Feb 2010 newsletter

My sympathies to you if you have recently had any computer problems, particularly if it has involved the loss of access or records.

This statement is not so much because of my own problems, but more because of regular conversations with persons and businesses who have suffered. I cannot stress enough the importance of backing up valuable data and heeding the warning signs of possible impending hardware or software failure.

The modern term applied to all this is Disaster Recovery Strategy. It can apply to computers, business records and don't forget all your personal records, films, videos, photos and sound recordings. In the vast majority of cases these will be the only copy you have of personal and family history or even about one person. To properly copy these can not only recover quality but also easily provide extra copies as keep sakes for other family members and insurance against disaster.

Please note, the link above "click here to forward this newsletter to a friend" did not work as it should have last month due to my not checking it properly, it does this month so please do forward this now to anyone you think may be interested in this news and the work I do.

Paul Perry

Computers and Disasters

Over the past couple of months I have replaced major parts in 2 computers over 4 years old and in a third computer of similar age had to complete a procedure termed a Windows Installation Repair. None of this resulted in loss of data, but these days I make doubly sure I have a complete backup of everything.

In the same way if I am holding a copy of any discs I have produced for you they will have been copied to 2 different backup hard drives to be kept for safe keeping in 2 different places. Though you should not rely on this as a backup for you.

In some ways the equipment we use today is more fragile because of the technology upon which it is based. If a vinyl record was scratched the only problem would be a crack, crack, badly scratch a compact disc or DVD and it may not be playable at all. Though I do think that half the problem with failed equipment these days is because of the way it is treated. The other half is probably more due to poor design or quality control, and that is something that has degraded over the years.

Technology and the Last 100 Years

There was a day not so very long ago when I suddenly realised that mankind has only been able to record happenings of daily life in detail in the last 100 years or so. Prior to this the only means of recording of any sort would have been to write about it or draw/paint a picture. And for much of that history the method of recording has been analogue based, that is, a media based on values in a continuous scale. Such as a clock with continuously moving hands or a constantly moving stylus on a record.

Up until very recent times recording has also been mostly based upon media that is degradable. What do I mean by degradable? We see it in fading photographs, early films that end up as a pile of brown dust in the film can or later films smelling like vinegar, some sound recording tape turning sticky making it difficult to play until specially treated, VHS video tapes with worsening picture problems and much more.

Now in the digital age that is not so much of a problem. Mediums are still to some extent made using degradable organic materials, but these are generally far more stable and longer lasting. The biggest advantage we have now though is once having created a digital recording or copied from an analogue media to a digital one it is now possible to copy this recording without quality loss. It is also possible to restore that recording and even improve it beyond the original or to archive a copy for further restoration using computer applications and methods yet to be invented.

Traditional Broadcast vs Online Internet Based TV

Technical news sources have been abuzz for some time about developments in Internet TV. This year already predictions are flying think and fast about this being the year when online TV and video based sites like YouTube become much more mainstream.

To demonstrate how things have changed one only needs to read of the way in which US President Obama is said to have won the election largely because of his use of online video and social media using sites such as YouTube, Twitter and Facebook etc..

In one report recently it was stated that 2/3 of the members of the US House of Representatives have private YouTube channels for public promotion uses.

Humour

You may have heard me mention some of these of my own sayings of technical wisdom, I thought it was time to commit some to print as guides for this modern age.

Computers are really extremely good and very helpful to us, provided you do everything EXACTLY the way THEY want you to.

You may have heard in the past that if you were having trouble programming the timer on your brand new video recorder you should ask a passing 15 year old for help. Now it is more likely to be your mobile phone, internet connection, frozen computer screen, digital still/video camera operation, or how to set up your brand new high definition digital television that a passing 10 year old will be able to help you with, and be able to give you a full technical explanation of how to do it yourself next time.

You should always keep an open mind in the face of predictions of what we will be using in the future.

• Very early computer experts were quoted as saying that computers would have limited uses in industry and be of no real use in the home.
• When electronic development took off after the valve era and predictions were flying thick and fast no one predicted the pocket calculator.
• It took a TV camera the size of a shoe box recording the first moon landing to show the TV industry the value of live on the spot news reporting, something we take for granted today.
• Mr Microsoft Bill Gates, was once quoted as praising the future potential of the OS/2 computer operating system. That was, before he split with co-developers IBM and decided to compete with them with Windows. And even Windows 3.1 Bill Gates originally co-developed with IBM.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions and comments on this newsletter and suggestions of what you would like me to cover in future issues.