Multi-Function Inkjet Print

Teleworking Ta es
An Office in the Cloud

Com Online office suites

SOHO Gear

August 2008 V o l u m e 21 Number 08 F r e e

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Paper The Well-Appointed
Home Office

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 The
HUB Computer
Paper Contents August 2008
7 S w e e t , Sweet SOHO Stuff
The well-equipped home office 27 Atl:ribc Ave. 90664, ON. MEA 3E7
ml: 416 446-9666 1611966 866-757-0179 Fe.1% 4 1 6 346 9563

10 Office Alternatives
A look at the competition for office suite supremacy Andrew Moore-Crispin
Editor
[email protected]

12 Your Office, Anywhere Editor-at-Large David Tanaka

Online office suites put your documents in the cloud [email protected]

Editorial Intern D o r i a n Nicholson

14 Teleworking: The New Business Reality [email protected]

A neater and greener alternative to the daily commute Contributing Editors G o r d Goble
Mike Palermo
Marc Saltzman
16 Integration for Business Users Chad Sapieha
Sapphire Pure PI-AM2RS780G Ray Richards
Helen Bradley

18 The Feed from www.hubcanada.com Advertising Sales

Snippets and news briefs from Canada's online tech portal Ontario/Toronto K a r i m Rizk
[email protected]
(416) 348-9666 ext. 252
20 Taking it to the Bank Montreal (866) 757-0179
Two online invoicing services compared
Western Canada Vivian Jin
21 I n the Lab: All in One Printers [email protected]
(604) 696-1389
Multi-function printers that do as much as you do
Business Group
26 Harnessing the Sun President S c o t t Piccolo
Key A c c o u n t s M a n a g e r s c o t t @ p p u b l i s h i n g . c a
Solar solutions put through their paces 1416) 348-9666 ext. 222

28 A n End to Card Clutter? Art Director S t e v e Stoner

Device helps to sort contact information for users [email protected]

and businesses Production Co-ordinator L i z Van Der Wee

[email protected]

30 Don't Go Dry on Your Own Supplies Webmaster D u a n e Hass

webmasteappublishing.ca
Using the gear you already have to make your own
business stationary Office Administrator/ C h a r l i Allen-LaForce
Accounting c h a r l i @ p p u b l i s h i n g . c a

31 Chief of the Board IT Manager Steve Quinney

[email protected]
Gigabyte X481-DQ6 has a lot to love
Canadian Publication Mail,
Sales Product Agreement X41037518.
32 Game Gear Pt. 3: Joysticks, Gamepads and Printed in Canada.ISSN 1710-0143 HUB: TCP (B.C. ed.) ISSN
Steering Wheels 1710-016X HUB: TCP (Edmonton ed.) ISSN 1710-0178 HUB: TCP
(Eastern ed.) ISSN 1710-0186 HUB: TCP (Montreal ed.) ISSN
Hands on with a dying breed 17100194 HUB: TCP (Prairie ed.) ISSN 17100208 HUB: TCP (SW
Ont. ed.) ISSN 17100216 HUB: TCP (Toronto ed.) HUB: The
Computer Paper is published monthly by Piccolo Publishing Inc. All
36 Power Pellets: Games Geared to Do Good rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the
permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. Information
So-called "serious games" are out to change the way presented here is compiled from sources believed to be accurate,
you think about global issues however, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or
omissions. The publisher reserves the right to refuse ads. The
opinions expressed in the articles and columns and ads are those
of the writer/advertiser and not necessarily those of HUB: The
38 The Last Byte Computer Paper.
Greening the home office

Trusted
Connected
Canadian
MT 4 HUB:The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.con*
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Editorial

Stuck in traffic, choking on exhaust fumes. Watching the Astudy of 270 Canadian CFOs by Robert Half International discovered that, while
guy in the next lane eating a bowl of cornflakes from a salary is still considered the biggest draw — followed by benefits and bonus
bowl perched precariously on the steering wheel and packages — in attracting candidates for accounting positions with 31 and 20 per
the woman behind applying a thick layer of mascara cent of respondents agreeing respectively (they are money-minded, after all) 20 per
before the work day begins. cent said that telecommuting and flexible work schedules were the most important.
Or, opting for the more environmentally sensitive and It's heartening to think that the line-of-sight style of management — where looking
oft-times quicker way where available, you sit on a busy can seem more important than actual output — may be going the way of the
crowded train, not listening but not being quite able to Dictaphone and typing pool.
tune out the louder-than-need-be conversation between a In this issue, which we've dubbed "Home Sweet Office," we'll take a look at the still
group that evidently work in the same office and that emerging world of telecommuting with Dorian Nicholson's examination of the trend
rides the train together every day. The person beside toward empowering employees by allowing them to work where they're most
you is reading the newspaper, ignoring train etiquette by encroaching on your personal comfortable: at home.
space with the unfurled broadsheet, turning the page before you're finished reading. We also look M MFPs In the Lab; these sub-8200 inkjets act as an all-in-one
Granted, these are the worst case scenarios, the ones that hit on days when.you documents centre for the home office, allowing you to print, scan, copy and in some
roll out of bed and, instead of smiling at what the day may have in store you think cases fax.
that if intuition counts for anything, it's going to be a bad day. Also, Andrew Carruthers discusses some of the leading options in online office
Sure, it's rhetoric (I'm thinking of pursuing a career in politics) but with this worst case suites. These often free services take your documents and in some cases
scenario in mind, is it any wonder so many people dream of working from home? spreadsheets, presentations, notes, appointments and more and put them in the
Thanks to the proliferation of broadband Internet access, the advance in online data cloud, accessible from anywhere you can find an Internet connection be it at
meeting and group collaboration wikis, websites and applications and a mix of home, down the street or on the other side of the world. The cloud computing
personal document centres, smartphones and laptops, being productive between 9 concept is a major factor in allowing us to untether ourselves from our desks.
a.m. and 5 p.m. without sitting at a desk in a traditional corporate office is a reality. Anything that loosens the ties that bind can only really be a good thing, in my mind.
Far from the digital ties that bind us to our jobs after hours (as is sometimes Granted there are some serious security and privacy concerns to be discussed and
suggested) a Towers Perrin survey from earlier this year claims that the dealt with, but for non-sensitive data, cloud computing is a boon for the mobile
overwhelming majority of workers feel that cell phones, laptops and other gadgets worker or editor with terminal wanderlust (no names).
and gear are actually freeing them to create a reasonable work / life balance. 86 per With all this in mind, it begs the question why I'm sitting here in the office on a
cent of respondents to the Towers Perrin Global Workplace Study released in sunny Friday afternoon as I write this...
February of this year agreed that personal tech actually helps them to find a balance
between the personal and professional aspects of their lives. The study polled Wehope you enjoy the issue,
almost 90,000 workers in 18 countries worldwide with about 5,000 respondents Andrew Moore-Crispin
in Canada. Editor-in-Chief

The Doctor is in
Email your computer troubles to [email protected] for a diagnosis and
prescription to cure what ails your PC

What is DivX?
Where did all my files go?
How much RAM do I need?
How do I check for spyware?
What is the meaning of life?

All these questions and more answered

MT 6 HUB: The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.coMil

 Sweet, Sweet SOHO Stuff
The well-equipped home office
If your home is your castle then the The brains computers on a network, they're ideal
home office is the treasury, the library Choosing the right computer for your for creating regular data backups and, if
and the communications centre. home office can be a daunting task. you choose wisely, they can perform a
Whether a student, telecommuter, Once the initial, relatively simple whole host of other tricks too. The 1TB
independent home business owner or questions are dealt with (Mac or PC, Maxtor Shared Storage II
just someone taking care of the day-to- desktop or laptop and the ever (www.maxtor.com, $399) is a good
day administration of life, a well- important "What's my budget?") the real example. Not only does it afford up to
equipped home office goes a long way fun begins. To a large degree, your 1TB of storage space or 500GB of
to boosting productivity, helping us to choices will be narrowed down by your automatically backed up storage using
stay organized and on top of things. budget. As a general rule of thumb RAID mirroring, it can also act as a
There are a few central components to though, in the days of Windows Vista media server.
building the best SOHO (small office, pre-installed on the overwhelming Pictures, documents, home movies
home office) setup. Following are some majority of PCs you'll see at retail, opt and the like are automatically funneled
of the important product categories for more RAM (2GB as a defacto into their appropriate folders to make
and a few product recommendations to minimum) and a Core 2 Duo processor. things even easier.
go with.
The network The dock
The throne You have to have some kind of network More and more people are opting for a
You could easily go out and spend. in the house and if we're acquiring new single, well-featured laptop computer
$500 or more on a top-of-the-line office technology, we might as well get the over a desktop. While there are
chair from the likes of Steelcase or latest. To that end, consider the Linksys sacrifices to be made when choosing a
Humanscale and your butt would be Wireless-N Gigabit Router with Storage portable as opposed to stationary PC,
cradled in the ultimate comfort, your Link (WRT600N, $190, the benefits of mobility — around the
lumbar region supported and your chair www.linksys.com) offering 802.11n house and beyond — often make the
infinitely adjustable. For many people wireless for up to 12x the speed and 4x price premium worthwhile. That said, a Belkin High-Speed Docking Station
however, that price tag is way too the range of earlier wireless standards. laptop solution doesn't have to come at F5U265
heavy to justify. As Gord Goble pointed It, like many newer routers, has
out in his March 2008 "Essential Home enhanced security protocols to replace
Office Furniture" article the older and more easily cracked
(www.hubcanada.com/index.php/ggoble standards. The Wireless-N Gigabit
/chair;), there are many excellent
options at the $300 and below level,
Router with Storage Link, as the name
implies, can also share a USB storage
Now, phenomenal things
like Ikea's Joakim. The important thing
is to get as much butt time with the
device over the network; a USB flash
drive, USB hard drive or similar.
come in threes.
chair as is humanly possible before
committing to purchase. While you may The storage
feel a little weird sitting on the demo While the amount of storage space on a AMD
chairs at your local outlet for an hour, desktop or laptop PC nowadays would Phenom x s

it's worth doing; you'll be spending a lot have been unheard of a few short years
more time in it than that when you get it ago, it's apparent that you can never V4Or
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home so it's important you find the right have too much. That's where off-board
fit for you and your posterior. storage solutions come in; they are the
easiest way to share files between
Deliver an intensely visual experience that's a step up from dual bore
with the leading-edge technology of the AMD Phenom" X3 8 0 0 0 Series
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Linksys Wireless-N Gigabit Router with -. Improved multitasking to power your digital lifestyle
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hubcanada.cont HUB:TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 M T 7

