Users do not know what they want.” They may not know how it should physically look or how it should best be delivered, but Users most definitely know what they want from an information point of view. Most programmers simply are not asking the right questions. Then again, they were not trained for this and are trying to compensate for the lack of true Analysts.

Remarkably, the Analyst function is experiencing a resurgence in the industry as companies are realizing that a higher level person is needed to understand the business and have a more global perspective of a company’s systems and software. To illustrate, the process should fundamentally work like this:

1. Working with the User, the Analyst studies the business and helps the User specify information requirements.

2. From the requirements, the Analyst produces a system design which includes either a new system and/or modification of an existing system. As part of the design, the Analyst defines:

* The logical processing of data in terms of how it is to be collected, stored, and retrieved.
* The business processes affected, including the parts implemented by the computer.
* The design of the inputs and outputs.
* The design of the logical data base model.

In considering the computer processing, the Analyst determines which portions can be implemented by a commercial package or requires programming.

3. The design specifications are conveyed to the Programmer and the DBA for implementation.

4. From the logical data base model, the DBA designs a physical solution and produces the necessary Data Definition Language. The DBA passes on the physical file layouts to the Programmer for implementation.

5. The Programmer studies the software specifications and determines a suitable method of implementation, e.g., languages to be used, along with suitable tools and techniques for design.

For graphic, see:
http://www.phmainstreet.com/mba/blog/ss080225.jpg

The real beneficiary of such an approach is the programmer as the “guess work” has been eliminated for him. This may be an oversimplification of the overall process, but it is intended to show the vital role the Analyst plays and how it contrasts with the other participants. In the absence of such a person, the Programmer inevitably defaults to the role of Analyst and here is where specification problems begin to emerge.

This also hints at the limitations of “agile” methods. To their credit, the proponents of such methodologies recognize they are limited to software and, in particular, a single program. In doing so, they are trying to expedite the overall process of specification gathering in order to get to the job of programming.

In addition to defining the relationships between the various development functions, there is also the problem of developing a standard and consistent approach for recording specifications. This can be performed orally, but more likely it is recorded using a documentation technique to communicate the work to be performed and as a means to check the finished product to see if it does indeed satisfy the specifications. In the fields of engineering and construction, standards have been developed over the years to record specifications, such as blueprinting. But in the I.T. field, a myriad of techniques have been introduced with little or no standardization. For example, there are several different types of graphical and textural techniques, as well as repositories and data dictionaries to record and track specifications. Regardless, very few companies have adopted standards for recording specifications.

CONCLUSION

The problem with specifications in the design and development of systems and software is primarily due to a lack of standardization in the industry. There are a lack of standards in the areas of:

* Different types of deliverables resulting from the development process and how to format them (including specifications).

* Different development functions participating in the process, along with their interrelationships, and duties and responsibilities.

* Different perspectives of development in terms of the inherent properties of systems and software.

* Different methods, tools and techniques for performing design and development.

As long as there remains a lack of standardization in the I.T. industry, there will always remain a different interpretation of what specifications are and how to best document them. In other words, we’ll go on saying “You like tomato and I like tomahto.” So when do we call the whole thing off?

Every business uses computer software. But not every business realises the importance of having a user friendly software library for cataloging all their software.

While sharing software and using it on more than one computer is against the law, making a copy to keep in your software library in case it is ever needed is not only allowed, it is strongly advised.

In this sense a company?s software library is the computer equivalent of the box that says ?break glass in emergency?; it grants you access to the vital software your company uses to run its day to day business. If anything goes wrong or the original software is corrupted in any way, you have the back up you need to get you out of trouble.

It?s obvious then that the library needs to be properly catalogued and kept fully up to date, to ensure that everything is where it should be in the event that it?s ever needed. Consider it as a fire extinguisher to help put out the flames caused by malfunctioning computer equipment. If you don?t know where that extinguisher is ? or even worse, you haven?t got one at all ? the flames could spread out and affect your whole business. Use the fire extinguisher however and everything is back to normal in no time.

The process of creating a software library can ironically be made much easier by purchasing software that is designed to make the task easy to perform and control. The companies that specialise in this kind of software also offer support services to help you get your own library up and running.

The most important aspect is to consider your needs and the best way of organising your own business software library. It needs to be easy to access and update, while remaining secure at all times.

For this reason it?s advisable to make sure that only a few key members of staff can access the software library. It?s not necessary for everyone to have access to it, and the more people are able to do so, the more likely it is that it will be compromised.