a cost to a dedicated office space with all the mouse go a long way towards making extended
accoutrements like a large LCD flat panel monitor, computing sessions more comfortable and productive.
more USB ports, a full-sized keyboard with number
pad and an optical mouse for when the trackpad or Mouse - We like Microsoft Hardware's mice as a rule.
navigation nipple thingy just isn't cutting it. Witness the Microsoft Wireless Laser Mouse 8000
With a laptop dock you can create the home office ($90, www.microsoft.com/hardware), a Bluetooth
setup you want to get all the benefits of desktop wireless mouse with a slick brushed aluminium shell,
computing without sacrificing portability. Laptop five customizable buttons, an attractive charging
manufacturers often offer docking solutions for their dock, laser precision and intuitive four-way scrolling.
own notebooks but these are rarely included in the At $90, its likely overkill but it offers a high-quality
retail package and must be purchased separately. feel and exacting precision. The Microsoft Wireless
They are also often limited to use with a specific Laser Mouse 5000 incorporates many of the same
model or line or laptop. benefits but loses the Bluetooth connectivity (though
Belkin offers a universal docking solution which may it's still wireless), brushed aluminium firiish and a
prove the perfect choice in multi-laptop households. select few other features to bring the price to a more
The Belkin High-Speed Docking Station (F5U265, reasonable $50.
$180, www.belkin.com) plugs in to any notebook,
provided it has an ExpressCard slot and is running Keyboard - Options abound, from an inexpensive but
Windows XP or Vista. It has its own graphics functional USB board to a luxury ergonomic keyboard
processing unit to take some of the load off the with raked keys and zero-degree tilt to make
notebook, offers five USB ports, DVI and VGA outs, computing more comfortable. Again, our preference
analog (3.5mm) and digital (PDIF) 5.1 audio out, goes to Microsoft Hardware's quality keyboards,
10/100 Mbps Ethernet along with practical touches available with an array of features from simple to
like convection cooling for the on-board GPU, a cable superlative. The Microsoft Natural Ergonomic
management system and a vertical form factor to Keyboard 4000 ($60, www.microsoft.com/hardware)
minimize its desktop footprint. puts fingers in a more natural position without forcing
You can easily get away without a dock and still have users to overcome a steep learning curve that can
a more permanent home office station. This will take present-itself with fully split keyboards. Just about any
away the convenience of a one-plug connection keyboard will be more finger friendly than your
however. Most (if not all) laptops come with at least a standard laptop keyboard though. concern, look to a monochrome laser MFP like
VGAport to connect to a projector or monitor and Samsung's All-In-1 Multifunction Laser Printer (SCX-
have a couple of USB ports that can be used to plug Printer - While we're all trying to print as little as 4500, $190, www.samsung.ca) or Kodak's newest
in peripherals. Docks are useful when you need more possible, both to save toner and paper and do a little MFP, the ESP5 with its bargain priced ink and quality
ports and a one-plug connection to make your laptop bit to save the earth, we're still nowhere near the. output ($170, www.kodak.ca). You can find MFPs with
perform more like a desktop. foretold paperless office. wireless networking, integrated cordless landline
Opt for a multi-function printer (MFP) that can print, phone handsets attached, integrated fax preview on a
The peripherals scan and (in a pinch) copy. Fax capability is a matter wide colour LCD screen (the excellent Brother MFC
Whether it's a desktop or a laptop (with or without a of personal preference and need. While we here at 885CW, $260, www.brother.ca) and all manner of
docking station), the key elements of a home office HUB:The Computer Paper wait with bated breath, fax others. Check out the In the Lab article in this issue
solution for your laptop are a printer, monitor, still hasn't faded in to obscurity as it (arguably) should., for a thorough run down.
keyboard and mouse. Each is, of course, entirely Both monochrome laser and colour ink jet MFPs can
optional. However, laptops aren't the most ergonomic be had for under $200 for a unit of at least Monitor - While it may be overkill for some home
devices and so a movable monitor, keyboard and reasonable quality. If cost per page is of primary office setups, that doesn't mean it's not desirable; this
24-inch HD behemoth from LG (L246WH-BN, $500,
www.lge.ca) is a dazzling step up from your 13-, 15-
or even 17-inch laptop screen. With a 16:10 screen
ratio (1920x1200) perfect for watching TV and
movies, HDMI-in and 170 degrees viewing angle in
either direction, there's definitely an entertainment
hook. However, its massive screen real estate makes
it perfect for side-by-side comparisons of
spreadsheets, keeping an email or web browser open
on one side of the screen while working with a word
processing document in the other or any number of
other productivity-boosting things that can be done
with the extra screen space. 22-inch screens can be
had for significantly less and even a 19-inch LCD
monitor is a stark improvement over the tiny screens
of some ultra-portable notebooks.
In the end though, the ultimate home office is the
one that is comfortable and enjoyable to be in and
contains the devices and technology that work best
for you.
ByAndrew Moore-Crispin

Brother MFC 885CW

MT 8 H U B : The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.conli▶

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 Office Alternatives
A look at the main competition for office suite supremacy
In the early '90s, WordPerfect and Lotus 1-2-3 were
the dominant word processor and spreadsheet,
respectively. There were several good presentation
packages available and dBase dominated among
databases. Although Microsoft didn't lead in any of the
office productivity categories at the time, it was the
only company with strong contenders in every
category. Microsoft decided to sell its office
productivity applications as a bundle and at a lower
price than if they were purchased separately. Office
was a success immediately and has been the leading
office suite ever since. It is easy, sometimes, to lose
sight of the fact that there are lower-priced alternatives
that may do a better job for you.
MSOffice has always had competition. Its traditional
competitors have since disappeared (Lotus
SmartSuite) or become niche products (Corel
WordPerfect Office X4 which evolved from Novell
Office). At the core of the Corel suite is WordPerfect,
which is revered in some quarters for its "reveal
codes" approach to editing. WordPerfect is still
considered by many to be the best word processor for
controlling very long documents.
However, the leading competitors currently are of a
different breed. They are either free (OpenOffice.org),
online (Google Docs, Zoho), or a mixture (Thinkfree
Online is free but Thinkfree isn't). All of these are
Microsoft-compatible and easy to use, regardless of
whether you are familiar with Office or not.
OpenOffice.org has tens of millions of users around install 00o legally on every computer in your business dimensional objects of great complexity (Draw).
the world and for good reason. OOo is free and open or home office. Being freed of the obligation to pay for All of the applications in OOo are powerful and have
source and very compatible with MS Office, both in and manage licenses is a tremendous advantage. feature sets comparable to their counterparts in MS
terms of file formats and user interface. 00o consists of the basic productivity applications: a Office. File formats up to Office 2007 are no problem,
The way to start using 00o is to download it from word processor (Writer), a spreadsheet (Calc), a tool with the exception of some new formats such as docx
www.openoffice.org in the appropriate version. There for creating multimedia presentations (Impress), a introduced in Word 2007. The current version of OOo
are versions for Windows, Linux, Mac OS, and Solaris. database application to access, create, and manipulate is 2.4. Version 3 will be released later this year and
Unlike MS Office, the latest version of OOo runs on databases (Base), and a tool to create sketches, among its many new features will be the capability of
every version of Windows produced, starting with drawings, and diagrams such as flowcharts, reading and writing docx and other formats introduced
Windows 98. A single download is all you need to organization charts, as well as two and three in Office 2007.
The applications in 00o aren't straight clones. They all
have significant features that are missing from Office. A
visit to www.openoffice.org will reveal if there's a
feature or two that will make a difference for you.
If you decide to begin using 00o with your MS Office
files, there's an issue to be aware of. If your Office files
such as documents and spreadsheets contain macros,
you will have to recreate or edit them in 00o because
the two suites cannot run each other's macros
automatically.
00o is excellent software but it isn't for everyone.
Users who value portability and ease of collaboration
often appreciate the benefits of an online suite. Google
Docs is the most widely-used online suite of office
productivity applications. it is free, although there is a
business version that offers better support and more
online storage space for files. It has a word processor,
spreadsheet, and presentation package. It is easy to
learn and use, it is compatible with the important file
formats, and it is constantly improving. There is never
any need to install new software. Google takes care of
that on their servers so that you are always using the
latest version. For more on online office suites check
out "Your Office, Anywhere" in this issue.
By lssie Rabinovitch

MT10 H U B : TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanadaconlik

www.hubcanada.com
Canadian
Consumer electronics,
Computing,
Contests &
Commentary
 Your Office, Anywhere
Online office suites put your documents in the cloud

The usual way to denote the Internet in a network - B ' '

diagram is to draw a cloud. Some people think it's

smog but I'm pretty sure it's a distant plague of locusts
and 419 scams. Whatever type of cloud you think the B u z 2 w o r d

Internet is, when people talk about cloud computing, The First Real Web-Based Word Processor
they're talking about running applications on any W e l c o m e t o B u z z w o r d . , A d o b e ' s Flash- b a s e d w o r d p r o c e s s o r. B u z z w o r d U p o n o f A c r o t e t w m

machine with Internet access, regardless of OS. This — the n e w offering f r o m A d o b e w h i c h i n c l u d e s w e b - b a u d m e sharing and sewage, creme P D F

services. a n d o n - l i n e w e b con f e r e n c i n g a n d screen M a t i n g

means you don't have to have a specific application T h e B u z z w o r d Wain is w o r k i n g closely w i t h m a n y o t h e r A d o b e i n i t i a l l y e s and m u l l s e e the

installed on the machine you're working on, you just go m o l t s t h r o u g h o u t t h e c o m i n g y e a r. W e l l i c o n t i m i e t o d o f r e q u e n t releases a s n e w c o r n e a a r e

r e a d y. F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , p l e a s e * w e e r b i e r s

to the website and start working away.

This means an end to carrying around a flash drive
First T h i n g s First

T u n i s .

only to find that the computer you have access to T h a n k s f o r t a k i n g a l o o k a t B u z z w o r d . B u z z w o r d is o n t h e w e b a t k f r a s c l a a t e z m w d e r s o l o s t e e l e .

doesn't have Word or — worse — losing it and losing Y o u m i g h t w a n t t o b o o k . n e r k t h e U I 1 L s o t i t e r y o u c a n r e t u r n t o i t e a s i l y.

any future employment prospects along with it. Lots of Cool Features and M o r e m Come

However, all is not necessarily heaven in cloud B u z z w o r d i c a w o r k i n p r o g r e s s , a n d h a s a n u m b e r t i f i r o n i c - r i v e f e a t u r e s , t o o m a n y us B e t h e r e

Because t h i s i n w e b - b a w d a p p l i r a t i o r s y o u l l get all t h e n e w features a n t o m a t i o i l l y. O n a i n e H e l p

computing. You need a persistent and fast connection describes the current (echoes and i n c l u d e s s o m e "houselo-l' t i p s

to the provider's site and you are at the mercy of their Getting Starred

uptime schedule and security. Check out these free P l e a t . read t h r o u g h t h i s d o c u m e n t f o r a g u i c k o v e r v i e w o f w h a t B u z z w o r d h u b , o ff e r. F o r m o r e

office suites ready to run from the most isolated i n f o r m a t i o n s h o u t h o w to use B o u v r o r d , m e our o n - l i n e H e l p System.

cabana in Cuba to your own personal secure As y o u . . see. B u z z w o r d l o o k s l i k e . n o r m a l w o r d p r o c e s s o r, b u t i t o p e r a t e s i n s i d e a o r b

b r o w s . . B e c a u s e B u z z w o r d Is w e b - b a s e d , d i e d o c u m e n t m a n s e e d i t i n g is r o t s t o r e d o n w e i r

computing site. l o c a l m a c h i n e , b u t r a d , e r o n o u r s e a t r e s e r v e n c T h i s m e a n s 0111 y o u c a n a c c e s s y o u r d o c u m e n t

f r o m a n y w e b c o n n e c t i o n . Yo u n o l o n g e r n e e d to e m a i l E l e c t o y o u r s e l f or c a r r y t h e m on U S B

k e y s i l l o r d e r t o h a v e a c c e s s a n y w h e r e . A n d b e c a u s e w e ' r e s a v i n g t h e c o n t e n t o n t h e s e r v e r, y o u

Google Docs
docs.google.com
and presentations and up to 1,000 spreadsheets. write up a contract like, "By signing this iPhone
_isteatatitesteseskes
Keep an eye out for upgrades. agreement, you agree to be Ted Rogers' poolboy one
" • W 1 : C o S s i r i ;
Rf
day a month in perpetuity" and actually get it legally
0 :or itiotto
Zoho signed by other parties. Writer is also available for
kid
www.zoho.com download to work offline.
.1.11111111.111111.1111111.11.1111111M
Zoho offers a wide selection of online applications Its productivity and collaboration apps include a word
: -- • ,
including Writer, Sheet and Show. Writer is quite processor, spreadsheet, presentation software, and
pow.
OtBiti • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
oft.=
••om different than. Microsoft Word but you won't be too also Notebook (Online Note Taker), Wiki, Planner (an
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challenged to learn it. It seems to be a hybrid between organizer), Chat, Start (a dashboard for your
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anHTML editor and a word processor. It certainly has documents), and Mail. These are all free. There's also
g . . _ I - BAB O V I e d u k • • •
se m i e t t o d m o d e . a i • . •
• • • • • • • • • •
• a fuller feature set than Google Docs and it supports a good choice of business apps, including Projects,
footnotes and endnotes. That's two thumbs up for CRM, Invoice, Meeting, Creator, DB and Reports,
academic writers out there. However, image text People, and Business. There are fees associated
wrapping isn't well implemented, nor are columns and with these, although some of them are free in "light"
tab setting. Writing a newsletter will be arduous. versions.
Uniquely, writing contracts for business is supported Zoho Sheet is, arguably, the best of the bunch. It
Google likes to be different. Acquired in a buyout of using EchoSign digital signatures. This allows you to supports pivot tables and macros, charting and has a
start-up Writely, their online office suite is comprised of
nozzaocx—'
word processing, spreadsheet and presentation [wools d l a 0 1 0 Book “ 1 Shoot t Wr i t e .

software with some interesting features. For instance, Add B l a n k Oa a .

tt, tato • • 2 . 3 Ice • I P C e 000000
they allow you to set up an RSS feed to notify Add S h o o t Pogo

coworkers of document updates. Also, the spreadsheet 2 Add

2.13 ti 0 1110T.E300( O W,

can easily be set up to take data from an online form.