Once the library has been created it will be necessary to update it every time a new piece of software is integrated into the current computer system. Making a particular person responsible for seeing that this is done will ensure the integrity of the software library remains secure.

The bigger your business is, the harder it can sometimes be to keep an eye on what?s happening with your software.

All businesses need software for their computers; the type and amount of software programs required depends largely on the type of business being run and how large it is. But regardless of these issues the problem of whether your software is authorised or unauthorised can rear its ugly head in any business, and it?s important to have adequate measures in place to ensure that any problems associated with unauthorised software are kept to a minimum.

Many employees don?t recognise the problems that can occur when unauthorised software is introduced into the system. Of course the most pressing issue is that of keeping within the law; keeping a copy of the software locked up safely in your software library is perfectly acceptable, but installing that same software on half a dozen computers in a single office is most certainly not.

Unfortunately some employees are na?ve when it comes to this kind of breach. It can be worth amending the staff handbook or guidebook to ensure that guidelines and advice regarding such matters are included there for them to read. Department memos and perhaps even training sessions to help raise awareness of these issues can also help to bring people in line with what?s required by law, and what?s required by the company as a whole.

Of course some employees will assume that they are doing the company a favor by using software in inappropriate ways. Why purchase more copies than you really need when one or two copies can be used to install the program throughout an entire office? Employees that take this line of thinking assume they are doing a good thing by saving the company money ? not thinking ahead to the possible fines and fees associated with being caught.

The other main problem associated with using unauthorised software is the risk of introducing viruses and other unwanted ?hangers on? into the business systems. If an employee brings a copy of some software they have at home, or worse, accesses it from the internet, they are putting the safety of the whole company at risk.

It?s plain to see that using authorised software is the only safe and legal route to making sure you get the best from your computer system. The challenge is in making sure all staff members recognise and accept this same fact, and don?t do anything to jeopardise it.

Microsoft Windows is the name of several families of software operating systems by Microsoft. Microsoft first introduced an operating environment named Windows in November 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces (GUIs). The most recent client version of Windows is Windows Vista. The current server version of Windows is Windows Server 2008.

Windows 1.0 (1985)

The first version of Windows provided a new software environment for developing and running applications that use bitmap displays and mouse pointing devices. Before Windows, PC users relied on the MS-DOS? method of typing commands at the C prompt (C:\). With Windows, users moved a mouse to point and click their way through tasks, such as starting applications.

In addition, Windows users could switch among several concurrently running applications. The product included a set of desktop applications, including the MS-DOS file management program, a calendar, card file, notepad, calculator, clock, and telecommunications programs, which helped users, manage day-to-day activities.

Windows 2.0 (1987)

Windows 2.0 took advantage of the improved processing speed of the Intel 286 processor, expanded memory, and inter-application communication capabilities made possible through Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE). With improved graphics support, users could now overlap windows, control screen layout, and use keyboard combinations to move rapidly through Windows operations. Many developers wrote their first Windows?based applications for this release.

Windows 3.0 (1990)

The third major release of the Windows platform from Microsoft offered improved performance, advanced graphics with 16 colors, and full support of the more powerful Intel 386 processor. A new wave of 386 PCs helped drive the popularity of Windows 3.0, which offered a wide range of useful features and capabilities, including:

Program Manager, File Manager, and Print Manager.

A completely rewritten application development environment.

An improved set of Windows icons.

Windows NT 3.1 (1993)

When Microsoft Windows NT? was released to manufacturing on July 27, 1993, Microsoft met an important milestone: the completion of a project begun in the late 1980s to build an advanced new operating system from scratch.

Windows NT was the first Windows operating system to combine support for high-end, client/server business applications with the industry’s leading personal productivity applications.

Windows for Workgroups 3.11 (1993)

A superset of Windows 3.1, Windows for Workgroups 3.11 added peer-to-peer workgroup and domain networking support. For the first time, Windows?based PCs were network-aware and became an integral part of the emerging client/server computing evolution.

Windows for Workgroups was used in local area networks (LANs) and on standalone PCs and laptop computers. It added features of special interest to corporate users, such as centralized configuration and security, significantly improved support for Novell NetWare networks, and remote access service (RAS)

Windows NT Workstation 3.5 (1994)

The Windows NT Workstation 3.5 release provided the highest degree of protection yet for critical business applications and data. With support for the OpenGL graphics standard, this operating system helped power high-end applications for software development, engineering, financial analysis, scientific, and business-critical tasks.