There's also version tracking and rollbacks, file sharing,
A o Odd To r t
Villdtobo

and the software can run offline on any computer with Create, Aggregate & C o l l a b o r a t e
Google Gears browser extension installed.
Cal
4 . " 0 "
introducing tote, Notebook - the online application for gathering and creating
109

Heck, you can even email your account with your

0 add erne multiple t y p e s of content that can easily be shared with others. Designed with a
simple user Interface, Sohn N o t e b o o k solves the p r o b l e m of m a n a g i n g multiple
odd O t t pivot,
s o u r c e s o f I n f o r m a t i o n a n d c o n t e n t t h e , Is t y p i c a l l y s p r e a d ell o v e r Ilse p r a m
documents and they're auto-magically converted and CB o d d eas y o u r d e s k t o p , e- m a l l , w e b s i t e s , e t c . W i t h N o t e b o o k , y o u n o w h a v e a single place
to access and share the information that m a t t e r s to you. r10:7E300!
ditp•

uploaded. Although, don't count on your Microsoft Oidd Olio

Office documents maintaining their formatting. These N g Add S M .

add ''"`•' = M g
guys certainly do get the Net, but some of the basics Utiall11

are lacking. The word processor doesn't generate kvu-.

footnotes, endnotes or a table of contents. This is
standard for the academic set. The font selection is • ."'"4
2 • . Content Creation:

very limited and so are image text wrapping options.

Inspired b y t h e traditional spiral- b o u n d
•99•9•lOO notebook, Zoho Notebook was designed for
creativity w e b its e a s y u s e r interface and

And there are a paltry seven font sizes available. Ugh. cod.e
powerful multi- m a d e capabilities.
Notebooklats you c a m e o . test, images,

The word processor is a dog but the spreadsheet

• 0 1 0 0 took
audio, v i d e o a n d m u c h more.

41.0 0.50 iR
covers most bases quite nicely. Ws a bit different than g • • Content Aggregation:
L

Excel but easy to learn. The presentation software is Zoho Notebook makes It easy to add and
combinecontent from mitide .PPfic41,:ns
basic but useful too. You can have 5,000 documents
0

0
0

MT 12 H U B : The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.con111

broad set of functions. Zoho Show is also definitely click context-sensitive menus as this function is used
useable and uploaded a PowerPoint 2003 file, though by the Flash player itself and downloads are hefty, O forename • • • •

with some issues such as a long URL not wrapping in a

MV M M .
slowing things down. Still, the. interface is the slickest Worteme
W e n * am. f t w e r • • • • • . . . . . . t . . . . . . . • • krwwwwreo u n u a m

table and contrast reduction in a background graphic available. Too bad Buzzword is so slim on features.
not being passed. It, like Google Does, doesn't There are only seven included fonts... nice ones, but
support charts. In general, Zoho supports sharing with
1,...41.1.•
still. Image text flow is rudimentary, there's no column
read and read/write privileges but doesn't track support, footnotes or table of contents generation 1111111ME1111.11111. .
changes which can make collaboration challenging. although endnotes are supported. File sharing is the - •
There is no online storage limit posted. Zoho is a great best here as read, read/write and read/comment E r k i M •

choice for students or business users who need a privileges are supported. The Microsoft Word 2003 P-fri•Istwar

broad set of applications. test file loaded with minor issues losing drop caps and
Ak i n n i u m e a r o t vi •••n,
Zoho has a plug-in for Microsoft Word and Excel that with text formatting of a graphic. Adobe allows up to 00111/ 1 O I L Y . A.31.E.E.:

bridges the gap between the online and standalone 5GB of free-storage. Definitely something to keep an
worlds. This plug-in is free and appears in the menus eye on.
of the two MS applications once it is downloaded and
installed. You can save your Word and Excel files online 1111111-4:tee
with Zoho and you can access online files from the MS ,rvww.thinkfree.com you like Microsoft Word. Calc, the spreadsheet
apps and edit and save them locally. You can take ThinkFree is definitely the Cadillac here and includes program, has broad charting support and a full set of
advantage of the best aspects of both worlds as Write, Calc and Show. All three types of Microsoft functions. Sorry, no pivot tables, macros or conditional
required. It's an effective approach. Office 2003 test files loaded without any issues and formatting but how often do you need these features
this was the only suite reviewed here to do so. It also anyway? The only thing that is a bit of a let down is the
Acrobat.com has an offline version. The main problem is speed as it lack of charting support in Show as most business
www.acrobat.com seems to download a lot of program code during initial users need this at some point. ThinkFree offers 1GB of
Acrobat.com is Adobe's foray into online business operation. However, once things are cached, this storage. Sharing is supported. This is likely the best
applications. Unfortunately, it is missing both stops being an issue. This does have ramifications if choice for most users.
spreadsheet and presentation applications. Its included you're playing musical computers on the road though. By Andrew Carruthers
in this article due to its backer and likelihood to grow.. Write supports footnotes, endnotes and generating a
It has a word processor, an online meeting application table of contents. It also supports a complete set of
and a PDF converter. The main application is Buzzword image text flow commands .and multiple columns.
which uses Flash as its underlying technology which is Suffice it to say that, if you're a business person or a
both a blessing and a curse. Flash doesn't allow right- student, you will find Write completely satisfactory if

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hubcanada.con*
 Teleworking: The New Business Reality
A neater and greener alternative to the daily commute
Imagine if, upon waking up and getting ready for the essence during the advent of discussion about Give and take
drive to work, your boss called and told you to work alternative officing strategies and the beginning of the While it may be hard to swallow for traditionalist
from home for the day. You would likely be relieved, mobility that was enabled by technology." managers, teleworkers can potentially be just as
take off your shoes, kick your feet up, and relax for a And fifteen years later that technology has come a productive as their office counterparts and in most
little bit before getting down to business. But would long way. Even with just a laptop and a broadband cases only telework part of the time, and go in to the
you get anything done? connection, an employee would be able to hold voice office on a regular basis for team meetings, planning
That's a question that modern employers are likely or video conferences, call people over VoIP, check and and workplace interaction.
going to be asking themselves as the prospect of send e-mails, share various files and data via cloud "Our studies over the years have pointed out two
having employees work from home — a practice that computing, keep in touch by instant messenger, and things: teleworkers are more satisfied workers, and
is known as teleworking or telecommuting — so on. This could be done at any hotspot anywhere in tend to be high-performance employees, and as a
increasingly becomes a point of interest. And while a the world — and with WiMAX supposedly on the result demonstrate higher productivity," Dunn says.
small number of workers might be unable to commit to horizon as the next big way to stay connected, those It's important to note that while talking over the
telework for lack of motivation, the ability to cut out hotspots could be anywhere and everywhere. telephone, Dunn was actually using VoIP from the
the daily commute to and from the office is a step in The benefits to teleworking are as obvious as the woods somewhere south of Ottawa, but — as he
the right direction as far as the environment is drawbacks. Workers essentially wake up at their pointed out — could just as easily have been speaking
concerned, and would free up valuable time otherwise workplace (read: home) and get to it as per their to me from Beijing.
spent commuting for the employee. normal schedule, without commuting. This means that "During the blackout (around Lake Ontario) a few years
David Dunn, leader of Nortel's workplace planning, they are both more comfortable and more in control of back we maintained productivity despite everything,"
innovation and construction, is a great supporter of the their surroundings. It could also mean that they have Dunn said. "The company maintained 85 per cent
teleworking concept as a whole. That's because he's more distractions andthings to do instead, however. A productivity, and we demonstrated that whatever the
been with Nortel for more than fifteen years, which is disciplined worker is a productive worker, whether in event, there is capability for productive work."
how long the company has been equipped to telework. the office or working from home, but if they are Neither Dunn nor Nortel is alone believing in
"It was fifteen years ago we developed our working outside of the office they are unsupervised, teleworking. Michelle Digula, general manager for
teleworking strategy, so I've been living and breathing and only check in as often as is required. Sony/Ericcson Canada has also stated her support for
it for quite some time," Dunn said. "It came about in the teleworking trend.

MT14 H U B : TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.conill

 "With Sony there is no policy on how much you can or Nortel's April Dunford also has two small children, and that will reduce our carbon footprint," Dunn says. "One
cannot work from home, it's up to me and the team to values the two days a week that she works from home. day a week of working from home could reduce a
decide," Digula says. "My personal work philosophy "When I was looking for a job, the ability to telework person's gas expenses significantly."
requires a lot out of people, and the job sometimes was a huge deciding factor in my job search," Dunford And Dunford also agrees with this statement, saying
requires working weekends and evenings, so we said. "I wanted to find another job that allowed that, that her company's research has found that about 80
balance that with being able to work from home." and the biggest reason is that I have two small per cent of a person's carbon footprint usually comes
Of course, the fact that both Sony/Ericcson and children, aged four and two." from commuting alone, so keeping the fridge doot
Nortel are in the communications business, and are big There are many reasons that teleworking is good for closed or dimming the lights pales in comparison.
players at that, means that they have easy access to business, but it might also be an excuse for some Besides obviously cutting out a significant chunk of
the equipment and technology that they need to employees to shirk their duties. commuting time, teleworking can also help a business
maintain maximum productivity while working out of Karyn Evans is the senior director of human resources slash overhead expenses. Less employees in the
office. Both companies supply their employees with at Linksys — a company literally built around office means less office space required, which in turn
laptops and other equipment necessary to facilitate networking — and even she admits that teleworking means less money spent on renting, leasing, or
good communication between team members, which is isn't always the answer. upkeep, as well as maintaining the heat, air
something some companies might not find as easy or "Teleworking is not for everyone. Potentially there are conditioning, and electricity.
affordable to do. drawbacks with employees that are not disciplined or So, is teleworking right for you or your business?
"I think there are a couple of people that need to be in structured enough to work at home," Evans says. "Also Maybe it's time to ask.
the office more than others; my assistant needs to be if the employee needs a lot of 'hands on' direction, and Because as communications technology becomes
in the office most of the time to meet and greet is not a self starter, that could present a problem." more reliable and more advanced, the traditional
people so it's difficult for her to work from home," But discipline and motivation aren't the only issues. office space may become a thing of the past, making
Digula admits. "The operations people need access to "Not all positions have responsibilities that can be met way for companies that are more closely connected
files and papers, and do massive printing, which is from home," Evans continued. "We review all roles and digitally — even if their workers are hundreds of
easier to do in the office. But even they work from responsibilities to determine if the position can allow miles apart.
home one day a week." home working on a part-time basis." By Dorian Nicholson

Asmaller footprint
Take your kids to work day Beyond balancing work responsibilities and home
The ability to work from home is also good for those comfort, there is another stakeholder in the
who have children. Digula has one daughter and teleworking debate that we're all dependent on, and
appreciates the flexibility in her company that allows her that is the Earth.
to work from home and spend time with her child. "(Teleworking) is a very important green strategy, one

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hubcanada.con* HUB:TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 M T 15