Windows 95 (1995)

Windows 95 was the successor to the three existing general-purpose desktop operating systems from Microsoft?Windows 3.1, Windows for Workgroups, and MS-DOS. Windows 95 integrated a 32-bit TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) stack for built-in Internet support, dial-up networking, and new Plug and Play capabilities that made it easy for users to install hardware and software.

The 32-bit operating system also offered enhanced multimedia capabilities, more powerful features for mobile computing, and integrated networking.

Windows NT Workstation 4.0 (1996)

This upgrade to the Microsoft business desktop operating system brought increased ease of use and simplified management, higher network throughput, and tools for developing and managing intranets. Windows NT Workstation 4.0 included the popular Windows 95 user interface yet provided improved networking support for easier and more secure access to the Internet and corporate intranets.

Windows 98 (1998)

Windows 98 was the upgrade from Windows 95. Described as an operating system that “Works Better, Plays Better,” Windows 98 was the first version of Windows designed specifically for consumers.

With Windows 98, users could find information more easily on their PCs as well as the Internet. Other ease-of-use improvements included the ability to open and close applications more quickly, support for reading DVD discs, and support for universal serial bus (USB) devices

Windows 98 Second Edition (1999)

Windows 98 SE, as it was often abbreviated, was an incremental update to Windows 98. It offered consumers a variety of new and enhanced hardware compatibility and Internet-related features.

Windows 98 SE helped improve users’ online experience with the Internet Explorer 5.0 browser technology and Microsoft Windows NetMeeting? 3.0 conferencing software. It also included Microsoft DirectX? API 6.1, which provided improved support for Windows multimedia, and offered home networking capabilities through Internet connection sharing (ICS)

Windows Millennium Edition (Windows Me) (2000)

Designed for home computer users, Windows Me offered consumers numerous music, video, and home networking enhancements and reliability improvements.

Windows Me was the last Microsoft operating system to be based on the Windows 95 code base. Microsoft announced that all future operating system products would be based on the Windows NT and Windows 2000 kernel.

Windows 2000 Professional (2000)

Windows 2000 added major improvements in reliability, ease of use, Internet compatibility, and support for mobile computing.

Among other improvements, Windows 2000 Professional simplified hardware installation by adding support for a wide variety of new Plug and Play hardware, including advanced networking and wireless products, USB devices, IEEE 1394 devices, and infrared devices.

Windows XP (2001)

With the release of Windows XP in October 2001, Microsoft merged its two Windows operating system lines for consumers and businesses, uniting them around the Windows 2000 code base.

With Windows XP, home users can work with and enjoy music, movies, messaging, and photos with their computer, while business users can work smarter and faster, thanks to new technical-support technology, a fresh user interface, and many other improvements that make it easier to use for a wide range of tasks

Windows VISTA

Windows Vista is a line of operating systems developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, Tablet PCs, and media centers.

Windows Vista contains many changes and new features, including an updated graphical user interface and visual style dubbed Windows Aero, improved searching features, new multimedia creation tools such as Windows DVD Maker, and redesigned networking, audio, print, and display sub-systems

It seems like every other month a new ?program? comes along to make our lives that much easier. For example, first we could bookmark favorites, and then RSS feed them, and then came widgets and now ?bots? which are robots that do a lot of our computer work for us in the background. Examples of friendly bots are weather bots, game playing bots, instant messaging and my favorites are those on AOL Instant Messenger which do all kinds of functions for me like shop, find movie times and even give updates on the Wall Street Journal.

Unfortunately not all bots were created ?equal.? Some are friendly and some are not. The ones that are not friendly can be a form of malware that allows control of your computer to be released, providing hackers with the opportunity to access your information and spread harmful bots to others. This type of computer virus can then be used to spread spam and commit various types of identity theft and other online fraud.

So with new threats to our computers and information, new methods of protection are required. One of the oldest and most well known software protection designers has recently released a new protection program, Symantec Norton AntiBot. This is a software product designed to prevent the hijacking of one?s personal computer by bots and uses the bots on design programs against them, to located and destroy them.

Many people already employ some form of protection on their personal computer, such as increasing the protection level from internet information to ?high.? But these cannot detect some of the most recent bot programs and may not be the most efficient means of information protection, especially with the Internet being used more and more frequently for online shopping, ticket purchases, travel and other ?high risk? activities.