 Integration For Business Users
Sapphire Pure PI-AM2RS780G

In the land of affordable PCs, the integrated motherboard is king. Naturally, an glass, shadows, and any other of Vista's visual tweaks. Furthermore, because the
inexpensive, integrated computing solution is ideal for the small or home office — 780G IGP is effectively anAMD HD3200 graphics chip (built on the RV610 core) it
they're not only affordable but also deliver performance where you need it. has great hardware assistance for HD video playback, meaning you could smoothly
Sometimes though, depending on the office environment they're used in, additional run 1080p video (from Blu-Ray or HD video file) with even an entry-level AMD
horsepower may be required. For example, if your business tends to use a lot of Sempron CPU.
graphics-heavy media content, or your work computer doubles as your home
computer (although we'd suggest not going this route unless absolutely necessary) Hybrid Crossfire!
more performance may be required. One of the Sapphire 780G's b ggest selling features is its Hybrid Crossfire support,
Finding a fully integrated. motherboard with decent graphics performance is allowing you to install an additional AMD HD34XX video card for more graphics
definitely a challenge. Along with driving up cost, a lot of times even the best horsepower. Whereas CrossfireX allows the use of a pair of anyAMD graphics cards
onboard video is still weak. Enter Sapphire's 780G-based, Pure PI-AM2RS780G, a (two HD3870 x2s, two HD4870s, etc.), Hybrid Crosssfire combines the integrated
motherboard with integrated DX10-capable graphics hardware and enough room for graphics chip (in this case the HD3200 that serves as the 780G's IGP) with an
expansion to allow a more than adequate upgrade path, should the need arise. additional HD34XX add-in graphics card.
Unfortunately Hybrid Crossfire is only compatible with the entry-level HD34XX series
Everything you need of cards. Ironically, while still offering a substantial boost over the standalone 780G
CombiningAMD's 780G Northbridge with their SB700 Southbridge gives the PI- performance, the added prowess of an entry-level card is only marginal, so it may be
AM2RS780G great performance and support for all of the latest technologies. hard to justify the added cost. In other words, adding an HD3450 won't magically
Utilizing an AM2/AM2+ CPU socket means the AM2RS780G can run even the fastest make Crysis — the most visually impressive and graphically demanding game
availableAMD processors, while the four DIMMs can house up to 16GB of DDR2- currently available — run at 1920x1200 at 6D frames per second.
800MHz in Dual Channel. . In many cases, users would be better off splurging on a higher-end HD3600 or
Built-in connectivity includes a whopping 10 USB2.0 ports (four of which are located HD3800, which have reduced in price considerably now that the HD46XX and
on the back I/O panel, while the remaining six can be attached to the mobo), four HD48XX series of cards have been launched. It won't take advantage of Hybrid
SATA2 ports, and a standard E-IDE and floppy drive connector. With two traditional Crossfire, but the performance improvement would still be more substantial. Luckily
PCI ports and a single PCI-e x16 port, you'll also be able to install a number of the PCIe 2.0 slot on the AM2RS780G is a full-sized x16 slot, so the motherboard
different discrete add-in boards if you need to. That said, with integrated eight- can actually take full advantage of even the highest-end graphics cards if you have
channel audio, built-in DX10 graphics hardware, and Gigabit Ethernet, chances are it the cash.
already has everything you need. While the usefulness of this feature for the average user is up for debate, one thing
The only problem I have with onboard/integrated graphics solutions is that, even at is for certain: the implementation of Hybrid Crossfire is beautiful. Simply plug in an
their best, they're still entry-level. It's a harsh truth, but an honest one. So even HD3450 add-in board and Crossfire between it and. the 780G IGP is automatically
though the Sapphire Pure 780G has one of the most advanced integrated GPUs enabled and taken advantage of. It's by far the simplest multi-GPU configuration
available, it's still an onboard solution. What does this mean for the average user? we've used, which is a boon for both system builders and first-timers (cuts down on
Not much. However it's worth mentioning to those who plan on using their system time and cuts down on headaches). If you don't need the additional performance
for something like CAD or 3D animation — it's not that 780G IGP couldn't handle improvement offered by Hybrid Crossfire, you can still take advantage of the quad-
these kinds of applications, just that professional graphics hardware would be more display support that the feature enables.
up to the task.
For average PC users — the ones that not only make up the vast majority, but also Performance
tend to be the most price-cautious buyers in the market -- the 780G has more To test out the 780G's integrated HD3200 IGP and Hybrid Crossfire, we've included
graphics power than you'll ever need. The AM2RS780G is especially potent because benchmarks of the 780G, a discrete AMD HD3450 add-in card, and then the results
of Vista's rather hefty video card requirements; the 780G IGP can easily run aero- of 780G+HD3450 running in Hybrid Crossfire so you can see the advantage of
the feature.
Sapphire Pure PI-AM2RS780G motherboard
3DMark 2006 (Default Settings)
780G IGP—1,171
SapphireAMD HD3450 —1,713
780G + HD3450 Hybrid CF—2,209
What should come to your attention immediately is that the Hybrid Crossfire
performance is noticeably higher than both the standalone 780G and the HD3450.
You may have also noticed that the combination performance of the 780G+3450 is
not 100 per cent efficient — rather than achieving a perfect combination of 780G +
HD3450 scores, we get an improvement that of roughly 1,000 points (-1,200 to
—2,200). This is to be expected with multi-GPU configurations as there will always be
latency between the two graphics chips as they communicate with each other.

Conclusion
Ableeding-edge motherboard with integrated video may sound like an oxymoron, but
the. Sapphire Pure PI-AM2RS780G offers great performance in an all-in-one package.
Drop in your CPU, memory and hard drive and you'll be ready to take on even the
most demanding business applications as well as all of Vista's bells and whistles.
While not high-end, the 780G IGP serves as gateway hardware — it has enough
graphics performance out of the box to whet your appetite, and enough expansion
to allow you to upgrade and grow your system in a way that best benefits you. It's a
simple and effective solution that covers all the bases.
By Mike Palermo

MT 16 H U B : The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.con''

Featured Articles: Future Shop Launches ConnectPro for Tech Help
FacebookCamp Meeting in T.O. By Harry Powell
Shows Monetization of Facebook Did you know that 46 per cent of Canadians consider technology
By Dorian Nicholson to be important in home decor? Well Future Shop is coming to

The Feed
A Facebook fan meeting at Toronto's the rescue. Starting July 18, 2008, Future Shop launched its
MaRS centre proved to be less- of a new ConnectPro service, allowing Canadians the opportunity to
forum for social networkers and work with experts to perfectly install their home theatre systems from www.hubcanada.com
more of an outlet for networking and more.
profiteers, aimed both at providing hubcanada.com/thefeed/348
an outlet for developers to develop
brand new apps and advertisers to
promote brand new ads — all in the
name of monetization.
www.hubcanada.comAndex.php/dnicholson/

Clicktoy's Meadow Teaches Children

to Play
By Dorian Nicholson
The Meadow has been available for
children to roam around in for about
four months now. The latest software
from Clicktoy Interactive lets young 9 0 0 R i v e r s i d e D r i v e
1h s i t n N 6
children digitally interact with their S a i n t - L a m b e r t
virtual surroundings in its own
interesting pop-up book style format.
But it's not a game says creator Ken
Kavanagh. It's a toy.
www.hubcanada.com/index.php/dnicholson/ r Tuition-Free A.E.C. Programs
Breaking News:
Facebook Meets Frommers with
ZoomAndGo
By Harry Powell
Backpackers and vacationers
anywhere in the world can now
upload their own photos from a
computer and generate
personalized, printed postcards that
are then mailed out, through the
postal service, to recipients thanks
to the popular
www.ZoomAndGo.com travel web
site.
hubcanada.com/thefeed/350
Information Technology
Staying Intouch with I'm InTouch
By Harry Powell Support Specialist
01 Communique Laboratory Inc.
announced recently the release of
I'm InTouch Premium. I'm InTouch
Premium enables organizations to
provide employees with cost
effective remote access to their Non-Credit Courses
workstations from anywhere.
hubcanada.com/thefeed/349
• Computer Courses: Intro. to Computers, E-mail,
iPhone Gets its Own Section of The MS Word & Excel, and many more ...
Star • Web Design Courses using MS Expression 2
By Dorian Nicholson
Owners of the wildly popular iPhone Blend, Design, Media, and Web, as well as
now have a section of the Toronto SharePoint Designer 2007
Star website developed specifically
for their browsing pleasure. Internet
surfers at home or on their phones
For program schedules and
can check out the new corner of the
site by going to
for all other information:
www.thestar.com/iphone.
hubcanada.com/thefeed/345 w w w . c h a m p l a i n o n l i n e . c o m (see Continuing Education)
a 450-672-7364
hubcanacla.corfi, HUB:The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 MT 17
 Blind Runner Set to Go for Gold in Beijing Thanks to T-Base
By Dorian Nicholson
Canada now has another runner for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Jason Dunkerley
was recently announced as an addition to Team Canada. The athlete can run 1500
metres in just over four minutes and 800 in a fraction over two and his record times
are just seconds off of being world records in the Paralympics' B1 class.
hubcanada.com/thefeed/335

New Products:
Kodak Reveals New Lineup of Products Due Out Later This Year
By Dorian Nicholson
Earlier this month Kodak Canada Inc. announced what will be there new line of digital
cameras and accessories, 'clue out later this year. These products varied from the
latest additions to their M-series and Z-series camera line, as well as brand new
wireless digital•picture frames,
hubcanada.com/thefeed/342

Samsung's m530 Olympic Team Edition Phone Now Available

By Dorian Nicholson
With 2008 Olympics in Beijing, many Canadians will be looking for different ways to
keep informed of how our athletes are faring. That's why Bell has just released the
Is That a Compass 597 USB Modem in Your Pocket? exclusive Samsung m530 Canadian Olympic Team phone with the ability to subscribe
By Harry Powell to Bell Mobility's Beijing 2008 video bundle. hubcanada.com/thefeed/331
Sierra Wireless has announced that the Compass 597 USB modem is now available
in Canada courtesy of your friends at Telus. The Compass 597 USB modem Bell Unveils New Wireless U727 USB Modem
provides Telus customers with access to wireless high-speed Internet in a small, By Harry Powell
cleanly designed USB stick that slips easily into a pocket. Bell Canada recently launched the exclusive Novatel Wireless U727 USB modem, the
hubcanada.com/thefeed/347 first mobile data device available in Canada that features a USB key design with a
removable memory slot. The U727 also doubles as a data storage device, capable
Dell Gets Cool of housing a microSD card with up to 8 GB of memory.
By Harry Powell hubcanada.com/thefeed/330
Dell Canada has introduced "Designed for Dell," a designer line of bags and
accessories for your personal computing experience. The first selection of Linksys' New Dual-Band Router Makes Wireless Media Faster
backpacks, computer sleeves, audio devices, mice and hard drives are distinguished By Dorian Nicholson
to complement Dell PCs. With the unveiling of the Simultaneous Dual-N Band Wireless Router, or WRT610N,
hubcanada.com/thefeed/344 Linksys released yet another router aimed at SOHO users and more demanding
users of media at home. The main advantage of the new product is all in the name;
Intel Centrino 2 Revealed operating on two bandwidths, 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz.
ByAndrew Moore-Crispin hubcanada.com/thefeed/328
Intel has taken the wraps off its latest processor line, the Intel Centrino 2 and
Centrino 2 with vPro Technology processors for laptops. Also introduced was a dual Bell Canada the First to Release the Samsung Instinct
core mobile processor the Intel Core 2 Extreme, along with five new Intel Core 2 Duo By Harry Powell
processors. OnAugust 8th, Bell Canada will introduce the Samsung Instinct, a stylish and highly
hubcanada.com/thefeed/346 intelligent touch-screen mobile phone. A hot seller in the United States since its
introduction there last month, the Samsung Instinct offers easy touch or stylus
The Need For Spreed Comes to the iPhone navigation on its full QWERTY touch-screen keyboard.
By Harry Powell hubcanada.com/thefeed/324
Toronto-based company Spreed Inc. has released their first version of Spreed:News,
an application that may enhance the way people read news on mobile phones. Compiled by Dorian Nicholson
Spreed reduces the problems which plague mobile devices and cause a variety of
mobile news reading problems.
hubcanada.com/thefeed/343

MT 18 H U B : The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.corriik

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 Taking it to the Bank
Two online invoicing services compared
Freshbooks sounds like it might be the latest social including PayPal and Authorize.Net. PayPal is most to 5,000 clients. It costs $149/month. The smallest
networking site but in fact it is something more useful: popular for low-volume accounts while Authorize.Net is account allows one person to manage up to 25 active
an online invoicing and time tracking service. Priced to better (that is, cheaper) for accounts that bill in excess clients and costs $14/month. Every account is month to
suit individuals such as freelancers, it can be used by of $2,000/month. month and can be cancelled at any time. The number of
small- and medium-sized businesses as well. From the standpoint of the client, payment is very invoices that can be sent is unlimited for all accounts
In a visit to the company's offices in Toronto I learned easy with a credit card while there are a few more and Freshbooks is prepared to provide custom accounts
that they are extremely proud of their customer steps with PayPal. based on your requirements.
service, which they feel sets them apart from other Freshbooks allows you to sign up for a free account for
companies offering services online. A toll-free number v,a•\. cc cc, ft_]-;fc.,. 30 days. You can sign up for any account and cancel
is available to get support directly from the developers Freshbooks claims that its users report that invoicing within 30 days if you are unhappy. Also, you can use a
between the hours of 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. EST. They are takes a quarter of the time it used to and that they get free account to manage three active clients if that's
prepared to spend time with users to help them paid two weeks faster. The latter is due in large part to enough for your purposes or if you need to evaluate the
create their first invoice and to go the extra mile for online payments by clients. service for a longer period than one month.
other questions. There is great flexibility in creating invoices, including For a small fee, Freshbooks will send mail invoices by
Freshbooks told me that their statistics show that recurring ones, and there are powerful tools for post, with the correct postage, straight to your clients
between two-thirds and three-quarters of their new tracking them. Freshbooks can be configured to without any handling by you. Some clients prefer to
customers aren't using any kind of invoicing system, automatically send invoices and late payment notices. be billed this way. Each invoice is printed with your
let alone an online service. Word processors, In addition to tracking your time, you can also keep logo and includes a return envelope for the client's
spreadsheets, and databases are commonly used but track of your expenses. You can bill back the expenses convenience. A free snail mail is included with every
so are programs such as Pagemaker and even more incurred on a client's behalf when you generate an account.
bizarre choices. These applications may produce a invoice. You can run reports to see who your most
good looking invoice, but the time required can be profitable clients are and who is most productive on Opt,ons avahaole
considerable and the chance for errors is high. staff. You always have an up to date picture of how Another online service, Zoho, has recently added
To appreciate what Freshbooks does for invoices, it is you and your company are doing. invoicing to its online offerings. Zoho is a free suite
best to try the demo at the Freshbooks site. However, Freshbooks caters to English-speaking North America, consisting of nine productivity and collaboration
in a nutshell, Freshbooks lets you create invoices from with 55 per cent of its users in the US and 15 per cent applications and also seven online business applications
avariety of templates, customize them with your logo in Canada. There is also a large contingent in the for which it charges a fee. Zoho Invoice provides many
and information so that they look the way you want, United Kingdom. of the same capabilities as Freshbooks. If you use or
record the time spent on projects and clients as you Freshbooks is a service that requires no local plan to use any of the Zoho online applications, there
go, manage your clients, and then create, issue, and installation of software. It works through a browser and may be an advantage in also using Zoho Invoice as
track invoices with less effort than you are it doesn't care if you're using Windows, Mac or Linux. I there is already integration with Zoho Projects.
accustomed to. saw many Macs during my visit to Zoho's prices for Invoice are lower than Freshbooks',
The invoices can be printed and sent by post or e- their office and learned that their developers are presumably because they have income from a variety
mail, or clients can be e-mailed to notify them of their heavily influenced by the Mac interface. of products. Freshbooks has just the one product.
account, giving them access to see their invoices, Freshbooks offers accounts of various sizes, based Zoho offers a free account that is good for five
estimates, support tickets and documents online. on the number of active clients you can manage and invoices and estimates per month for an unlimited
Arrangements can be made for clients to pay invoices the number of staff who can access your account. The number of clients. Paid accounts range from $5/month
online. Freshbooks works with several services, largest standard account allows up to 20 staff and up for 25 invoices up to $35/month for 1,500 invoices
and estimates. Zoho is also prepared to customize its
e Switch To • I H a l o E M I = I F o m m v I Subscrlotion s e t t i n g s I s i t : m o w (erncink)
plans, which can be cancelled at any time.
2 ••0 ti Zoho offers many of the same features as Freshbooks
Invoice MEIER but customer service isn't nearly as good, there is no
Home snail mail service, and there is no online access to
invoices for clients. Another distinguishing feature
Quick Create
Open Invoices Overdue Invoices between the two services is that Freshbooks lets you
Estimate N e w
assign which staff can handle invoices for specific
tt' Invoice N E w
- - : 3 1 0 E W ' S I t - * S O W S A V O W aS DAYS
clients. Zoho doesn't have that capability. •
`:41:1 0 . 0 0
Customer N e w L t t C'° 0.00 ` A D 0.00 C A 5 0.00 ` A D 0.00 The bottom line is simple. Competition is good and
tt Item N e w 31. Freshbooks and Zoho Invoice will both save you time
and make you more money than the cost of whatever
[13 Reports plan you choose.
Currency: CAD
Invoice Aging

Invoice by due date Today

o Ti m e to pay This Week

Customer Balances This Month
Tax Summary
By Issie Rabinovitch
This (loader
Sales by customer
This Year
0 S a l e s by tern

MOOSIehSiga—

MT20 H U B : TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.conill

 In the Lab: All in One Printers
Multi-function printers that do as much- as you do... almost
As desktop space comes at a premium, all-in-one printer / scanner / copier / fax /
coffee maker / toasters can be an ideal solution for the student, the small business
worker or telecommuter. In fact, these do-it-all wonders have gained such traction in
the marketplace that you'd be hard pressed to find a single-function consumer inkjet
printer outside of the large format or photo enthusiast categories. While single
function printers do still exist, they're not as relevant of a product category as they
were even a few years ago. After all, if you could get a scanner, copier, fax and
printer in a package not much bigger than a single function printer and with a price
tag not too far off the mark either, why wouldn't you?
Multi Function Printers (MFPs) are a great solution for dorm rooms or SOHOs. For
light-duty copying or for scanning hard copy documents (such as notes) to send via
email, they're invaluable.
Many of the solutions in Canada still incorporate a fax component. Curiously,
anecdotal industry evidence suggests that Canada is one of very few hold-out
markets where fax is concerned. HP, for example, doesn't tend to bother with fax
capability in the US market as it's not something that consumers are looking for.
Conversely, in Canada fax capability can prove to be a major marketing bullet point
and can be a make or break selling feature for some users. Epson CX9400Fax
Agrowing trend in consumer MFPs is wireless connectivity. Several of the MFPs we
had In the Lab this month incorporate Wi-Fi as a connection option. This is ideal when
desk space is at an absolute premium; once configured, wireless printers can be
placed anywhere within range of your home wireless connection without having to For page per minute (PPM) numbers or time to print results, the stopwatch began
string wires. The printer I use at home — the Brother MFC 885CW — sits across the when the paper was first taken up by the printer and stopped when the last page
room from my PC, out of the way and not taking up valuable desk real estate. dropped into the finishing tray.
But, without further ado, let's get to the actual testing.
Pixma MP520
Testing methodology Canon S150 www.canon.ca
Weperformed the testing of all printers in one day. All drivers were loaded onto our Dimensions: 45.7 x 37 x 17cm (WxHxD)
test machine and the printers were tested in succession. If during the initial setup the Screen: 2-inch colour LCD Duplex: Manual
printer asked if we wanted to print a test or configuration page, we did so. Network: No Fax: No PictBridge: Yes
Otherwise, we launched straight in to the test printing. Photo card slots: CompactFlash, Memory Stick, Memory Stick•Pro, SD, MMC
Colour photo printing capability was tested on matte presentation paper using the
Photo Printing Wizard within Windows XP to print off a full letter paper sized still life • Print times
scene. Where available, paper type was selected and "best photo" or a similarly-titled Full page colour photo: 2min 39.9s
printing mode was chosen. Colour printing was tested using the colour printing test 10pg. mono draft document: lmin 14.5s
page at nemesis.lonestar.org/site/color_test.html. Monochrome printing was tested 10pg. mono normal document: lmin 15.1s
using a heavy coverage 10 page specially created for the In the Lab series. We PPM- draft: 8.1 P P M - normal: 7.9
tested the lowest quality "draft," "economy" or "fastest" printing mode on all printers. While it's not the fastest in its class where printing, scanning or copying speeds are
We also tested the default "normal" or "standard" mode. concerned, the Canon Pixma MP520 does have plenty of stand-out points that make
it worthy of consideration.
Canon Pixma MP520 Unique to MFPs In the Lab this month, the MP520 has dual paper feed slots, one
rear-mounted and one on the front, below the finishing tray. This allows two different
paper stocks to be loaded; high-bond presentation stock in the front for high-quality
print jobs and normal bond office inkjet paper in the rear for general purpose
printing. These paper trays are user-selectable either with-a button on the control
panel of the printer or within the software.
Print speeds are nothing to write home about and the MP520 spent the most time
"preparing" (spooling) a print, especially apparent in the case of our full-page letter
sized photo print where the printer worked for a couple of minutes before starting the
actual print, delivered in 2:39.9s from paper take-up to finished print.
Where Canon's entry shines though is in overall print quality. The full-page photo
print was the best of the printers tested. It showed a full range of shadow and
highlights, was crisp and clean and, over all, an excellent representation of the
original still-life scene. The colour printing test table showed accurate results without
notable over or under saturation.
Monochrome text was rendered beautifully in normal document mode; crisp, clean.
and rivaling the output from a mono laser printer. In draft mode, text was still of
good quality though noticeably less crisp and bold. In short, while the ink savings
may prove worth it when printing documents that won't be circulated outside of the
office, the negligible print time savings for the reduced quality print aren't a
reasonable trade off.
Asmall colour LCD panel flips up from the right side of the printer to reveal a
spinning jog dial control and numerous buttons. Main menu functions appear in a
carousel and can be selected using either the jog dial or cursor keys.

hubcanada.con* HUB:TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 M T 21

Stylus CX9400Fax •
Epson $130 www.epson.ca
Dimensions: 46 x 40.5 x 23.5cm (WxHxD)
Screen: 2.5-inch colour LCD Duplex: No
Network: No Fax: Yes PictBridge: Yes
Photo card slots: CompactFlash, Memory Stick PRO / Duo, SD, MMC, xD Picture
Card

Print times
Full page colour photo: 3min 2s
10pg. mono draft document: 36.8s
10pg. mono normal document: 2min 27.5s .
PPM- draft: 16.3 PPM - normal: 4.1
The Stylus CX9400Fax is a well-featured MFP with decent - though not stand-out -
print times'and good print quality in normal mode. Text quality is excellent in Normal
mode but dismal in draft. In fact, the draft mode is all but useless. The quality is
reminiscent of old dot-matrix printers. It's faint and it looks like every other line is
not printed at all. The quality of the full-page photo print was second only to the
Canon model tested. That said, it took over three minutes to output the letter-sized of only two printers In the Lab to do so - should be an indication that its expertise
colour print. lies with business applications as opposed to fun. Our full-page colour photo test
.The front panel of the Stylus CX9400Fax features a 2.5-inch flip-up colour LCD rendered decent but not stand-out results. The resulting pholo print was a little
panel for doing minor washed out, lacking in some detail and highlight. That said, our business
image editing when printing via PictBridge or from one of the numerous camera card presentation style colour print came out looking great with deep and bold but not
slots. On the front panel, you'll also find the full number pad for faxing along over saturated colours. Monochrome text output was uniformly excellent. Printing
with several different circular direction pads for selecting various options. This mono text at normal quality offered a slow-ish 6.2 ppm but offered laser-quality
makes the menu system a bit confusing. results. In draft mode, we got a more respectable 16.5 ppm and while the result was
Like many printers in the Epson line, the Stylus CX9400Fax uses Epson's DURABrite more obviously an inkjet print, it would be suitable for non-presentation applications.
Ultra Ink system. When combined with compatible Epson papers, they, promise a
light resistance and print longevity of 105 years. We've yet to test this in real-world ESP 5
conditions (if only we could live that long) but it's an impressive print fix spec Kodak $170 www.kodak.ca
nonetheless. Dimensions: 42.2 x 29.8 x 17.7cm (WxHxD)
Our colour text print document showed some weak colour reproduction in full green Screen: 3-inch colour LCD Duplex: No
and red though, as mentioned previously, the colour photo quality was excellent. Network: No PictBridge: Yes Fax: No
Photo card slots: SD, Multimedia Card, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, xD Picture
Card, CompactFlash
Otficejet J6480 Ali-in-One
HP $170 vvww.hp.ca Print times
Dimensions: 47.6 x 47.3 x 25.8cm (WxHxD) Full page colour photo: 54.0s
Screen: 2-line mono LCD Duplex: Automatic 10pg. mono draft document: 55.7s
Network: Wired / Wireless (802.11b/g) Fax: Yes PictBridge: No 10pg. mono normal document: lmin 24.7s
Photo card slots:. SD, MMC, CompactFlash Type I and II, xD Picture Card, Memory PPM - draft: 10.8 PPM - normal: 7.1
Stick, Memory Stick PRO Kodak's first entry into the MFF' market gained attention because of the low cost of
ink - about 50 per cent less, on average, than competing.products. Our colour test
Print times print emerged in 54 seconds but lacked fine detail and highlights. It also showed
Full page colour photo: 2min 46.1s some banding in uniform colour sections. Our colour business presentation style test
10pg. mono draft document: 36.4s showed similar washing out of some saturated colours, notably blues and reds.
10pg. mono normal document: lmin 34.8s Where mono printing is concerned, the ESP 5 output excellent results in normal
PPM - draft: 16.5 PPM - normal: 6.2 mode and decent results in draft mode. Its pages per minute count is a reasonable
What it lacks in colour and photo printing capabilities it makes up for in office 10.8 in draft and 7.1 in normal mode. In draft, text is light and shows a little
functionality. In short, if you're looking for an all-in-one that does all of the standard misalignment. However, in normal mode it created documents that compared to -
office stuff like faxing, mono and colour presentation style printing, full auto but didn't quite match - mono laser text output.
duplexing and the like; cast your eyes this way. If you're looking for an MFP that can As a relatively inexpensive MFP with excellent cost per print, the ESP 5 deserves a
do all that as well as print off your vacation photos with a quality rivaling the photo- look. As the main document centre for a small or home office though, you may be
mat, look elsewhere. The fact that the J6480 rocks the monochrome screen - one advised to look elsewhere. The ESP 5 lacks fax functionality; no duplexing, no network
connectivity and no sheet-fed document scanning or copying hopper, for example.
HPOfficejet 16480 All-in-One However, if your use is more pleasure than business, the ESP 5's highly competitive
cost per print and super "EASYSHARE" connection with Kodak cameras (as well as
PictBridge for non-Kodak cams and card slots for a variety of popular camera media)
make it well worth a look.