A more effective method of detecting and eliminating threats caused by bots is to install software designed specifically to detect, destroy and prevent bots from having access to your computer. With Symantec Norton AntiBot software, protection against bots is enhanced several times and the threat of bot attack is greatly diminished. It?s program protects against bots by blocking bots from entering your computer through downloads and e-mail attachments (two of the common ways bots enter a personal computer), checking for any unusual behavior on your personal computer and eliminating it, and detecting malicious bot software at all levels; keeping your personal, financial and credit card information safe and stopping identify theft before it can occur.

Because bots operate in the background and are not detectable by antivirus or antispyware programs, many computer users are completely unaware that their personal computer has become infected. Many problems caused by bots go undetected until it is too late. Warning signs that your computer may have been accessed include: slowness of computer speed and unusual or irrelevant error messages. However, many times com these symptoms are sporadic and computer users will take little notice. Many people will continue to use their personal computer, unaware that bots have hijacked their personal computer and are slowly at work; looking for credit card numbers, passwords, and logon information which can be used for identity theft and in committing other types of online crime. This program scans your personal computer on a continuous basis, closing the gaps that could allow bots to infect your personal computer and better ensuring that bots do not invade and gain control.

The use of Symantec Norton AntiBot to determine what a harmful or useful bot and allows you to continue using those bots you love and have come to depend on for information and services. It can be used in addition to several other antivirus and antispyware programs. Its compatibility is not limited to only Norton products.

The cost of this software is $29.95 for one year of service. It was awarded PC Magazine?s Editor?s Choice Award (2007) and underwent rigorous testing which included using AntiBot on computers with existing threats as well as allowing threats to try to access the computer after installation.

With the growing threat of identity theft and credit card fraud Symantec Norton AntiBot offers an additional level of protection needed to combat the threat of bots and prevent them from turning one?s personal computer into a robotic that turns into an instrument of destruction to both your personal and financial well-being.

What to do….what to do? You’ve gone ahead and completed a clean install of Windows Vista Ultimate; then installed PC Doc Pro to scan your new installation only to have it advise you that you have 572 problems! Worse, 31 of these problems, according to PC Doc Pro, are severe.

So was this result fantasy, or reality? Oh, it’s reality alright. It’s the reality of a rogue application that generates false positives.

Regular readers of this Blog are aware that I have focused recently on rogue security software. Rogue computer applications unfortunately come in all flavors; not just in the security field.

Simply put, rogue applications have been developed to mislead uninformed computer users’ into downloading and paying for the “full” version of bogus software, based on the false positives generated by the application.

Without question, PC Doc Pro is a rogue application extraordinaire. The product fixes 50 problems (false positives that it generates), for free, but to “fix” the rest of these false positives, you need to buy a 30-day license that costs $29.95.

Deborah Salmi, Marketing Executive at Web of Trust, a socially conscious company that takes its protective responsibilities to the greater Internet community very seriously, recently advised me that the company had encountered this exact situation, as described above, while testing the effectiveness of PC Doc Pro.

Curious, I did my own testing and investigation of this application, and essentially duplicated the results obtained by WOT. While I found the results disturbing, (I obviously don’t like to be lied to or have my money stolen), equally as disturbing was the realization that this crap program is available for download on Download.com, a site that I have never hesitated to recommend as a safe and ethical download site.

The developers and distributors of this bogus software are, using any definition, cyber-crooks. So the question is; how do these bas**rds get away with it?

One of the regular commentators on this Blog summed it up eloquently when he said, “The Internet has equalized the playing field internationally for the bad guys, but it has not equalized the playing field for law enforcement”. It would be difficult to disagree with this observation.

WOT as part of their corporate commitment to assist Internet users in safely surfing the jungle the Internet has now become, has just begun to develop a series of videos depicting what can happen to your computer if you visit a risky website, such as PcDocPro.com or download and install rogue software.

It’s important for your system security and frankly, your wallet, that you be aware of the dangers that applications like PC Doc Pro present, so be sure to check out the first of WOT’s videos at http://www.mywot.com/en/online-threats/fraudulentsite.

For a complete review of WOT’s Internet browser add-on, take a look at “Safer Surfing With WOT – Find Out How!” on this site.

My PC has finally quit on me. It is lasted me 6 years (with basic upgrades along the way), but now the processor has decided to give up the ghost, and so I need a new system. The Processor is first generation P4, released long before all these nice new dual-core models that are available. I should have upgraded long ago, but I have not really had any need to. I have ordered all the pieces I need to build a new system, but one of the websites I have ordered from is managed by incompetents, so there has been a delay in building the machine.