X6575
Lexmark $170 www.lexmark.ca
Dimensions: 33.5 x 44:7 x ,20.1cm (WxHxD)
Screen: multi-line mono LCD
Duplex: Full-auto Network: Wired / Wireless (802.11b/g/n)
Fax: Yes PictBridge: Yes
Photo card slots: CompactFlash, Memory Stick, Memory Stick PRO, SD, MMC, xD-
Picture Card

MT22 H U B : TheComputerPaper - MOntreal - August 2008 hubcanada

 Print times worthy of consideration thanks to its larger-than-average colour LCD screen and its
Full page colour photo: lm 32.0s much less expensive than usual consumables, clocking in a full 50 per cent less than
10pg. mono draft document: 43.9s competing inks (according to Kodak). For pure business applications, the Lexmark
10pg. mono normal document: lm 44.9s X6575 and HP Officejet J6480 All-in-One are worthy of consideration with their full
PPM - draft: 13.7 PPM - normal: 4.1 fax capability, sheet-fed document and fax hoppers and wireless / wired networking
After a rather drawn-out install process where you have to hit continue through 21 capability. Standing high in the middle ground, meeting business needs with an
steps ("extend paper tray," "raise paper support," "extend paper guides," "load integrated fax, and document feeder, good text quality at normal settings (though
paper,") you're ready to actually get down to business... And this machine is all not using draft) and its excellent photo printing capabilities, the Epson Stylus
business, with 802.11b/g/n and Ethernet networking along with full fax capability, CX9400Fax deserves a close look.
sheet-fed and flat bed scanner and copier along with full automatic duplexing. In the end, I'll stick with my Brother MFC 885CW with its massive colour LCD
While it's not the fastest of the bunch, its 13.7 ppm in draft mode is quite speedy, screen, PictBridge, wired and wireless connection, numerous card slots, document
ripping through our 10-page test document in just under 44 seconds. Our full page feeder, fax and, something no other printer has, integrated cordless phone and
colour print emerged in lm 44.9 sec and while it was sharp and crisp with good message centre.
highlight range, it had an overly yellow cast. Our colour presentation style document By Andrew Moore-Crispin
showed excellent colour reproduction with sharp, deep and accurate colours with no
over saturation.
In normal mode, our 10-page test document came out crisp and clean with text
quality rivaling but not quite matching that of a mono laser printer. In draft mode, Lexmark X6575
some fuzziness appears but documents are still infinitely readable though not quite
client ready.
The X6575 is one of only two printers In the Lab to opt for a monochrome as
opposed to a colour LCD screen. However, as mono LCDs go, the one that graces
the front of the MFP is among the best we've seen. Rather than using a visible dot
array for on-screen instructions and notifications, the X6575 has smooth, rounded
fonts and has a wide viewing angle, visible whether you're sitting at your desk or
standing over the printer.

Conclusion
There's no such thing as the perfect MFP for everybody. If you're likely to do as
much or more personal photo printing as business printing, Canon's Pixma MP520
deserves a close look for its excellent print quality. Likewise, the Kodak ESP 5 is

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complete with Microsoft's XP screen" experience!
operating system. Super Small ✓ Intel Q94.50 Quad Core
3Ghz 08400 1333FSB cpu To w e r ✓ Windows Vista Premium
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tr 22" Viewsonic monitor What's Included? Nzxt Apollo gamer cahse
Nut Apollo gamer cahse Intel e7200 Core2Duo'" 2.53Ghz 1066Mhz FSB processor .Intel ✓ Asus 6501 mainboard
Asus 650i mainboard G31 chipsel mainboard.512mb DDR2 667Mhz memory +Sea- ✓ Logitech 2.1 Speakers
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Intel e8400 Core2Duo" 3.00Ghz processor .Inlet 0G31 mainboard. 2048mb 800Mhz
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DDR2 memory•Seagate 250gb SATA3 drive .Intel X3100 graphics.Space saving support.4096mO 800Mhz DDR2 memory. Seagate 500gb SATA3 drive .nVidia
micro lower chassis • 350 watt power supply.20 inch Acer wide screen GTX260 896mb graphics.Nzd LED lit garners tower .22 inch Viewsonic VX
arners display. DVD ReVhiter•Keyboard and optical mouse.lvernsoft Win-
display. DD ReWriter. Keyboard and optical mouse. Logitech compact G a . m e r s C o r e 2 Q u a d T M C r o s s f i r e B u n d l e down Vista Premium operating syslem.Logilech speaker system with
speaker system.TWO year parts and labour warranty twin satellites and sub-woofer.Two year pans and labour warranty
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Model 240BWFP
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 Harnessing the Sun
Solar solutions put through their paces
Long has humankind wished to harness the power of adaptor tips which in turn connect to the device being Voltaic Daypack
the sun. Thanks to green being the new buzzword and charged. $240 www.voltaic.com
given that we're carrying more personal devices than Asmall button on the back of the Solio sends the Package includes:
ever before, gathering, storing and using solar power juice to the device that's plugged in and, using LEDs Battery pack,
on a small, personal scale is now a reality. within the translucent button, fills users in on its status. Wall charger,
We got our hands on a couple of entries from the Red means it's collecting the sun's rays (or charging Six multi-function tips including USB,
major players in this niche market, a Voltaic backpack via USB) and storing the energy. When pressed, the Nokia tip,
embedded with a solar panel array at the back and the LED flashes green to give a gauge on how much Sony Ericsson tip (large form factor),
original Solio with its three solar panels that fan out power is available. One flash means 25 per cent and Sony Ericsson tip (small form factor)
from the teardrop-shaped device. four means fully charged. Samsung tip,
Both of these personal solar chargers can not only In our tests, the Solio charged up fully after a full day Mini USB (BlackBerry, etc.) tip, Country adapters for
directly charge devices using the power of the sun, in the light streaming through a skylight, getting direct wall charger,
they can also store a small amount of energy in an on- sunlight for much of the afternoon. Car cigarette lighter socket
board battery to charge up your devices at night such Once the internal battery was full, it charged a
as when camping, biking or hiking or just running BlackBerry 8800 battery (RIM battery model number C- Voltaic has perhaps the most intriguing line of solar
around doing errands in the city. Each has its own S2) once fully in about three hours. After charging, the solutions available. Its high-quality flexible solar panels
unique benefits and detriments but, all told, both are LED indicator light on the Solio showed 25 per cent or are worked into briefcases, backpacks and messenger
quite effective at doing what they're designed to do: less of its charge remaining. It couldn't manage bags made of recycled PET bottles. It's a fun and
harvesting energy from the sun to keep your gadgets another partial charge; while the charging lamp on the fashion-forward statement. The three large solar panels
off the grid and to give them a boost when they need BlackBerry did light for a little while, upon turning it on of the Voltaic Daypack are not removable — at least,
it the most. again, it displayed a "battery drained, shutting down" not practically so. All the requisite wiring throughout the
notification. bag is present and accounted for upon opening the
Solio packaging, minimizing setup on the user side. All you
$100 www.solio.com
Package includes:
USB port replicator tip,
Sohowith solar charging
Mini-USB tip,
leaves fanned open
Nokia tip,
Sony Ericsson tip,
Samsung tip, LG tip,
USB charging cable,
Window suction cup

The Solio's three panels fan out windmill-style, making

the 121 x 60 x 35mm (WxHxD, closed dimensions)
charger easy to pack up and carry along. The Solio
can be charged from the wall (charger not included) or
aUSB port and promises a full charge in six hours.
Charging a device that exists for the express purpose
of charging other devices seems to defeat the purpose
somewhat, though it could be useful when you want to
carry a full charge before heading out on a camping
trip, for example. Solio promises a full charge in eight
to 10 hours in direct sunlight.
The device has a small hole that can fit a standard
pencil to prop the leaves up when on the ground,
perfect for leaving the Solio at base camp while out
hiking or exploring. This hole can also be used to tie
the Solio onto a backpack, hook it onto a tent pole or
hang from a tree. The retail package also includes a
small suction cup that fits snugly into the
hole so the Solio can be stuck on to a car, home or
office window that's getting sunlight. We had trouble
getting the Solio to charge through the window of the
office despite the fact that it was in direct sunlight,
perhaps due to some kind of coating on the glass. At
home, charging in the window wasn't a problem.
In the package are a series of adaptor tips for
popular makes and models of cell phones and other
devices. Other tips can be purchased from the Solio
site for about $10 each.
Asmall rubber cover seals off two poi:ts; one for
power in and one for power out. A mini:jack sized
adaptor cable plugs in to the .Solio and accepts

MT26 H U B : TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcartada.conlik

 have to do is plug in the battery pack — removable and tucked away immediately
Voltaic Daypack
behind the solar panels in one of the bag's two main compartments, strap it on your
back and hit the road on a sunny day to get things going.
It's functionally impossible to determine exactly how long it takes to charge the
battery pack to full; differing sun conditions and myriad factors offer too many
variables. Voltaic puts the number at between eight and 10 hours in direct sunlight.
The Li-Ion battery pack has three LEDs to indicate charge strength, activated by
pushing the test button. It also has two LED lights mounted front and centre which
can apparently run for 55 hours on a full charge. Atop the pack is a voltage switch
to go between 3.5V, 5V and 7.2V. If your device doesn't work on one of these
voltages, it's time to break out the car charger (if you have it) to plug directly into the
female socket thoughtfully included in the bag. It's not the most elegant solution, but
it is effective in a pinch.
A full day in the sun streaming through a skylight in the office (moved every hour or
so to keep pace with the moving patch of sunlight) fully charged the battery pack. In
turn, the pack fully charged the BlackBerry 8800 battery (RIM battery model C-S2)
tested in about two hours and then charged the same battery model from dead to
about 60 per cent in an hour and 10 minutes before it ran out of juice entirely.
Not bad.
As a daypack, the Voltaic is quite comfortable. It's not much use as a camping or
hiking backpack owing to its small dimensions. However, for the urban warrior, it's
perfect. A laptop sleeve inside protects your notebook (though the pack can't charge
laptops) and all the requisite pockets, clips and the like are present and accounted
for, including a cell phone pouch on the left shoulder strap. A wire runs to this cell
phone pouch and it can be used to charge your handset (or any other device) as you
go. Neat touch.
By Andrew Moore-Crispin

2370 MIDLAND Ave. Unit A10, Scarborough, ON, M1S 5C6 Canada
TEL: 416-292-0533 hours: 10am-7pm Mon.Fri., 10am-5pm Sat. closed Sunday
M P T Computers Incorporated.
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hubcanada.conilik HUB:The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 M T 27

 An End to Card Clutter?
Device helps to sort contact information for users and businesses

CardScan Personal employees. The device we tested was the CardScan

Ma S a l Vo n S a t W . e m i r / M M . * . INS W e
CardScan Personal, ideal for individual employees of a " t a x % t a w Cad * Ea, V S . 6 , * * " . . . ,

www.cardscan.com $179.99 115x8Omm (WxD) business, those who are self-employed, or those who le.nta.q I

deal with large numbers of people (with business :IY,11.1bsN , = 3 , v vaa l o m i a t e s t

In an era of information overload, managing contact 1.1111 y e a

info can be difficult. Memorizing phone numbers is a cards) on a regular basis and want to sort past and Itl. l o b n u l l x i a l Y i n 113419..
CERMY S l a t II CO.
. . . . . . . . . P . O . Ow WA I N limas I L
thing of the past, possibly because there are so many present contacts. ,} TWO t I n i lilF11011
11110110.

types of numbers to memorize — from home, to The product itself is fairly small, roughly 115 x 80mm fat 0 5 1 tS•4•••
awe p l i m e t h e m b y i k e r s
1V4,140.
business, to cell phone or even fax — or because (WxD), and is easily portable thanks to the handy travel few
MT*
there are so many people to keep in touch with these bag that comes with it.
Rea a t e 0 1 oftwo I - C o m m I
days. And besides just the phone numbers, there are When I first received the device, I thought that it might
also the e-mail addresses, websites and other be battery-operated, with its own memory bank,
information to worry about. With each business you allowing for business types to give me their cards so I
come into contact with having their own website, and could quickly scan and return them. Not so, 111' Jill Smith
International Salo 11441lOget

each person from that business having their own apparently. The device is powered completely by USB T. w e p t

e-mail, it gets somewhat difficult to keep track of it all. and has no internal storage, so it is essentially just a Tel,1133115s.7899 P.O. l o t Ole
100 W a a l Rd
9 . w J.enw1n Fax:112.114,74399
Of course, that's why these businesses and employees very specialized scanner. Leon* aSsmiktfkaarlacd.a, Am-she...MA 01000

have business cards. Don't let that detract from the value of CardScan, !wavy., Isarasandaudboastwo O M =
While easy to lose, business cards provide invaluable however, because what it does, it does extremely well.
Business card management software included
information that would come in handy — if only you
with the CardScan Personal
could find your collection of cards. How it works
But that's why, in these troubled times of contact After installing the software, a process that took less
management, products like CardScan are available. than 10 minutes, the CardScan should be ready to
CardScan allows businesses or individuals to digitally plug in. There is an arrow that is back-lit in blue on the
store the information found on business cards in an inside the front card feed slot. This changes to orange Keeping things accurate
easy to access database, thereby allowing them to once a card is detected or is being scanned.. While any information scanned does go into the
throw the business cards into a drawer or even Scanning time is advertised to be less than five database and get sorted alphabetically (or in any other
through the shredder afterwards. This may sound like a seconds but that doesn't include data processing. In way you prefer), each new addition is assigned a
dangerous practice — discarding valuable and tangible our tests, a single side of a card could be scanned verification rating once scanned. Every item will start
contact info in exchange for a digital file that could and processed in about 15 seconds. off as unverified, and it will be up to the user to check
easily be lost, compromised or corrupted — but with The Card Scan does optical character recognition each piece of information before checking off the
the easy-to-use CardScan layout and its numerous (OCR) to convert printed text into data than can be "Verified" button, which will take away the dark
backup features, it might be time to round up all those manipulated. It's not perfectly accurate, but it's usually question mark beside the entry. If there is no question
stray business cards lingering around and get rid of close. Some business card fonts or symbols may not mark, that will mean that the information within is to be
them. After scanning them and saving them into your be recognized, but standard fonts and letters are input taken as fact, so be alert when checking information
collection, of course. without a problem, generally in the field that they just in case any additional info needed to be added.
The CardScan device comes in a variety of forms belong to as well. Also, the opacity of the question mark indicates how
ranging from CardScan Personal, which is the smallest Business cards of a more digital nature such as Virtual much verification is required. A dark question mark will
and most affordable of the products and is aimed at Card File (VCF) attachments in email, can be easily mean that the CardScan may have had a hard time
independent users, to CardScan Team, which is more highlighted and dragged over the CardScan interface. reading the card, or much of the information was
of an integrated office solution for large groups of missing, whereas a grey question mark may just mean
that the verification checkbox still needs to be ticked,
but that the information is more or less accurate.
CardScan Personal with The contact information in the database can also
scanning cover closed be exported to a variety of handheld devices and
cell phones.