So… what has all this got to do with my degree course? First of all, it goes some way to explaining the lack of postings I have made. Things have been too frustrating. The PC likes to shut down after anywhere between 20 minutes and 2 hours of use, and I have had a hard enough time with assignments and work (my school have been running intensive summer classes which means I have been working longer hours). More relevant to you, the reader, it got me thinking about just how much PC Power I would need to complete the KEISIE degree course.

I am confident in saying that the degree would run perfectly on any PC that is stable. You do not need a top of the range PC or laptop, and indeed any entry level model will suffice. As a minimum, you need to be able to run the following software:

An Operating System

Most PC’s come with Windows installed, but if you do not have a copy, or if you do not want to use it, you can run Linux software which is free (MS Windows is not free). Some builds of Linux will run on old 486 machines and need just 16mb of RAM! I bought a second hand 486 machine back in 1994 to help me with my bachelors, so that should tell you just how old a machine it can run on!

I should warn you now. Linux is not always easy to use, and if you are a PC beginner, you should probably use the MS Windows that came on your PC or pay for a copy. It is the easiest OS to use out of the box. Whatever you may think of Microsoft, there is a good reason for their popularity!

If you choose an Apple computer, their OSX software is also more than adequate.

A Word Processor

Open Office is a free office suite that will suffice. It is capable of running on Linux as long as you have 128Mb of RAM, and 200Mb of disk space. If you are using a Windows machine, the disk space requirement goes up to 800Mb for the install, and then drops down to around 440Mb after the temporary files have been deleted. This may sound like a lot, but when you consider that a CD holds 800Mb of data, you should realise that it is a very small program.

There is also a version of Open Office for the Mac, should you require it.

A PDF Reader

The KEISIE course readings are all provided as PDF files, and so you will need PDF reader software in order to view them. Basic reader software is almost always free. You can go with the trusted Adobe Acrobat reader, but this is considered bloatware. It uses a lot of your system resources, and is quite a large download, but it is good, free, and runs on Windows, Linux or MAC without problems.

I prefer to use STDU Viewer, which opens a number of other formats. Whilst STDU uses less space, and installs fewer unnecessary components, it does use more RAM (512Mb). This is largely down to the fact that it can open a number of documents in one window, and allows functionality that other programs do not.

If you are truly limited by your system, Cool PDF Reader requires just 626Kb of disk space (half of a floppy disk!) and does not need installation. 32Mb of RAM is enough to run it, so it will run on any PC built in the past 10 years without any problems.

A PDF Writer

Assignments for the course are submitted as PDF documents. There is no need to print out and mail them in as there are with many other distance courses. PDF format cannot be easily edited, and so it is a secure way to submit documents. They are uploaded to the course website and submitted directly to the faculty in that manner.

The commercial PDF creation software is expensive. Adobe Acrobat will cost you $299!!! Thankfully, there are many free solutions available. A lot of these are intended as a free trial, and so they will often add a watermark indicating along the lines of “created with… software”. Whilst the KEISIE faculty does not frown upon this, I do. Especially where there is an excellent alternative!

PrimoPDF is a free, lightweight piece of software that installs itself as a virtual printer. Whenever you “print” a file using PrimoPDF, it will create a PDF file of your document. They support over 300 different file formats, and a nifty feature is the ability to append to PDF files. If you need to print from 3 different files and make 1 PDF, it is possible with this software!

Whilst the software (and append capability) only works with windows, they do allow you to submit Mac or Linux files to the website and you PDF can be mailed to you. I have not used this feature, but if it is anything like the software version it will be great.

Zip software

Most Operating Systems now include the capability to open Zip archives. If you download more than one file from the KEISIE website, they arrive as a Zip archive. Whilst the ability to open these files is not necessary (you could simply do individual downloads), it helps streamline the process of downloading the unit readings every 2 weeks. If for some reason you cannot open these files, you can download the excellent WINRAR, and use it on just about any OS. The trial version is free, and is not time limited. You can use it to extract files with no problems for as long as you need to.

People often assume that a top of the range PC is required to study online, but it is not required for the KEISIE course. Any internet ready PC will suffice! You can buy new PC’s for $300 these days, and an old second hand one will cost even less. This will be enough to see that you can complete your studies, and even without any software included you can easily download free alternatives that will more than suffice!

In case you haven’t checked the E-sword or Estudy Source pages lately, there is a new translation in town: the New Revised Standard Version has come to e-Sword.