Keep it secret, keep it safe

CardScan also offers to back up your contact lists for
free online using At Your Service. The secure backup
site, run and operated by CardScan, is simple, easy to
use, and free. It's an ideal way of maintaining access
to contact lists in the event that you want to travel light
and don't have the option of using a PDA or
smartphone. Plus it can check for updates for your
contacts, making sure that all of your contact
information is accurate and up to date.
S m i t h y i3c C o .
The CardScan software is loaded with features from
Stmiidh "one-click" e-mail, which makes it easy to mass e-mail
,n.rodwirgiltom select contacts, to labelling and printing options
,tv.gdo14)4-0:raoo
l'41,(WM-45.08"
,Ito .1saa 001

4 n o - r • r w ArOitwve,'SIVOIM1111,
i A t u 1
allowing you to print out contact labels or replacement
•01111i11111omitihS41.0ah - - - - - - . - - cards, making this much more than a simple card
scanning product.
By Dorian Nicholson

MT 28 H U B : The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada .corfik

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On-Board 6 Channel Digital Surround Sound AMD Athlon X2 6000r 5899.99 or 833/1.4th
AsusExtreme 096200tE SC14/70512114 5 1 2 $ 0 (PC11)--- 1 3 9 . 9 9 1.0 OS0.11550 1197 Dual Layer OVDR/OWS (24190)
Logitech R20 Speaker System AMD Aileen X2 6400. 8944.99 or $35/Mth AsusExtremeEx7300GTOSTD Silent w/ 512683 (Palk . 4 1 1 5 9 . 9 9 LGG0200315 12OWDial Layer 000 R/RW) (Black) (SATA)....0524.99Nspire 1505000 450W inowerSuPPW10,1 2 3465.-- wa, . S0915
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 Don't Go Dry on Your Own Supplies
Using the gear you already have to make your own business stationary
What do you do when you run out of Repeat for all your images. example, create a letterhead with table cell contents and choose Edit >
business cards or letterhead? If you When you see the images in your Clip elements such as images and drawing Copy and then click in the cell to its
start with a call to your local print shop, Organizer, right click each in turn and objects as well as text. Place these right and choose Edit > Paste. Select
think again. Armed with only Microsoft choose Edit Keywords. You'll see a list elements inside the Header area by both completed cells and copy and
Word, a decent printer and some paper, of keywords and you can click in the choosing View > Header and Footer so paste them to fill the document. Save
you can easily create your own keyword list and add your own. Add they are on the Header and Footer layer the document and print a copy onto
business stationery and brochures. words like your company name or logo and so they won't get in the way later plain paper to check it will print
Everything from letterhead to business and, after typing each keyword click on. If you put large images or text at, correctly onto your stock paper. When
cards to invoices can be created in Add to add it. Delete any keywords that the top or bottom of the page, adjust you're satisfied everything is properly
Microsoft Word. Better still, you only don't apply to the image — for the header and footer margins in the lined up, print the cards.
print what you use so there's no waste. example, folder details will have been Ruler (display it by choosing View > When you create and print your own
imported as keywords. Click OK when Ruler) so the page content is kept well business cards, you can print them as
Grab your logo you are done. In future, choose Insert > away from the header and footer text and when you need them and, if your
The first step in creating your own Picture > Clip Art, type the word to and so it doesn't overlap it. details change, you won't waste any.
documents is to get your images where search for, ensure the Search In option Choose a font for the text elements in
you need them. These are your logo includes My Collections and your your letterhead which is different from Other business documents
and any other images you typically use images will appear in the task pane and the font that you plan to use in your Microsoft Office Online is a useful
for your stationery and flyers. I like to you can quickly and easily insert one letters. This way the two text elements repository of business documents you
add them to my clipart gallery so they into your document by clicking on it. will look separate and distinct:. can customize for your own purposes.
are accessible from any Office Once you have created your letterhead To find these, choose File > New > and
program. To do this, choose Insert > Create a letterhead save it as a template by choosing File > from the Templates area choose
Picture > Clip Art and click the Organize To create your letterhead first rough out Save As. From the Save As Type Templates On Office Online. Select the
Clips option in the task pane. Choose a design on a sheet of paper so you dropdown list select Document Template Template category you're interested in,
File > Add Clips to Organizer > On My know what it should look like. Then (*.dot) and type a name for the for example brochures and preview
Own and browse to find the images to assemble the pieces in Microsoft Word letterhead that describes it purpose. brochures that have been created by
add. Select an image and click Add. into a new document. You can, for Click Save and then close the document other Word users and companies
— do not work on the version you just specializing in business documents.
created. Instead, to create a letter in Each has a rating beside it so you can
future, choose File > New and select the determine which are of the best quality.
Templates: On My Computer option in Select a template to use and click
the task pane. Locate and click the Download to download it to Word.
template you just created, and click OK If you plan to use the document a lot,
9.?S) " A n n u a l 'payment' required to open it. You can now type and save first replace the basic elements such as

9.7/o We provide the following, your letter without damaging the original
template. When you create a letter using
a template document, you only print the
your logo, business name, address and
colours, and then save the design as a
template on your own computer. Close
s e r v i c e s : • Web Hosting stationary that you need when you need it and then create a new document

uptirn • Graphic Design

• Website Design it, and you can print blank copies
anytime you need those too.
based on this template each time you
need a new brochure. There are a
range of document templates for most
Pa ° Business cards business uses on the Microsoft Office
To create business cards, first purchase site and most are compatible with older
°STING HOSTING H O S T I N G the perforated business card paper versions of Word so it's a good starting
STANDARDPLAN ADVANC P N stock you intend to print onto. Then point for customizing your own designs.
choose Tools > Letters and Mailings > With a little planning and creativity you
• FREE Setup • FREE Setup • FREE Setup Envelopes and Labels and select the can create most of your business
• FREE Domain • FREE Domain • FREE Domain Labels tab. Click Options and locate the documents using Microsoft Word, some
• 10 Email A/C • 50 Email A/C • 100 Email A/C label number for the business card paper supplies and your printer. You'll
• 10 GB/mfh • 50 GB/mth paper stock you have purchased. If never run out of stock and you'll always
• 100 GB/mfh
you are using metric sizes, from the have just what you need on hand.
$6 99 4> $9.99 Label Products dropdown list choose By Helen Bradley
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Avery A4 and A5 sizes, otherwise use
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Tel: 1-866-837-1522 and (416) 628-9793 • Email: [email protected] configure the design to match the stock
that you have in hand. Click OK when
you are done and click New Document

„IvQWeb Solutions to add the empty layout table into the

document — each cell is one business
card. Create the first business card by
typing the business card details into the
Your Web Solutions Provider cell and add your logo. When the first
TermsandConditions apply From Start To Growth business card is complete, select the

MT30 H U B : The Computer Paper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.corrill

 Chief of the Board
Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 has a lot to love

Gigabyte X481-DQ6 save the BIOS data in multiple locations in case you ever need to restore either of
Gigabyte - $ 3 3 0 www.gigabyte.com.tw the DualBIOS chips. This is a godsend for overclockers and a safety net for newer
It's hard to write a review when the product you're reviewing has very few, mostly computer users.
negligible flaws. The Gigabyte X481-0Q6 is further proof that the saying, "you get The X481-DQ6 also has 2-Gigabit Ethernet with both fault tolerance and receiver
what you pay for" can be entirely correct — it's a little more expensive than the side scaling. Like the dual-phone line "Shotgun" technology of yore, 2GBit Ethernet
average motherboard, but it's unquestionably a premium product. uses Teaming in order to simultaneously run two RJ-45 Gigabit connections as one,
Based on Intel's current flagship chipset, Gigabyte's X48T-DQ6 shares many effectively doubling throughput. It's clever and undoubtedly gives you a network
features with its X48-based siblings, the X48-DS5 and X48-DQ6: Aside from a few speed advantage, however, the real world boost may not be significant since most
tiny improvements, the major difference with the X48T-DQ6 lies in its support for home users have yet to max out at the standard 1Gbit/s.
blazing-fast, soon-to-be-standard DDR3 memory. Not only does this make the X48T- Other unique features of the Gigabyte's top-tier motherboards are the Ultra-Durable •
DQ6 a more future proof product, but also gives it more performance potential as 2 manufacturing process and Dynamic Energy Saver software. Ultra Durable 2 uses
well. In the land of the hardcore hardware enthusiast and power-hungry PC user, this better cooling and components on the board to ensure more stable operation and
reason alone is more than worth the cost of entry. The rest of us, however, need a increase the lifespan of the hardware. Dynamic Energy Saver is similar to laptop
little more convincing. Fortunately the X481-DQ6 is stacked, coming with a slew of throttling, essentially cutting back on power when the system is idle and giving you
features and offering a higher build quality than any other motherboard-I've seen. the right amount of juice if you need the additional power. The combination of Ultra
Durable 2 and Dynamic Energy Saver (DES) is where the real magic is; not only are
Where's the sink? all the components more efficient and cooler in their own right, but when used in
The list of features for the X48T-DQ6 is long, so bear with me. The Q6 in "DQ6" is conjunction with Gigabyte's DES, the difference in power consumption and operating
actually an acronym used to label six areas of the motherboard that have four temperature is substantial.
("Q"uad) layers of redundancy or expansion. The most obvious of these features are The onboard audio is controlled by the ALC889A with DTS Connect. By offering 7.1
the Quad DDR3 slots, Quad e-SATA2 ports for external HDDs, and the motherboard's + 2 channel audio and supporting the latest audio formats for Blu-Ray (and HD-DVD)
optimization for Quad-core processors. Not so obvious are the Quad Cooling, Quad playback, the ALC889A is arguably the most capable integrated audio solution
Triple Phase power design, and Quad BIOS. available. Moreover, it works magnificently well when connected to an external audio
Quad Cooling is arguably one of the coolestaspects of the motherboard (pardon receiver. The two additional channels are used to stream a separate stereo channel
the pun). The X481-DQ6 has passive heat-pipe cooling — dubbed "Silent Pipe" — on to another set of speakers... I can't think of a practical purpose for this functionality,
both the north and south bridge, like most motherboards. Additionally, there are but it's there in case you ever need it.
heatsinks on the power MOSFETs as well as the new "Crazy Cool" cooling system
designed to cool the underside of the CPU. Gigabyte (and the laws of physics) are Adose of reality
quick to mention that this added cooling will improve the lifespan of the components, With all those features and all that praise, you may be left with the impression that
while increasing stability at stock speeds or overclocked. the X48T-DQ6 is a quintessential, must-have motherboard. However, like all things,
While it might not be as cool as Quad Cooling, the Quad BIOS allows for worry-free it's not perfect. For example there is no built-in Wi-Fi. The fact that this is a
BIOS updates and tweaking. Using Gigabyte's DualBIOS (two physical BIOS chips on performance motherboard and Wi-Fi can't reach the speeds of most wired
the motherboard) along with Express BIOS Rescue Technology (to store copies of the connections (never mind the X48T-DQ6's 2Gbit Ethernet), the reason for the
BIOS in flash memory, the HDD, or CD) gives the X48T-DQ6 a seemingly bullet-proof exclusion is understandable. That said, it still would have been nice to see some kind
BIOS backup system. Along with having a primary and secondary BIOS chip, you can of built-in wireless interconnectivity.
Similarly annoying is that even though the X48T-DQ6 supports ATI's multiple
Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 motherboard graphics card CrossFireX standard, nVidia has not allowed Intel to use their SLI
technology in chipsets (including the X48 Express). While this is due to Intel/nVidia
and not Gigabyte, the fact remains that you will not officially be able to run two
nVidia cards in tandem. The only scenario where this could really be a problem is if
you've already got the two nVidia video cards or if you explicitly plan on using SLI.
Again, both of these .omissions are only minor annoyances, but not having to worry
about either Wi-Fi or SLI support would have inched this motherboard that much
closer to perfect... And after testing the 9800GX2 (nVidia) recently, I really wanted
to partner-up a pair of them in the X48T-DQ6 just to see how fast the system could
be pushed.