That’s good news, as it is (for me at least) the last major translation I was eager to have for e-Sword. There is bad news however: e-Sword NRSV only comes in two of its three typical flavors:

NRSV Protestant, without any apocryphal/deutero-canonical books, and NRSV Catholic, which includes the standard apocryphal/deutero-canonical books used by Roman Catholics.

Missing is the so-called Complete Bible NRSV, which includes a few other works commonly considered apocryphal but included in the canon of the Orthodox and/or Ethiopian churches. Mind you, there are people who will always want a few more books in any bible (Enoch, Jubilees, Gospel of Thomas, Ignatius, etc.)

The NRSV has long been about as close to a universal translation as one can get in these days of ever- multiplying English Bible translations. It is commonly used in many mainline Christian denominations, and has been for years a standard for quoting in biblical scholarship. NRSV’s New Testament has been especially well-received, not the least due to it’s senior editior being the late Bruce Metzger, author of both A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament and Lexical Aids for Students of New Testament Greek, among other works. The Old Testament of the NRSV has always been a bit more controversial, as many feel it too dependent on the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, rather than the standard Hebrew Masoretic Text.

If you want some further opinion and info on the NRSV, you can look at this tag page on Rick Mansfield’s This Lamp site.

A number of other translations receiving attention in the biblioblogosphere recently are available for purchase at eStudy Source: TNIV as part of an NIV package; NLTse; and HCSB. Check them out.

A placebo is a substance or procedure a patient accepts as medicine or therapy, but which has no specific therapeutic activity. Any therapeutic effect is thought to be based on the power of suggestion. - Wikipedia entry

Tell a group of users to try Windows Vista. Record the responses. Get them back the next day, and show off a “new, better, unreleased version of Windows”. Call it Microsoft Mojave. Record the responses. The next day, tell everyone that Mojave is actualy Windows Vista. See what happens.

I’m pretty sure this is how the placebo effect works. It is the method, but my procedures might be incorrect. Anyways, Microsoft started the “Mojave Experiment” using that basic concept. Everyone hears how Vista “sucks, slow as hell, gets viruses” and everything else that can possibly be said. But replace Vista with a different name and image. Voila! Those “problems” just seem to have disappeared. Is it really Microsoft Mojave that’s making a difference? The product doesn’t even exist. So what’s going on here?

The power of suggestion. The user has been persuaded that Vista is slow from a source/s, and therefore will see it as being slow. Tell the same user that Mojave is fast, and it will be fast. Why? Because Mojave was said to be fast. There is no real explanation as to why humans behave like this. I don’t know, but I assume it’s developed subconsciously. That’s my best answer.

Apple uses the power of suggestion in those “Get a Mac” ads. Insert one PC guy and one Mac guy. The PC guy is dressed up in a business suit, wears a tie, and looks like a workaholic. The Mac guy, on the other hand, is cool, casual, laidback. Hip as can be. The ads go on a Mac offensive, spewing the common misconceptions about Windows. Meanwhile, telling the viewer how great Macs can do the same thing faster or in less time. We always see the PC guy feeling useless at the end.

What do you think the viewer watching at home would buy? Useless PC or playboy Mac?

The Mac ads perpetuate the false misconceptions of a Windows/PC even further. The average consumer, who wouldn’t know what anything means, would buy a Mac because the PC has been casted as a demon machine.
“Slow, dirty, crappy! Slow, dirty, crappy!” The consumer is hesitant, but the ad said that Macs are faster. This reinforces their decision.

Ask a Mac user why they chose it. Their reply would sound exactly like an Apple ad.

Another way to do this experiment is to transform Vista into OSX via a skin pack. Run simple tasks using the same programs, and let the user experiment. For control purposes, hardware information will be restricted from view. I wonder what the outcome would be. Is OSX that much better than Vista, or is it just proving correct the power of suggestion, which in this case, subliminal messages?

To be fair, I’ll analyze the Mojave Experiment. I don’t think it’s an ad campaign of any sorts. Microsoft might’ve paid the actors, but the response is what you’d get for anyone. If you disguise Vista up, most users wouldn’t know it’s Vista. It’s only until someone sees the Vista name or image that they start associating it with “slow, dirty, and crappy”.

It is interesting to see the placebo effect in person. I don’t care for either company. I just like to analyze stupid things with stupid theories.

More information on the placebo:
http://www.bcx.net/hypnosis/placebo.htm
http://www.sixside.com/13_things_that_do_not_make_sense.htm