Conclusion
To think that the lack of built-in Wi-Fi and SLI-support are X48T-DQ6's biggest
weaknesses when neither of those two functions can be found on the vast majority
of motherboards is a testament to the X48T-DQ6's excellence. With Ultra Durable 2
design, the coolest operating temperatures around; and using the highest quality
power components ensures that the X48T-DQ6 will last for years to come in even the
most strenuous conditions.
Supporting DDR3 and 45nm processors, while being optimized for both Windows
Vista and quad-core CPUs, the X48T-DQ6 has more future proofing than you could
hope for, while pushing the current performance envelope. This is the best
motherboard I've used so far this year and, unless Intel's forthcoming chipset blows
the X48 Express out of the water (unlikely), the X48T-DQ6 could very easily end up
being my favourite motherboard of 2008.
By Mike Palermo

hubcanada.conilli HUB:TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 M T 31

 •

Game Gear Pt. 3: Joysticks,

Game ads and Steering Wheels
Hands on with a dying breed
gameport. Today, all peripherals of this ilk connect via
Logitech ChillStream USB.Though gameport-to-USB adapters exist, they
aren't always reliable. Moreover, Microsoft's latest
operating system, Vista, doesn't support gameport-
based devices at all.
But don't worry too much. Truth is that because of the
dearth of recent joystick innovation, many of today's
stick's are tried and true oldies but goldies that in
some cases have simply been mildly tweaked and
updated from gameport to USB connectivity. Still, we
bemoan the loss of true greats such as Logitech's
early WingMan and Microsoft's SideWinder Precision
models, if only for the sake of nostalgia.

Tools of the trade

Before you buy, you should determine the features you
need. If, for example, you intend to use your stick
primarily for flying, and especially if you play realistic
simulations rather than quick-action arcade games,
you'll want to consider a unit with a twist-action handle
for easy, analog control of your aircraft's rudder. You'll
likely also want some form of onboard throttle —
which usually appears as a sliding or pivoting lever —
so you don't need to resort to your keyboard's number
keys to adjust your airspeed. four-way and eight-way
Welcome to the third and final installment of our look the type of player that preferred a realistic rather than "hats," generally located near the top of the handle,
at gaming-oriented hardware. Previously, we chose "arcade" experience and knew he needed a top grade are equally nifty tools for looking to your left and right
Saitek's Cyborg and Microsoft's Reclusa as this year's stick to be successful. or above while you're in the cockpit.
hottest gaming keyboards. We had a tougher time in Does that mean you should entertain the idea of More buttons are always a good thing for those who
the following month in selecting the world's top gaming buying an old school stick via the used market? want to launch lots of weapons or tinker with lots of
mouse, but ultimately anointed Logitech's feature-filled Probably not. Many now-antiquated units may have aircraft controls, merely because pressing a button
G9and Microsoft's comfy Habu as the best of an been robust and, in some cases, downright beautiful, that's right there under your finger is far easier than
impressive lot. But as cool as gaming keyboards and but they simply won't work — at least not without a lot taking your eyes from the screen to hunt and peck on
mice might be, neither are mandatory pieces of gear. of hassle — on a modern PC. Back then, sticks the keyboard. And if you really want to experience the
Gamers who frequent the type of games where plugged into the computer via an interface called a physical sensation of flying a plane or racing a car,
keyboards and mice play a key role can quite
comfortably get by with standard, all-purpose units.
However, some games require controllers that are
specifically built for play. This is the realm of joysticks,
gamepads, and steering wheels — joysticks for flying
and driving, gamepads for sports, and steering wheels
(obviously) for driving. Granted, casual players can
make do with a keyboard and mouse for just about
anything, but those who want to excel — especially in
the world of hardcore flight and racing simulations
where smooth, exacting control is mandatory — know
the advantages of a good stick or wheel far outshine
the cost. And as for sports, well, let's just say that
nothing beats a good gamepad.

Out of style
'Tis sad but true. Joysticks, as a whole, aren't as
plentiful or as innovative as they used to be. That's not
to say there aren't solid sticks out there, but the build
quality at the high end of the curve, the originality, and
the overall selection generally aren't what they once
were. And why is that? Because, in the heyday of the
venerable joystick — the late 1990s — the PC reigned
supreme as the gaming platform of choice. Thusly,
there were more games in general, and definitely more
that appealed to flying and racing simulation addicts —

MT32 H U B : TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada .coniti

you'll want your stick to be equipped with a force
feedback motor for vibration to translate tactile effects
such as g-forces, gun blasts, and crashes.
Our top joystick pick may seem a bit surprising
because it doesn't feature a twist-handle throttle or
force feedback, doesn't look particularly flashy, and is,
in all honesty, quite expensive. Nevertheless, CH
Products' Fighterstick (www.chproducts.com,—$150) rules
the skies in terms of reliability and construction, and.
features enough controls and programmability for even
the busiest pilot.
Like many of CH Products' wares, the Fighterstick
was originally released in the 1990s and has remained
essentially unchanged since then. The unit sports three
pushbuttons, one trigger, a "mode" button, three four-
way switches, one eight-way switch, a rotary throttle
wheel, and more. But the real secret to the
Fighterstick's golden reputation lies under the surface.
Here, you'll find industrial-strength parts and a build
quality that's unrivaled in the retail marketplace. Stories
abound of players logging thousands of hours with
their Fighterstick, experiencing nary a hiccup along the
way. Furthermore, the unit is deadly accurate.
CHProducts builds numerous other game controllers,
including standalone throttles, flight yokes, alternative
sticks, and a nifty set of rudder pedals that lock in
place to double as gas and brake in racing games. All
are critically praised.

Thrifty but nifty

CHProduct's Fighterstick If your wallet sprouts legs and runs off at the mere
suggestion of dropping more than a hundred bucks on
a joystick, there are numerous less pricey options. One
of the best is Saitek's Cyborg Evo (www.saitekusa.com,
$50), a feature-laden device that's ambidextrously
designed so it suits both lefties and righties and sports
an adjustable hand rest to ensure people with small
hands can play as easily as those with monster mitts.
The Evo has all the tools and controls to get the job
done, including a twist handle and a thorough software
package. Other Eva models include the Evo Force
Feedback and the Evo Wireless.
One of the companies at the forefront of the high-end
joystick surge in the late 1990s was California's
Logitech. Indeed, some of Logitech's decade-old
models were true works of art. But they were darned
expensive too. Today, we like Logitech's Freedom 2.4
Cordless Joystick (www.logitech.com, $60) for its
abundance of controls and reliable cord-free operation,
and the Force 3D Pro ($55) because it does everything
the Freedom 2.4 does in a wired configuration but with
the addition of a responsive force feedback motor.

King of the hill

True diehard fighter pilots with, bucks to burn may want
to up the ante considerably with Saitek's killer X52
HOTAS(Hands On Throttle and Stick) system.
Essentially a joystick on steroids for the right hand and
a ridiculously programmable throttle control for the left
(complete with illuminated facade for night flying), the
X52 does everything any pilot could ever want except
force feedback, and it does it with style. This is the
cat's meow for flight controls, as it should be at its
price ($150 - $220).

Steering Wheels
"Steering wheels" and "racing wheels" are misnomers
really, because any racing setup worth its salt includes
a pedal set for the floor too. That aside, thele's one
thing to remember when researching: don't be cheap.
Yes, you can buy inexpensive wheel and pedal units,

hubcanada - c o n * HUB:TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 M T 33

Saitek Cyborg EVO
pedal unit works and stays in place better than
anything else out there. The price: a similarly whopping Logitech G25 System gear
$200 - $300. shifter component
Set your sights a bit lower and Logitech's MOMO
Racing Force Feedback Wheel ($100) should do you
fine. The unit features six programmable buttons, a
sturdy desktop clamping system, and credible force
feedback. Virtually anything else in this price range or
below is not recommended.
However, serious drivers do owe it to themselves to
at least explore high-priced alternatives such as the
excellent Thomas Super Wheel driving system
(www.thomas-superwheel.com, $300-plus) and
Virtual Performance Parts' awesome, all-metal VPP
Racing Wheel (vvww.virtualperformanceparts.com/
english/produkte.php, $600-plus). Be careful at the VPP
site — you may want to buy an entire cockpit.

Gamepads
Microsoft, which entered the gaming market in the
1990s long after virtually everyone else, then ramped
up its presence in the hardware realm with an uneven
selection of joysticks, wheels, and gamepads, has
but in the long run, you don't want to. There are simply recently scaled back in a big way. As of this writing,
too many physical forces at work when you tug at that the only controllers currently being produced for the
wheel and hammer at those pedals to put your faith in Microsoft menu are gamepads — the Xbox 360 more reliable — but both models are at the top of the
abargain basement model. You'd be better off with a Controller for Windows (www.gamesforwindows.com, $45) gamepad heap.
good joystick. and the Wireless Xbox 360 Controller for Windows That's not to say other gamepads should be written
That said, there's nothing in the least wrong with our ($55). off. Far from it. Logitech, for example, offers the
pick for the best wheel currently in mass-market Both have been wildly successful. Why? Because RumblePad 2, the sibling of the very successful -
circulation. It's the Logitech G25 Racing Wheel, and it's players can use the Xbox 360 Controller for both PC Rumblepad. It sports all the features of the Microsoft
wonderful. It looks cool, it feels great, it adapts to any and Xbox 360 gaming. Nice bit of marketing and offering, but a slightly different layout (the two analog
player's preference, and it will make you a better racer. design magic, no? Thankfully, they're also solid units sticks are right up front) and a reduced price point
Athree-part proposition — wheel, shifter, and pedals with just about every feature and creature comfort any ($35). Also from Logitech hails the ChillStream ($35), a
— the G25 features a comfortably leather-wrapped gamer could desire. Force feedback? Check.
steering wheel and two hair-trigger Fl-style shifting - Comfortable ergonomics? Check. Tons of buttons and
levers. It has none of the steering jitters of other mass- controls (including two analog mini-joysticks, a
market units, and it rotates as little as 40 or as much directional pad, four thumb buttons, and another four
as 900 degrees. Its two force feedback motors are triggers)? Check. An onboard headset jack? Check. You
shockingly powerful, its standalone gearshift offers can drop a few extra dollars on the cordless version if
sequential and six-speed shifting and a whopping you want — though some garners swear the response
twelve programmable buttons, and the mostly-metal of a corded controller is faster and the connection

Logitech G25 System steering wheel

Logitech G25 System pedal array component

gamepad that bears a startling resemblance to the

Microsoft design but isn't quite as rounded and
smooth. Yet the ChillStream's big claim to fame is its
built-in cooling fan — to keep your perspiration-laden
hands comfy during lengthy gaming sessions. Only the
extremely sweaty need apply.
If you don't need vibration feedback and you have no
preference for wired versus wireless, you can count on
spending even less. Saitek's P990 Dual Analog Pad
($30), for instance, is not only similarly equipped to all
the above pads but also features a special button to
automatically reprogram its controls to those used in
most first-person shooter games.
Whatever your eventual decision, remember that a
pad without dual analog sticks and at least two analog
triggers and four buttons likely won't cut the mustard
in many of today's top titles.
By Gord Goble

MT34 H U B : TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.conlik

Careers and

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Aba Telecom Inc 450-437-5599 260 Ch De La Grande-Cote A Rosemere

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Academie Informatique De 418-721-4392 133 Rue Julien-Rehel 204 Rimouski
Accesmultimedia 514-324-3244 10861 Boul Pie-Ix Montreal-Nord
Addendum Recrutement & Form 450-667-6868 1816 Boul Des Laurentides Vimont
Alliance Form Estrie Inc 819-829-9119 359 Rue King E 210 Sherbrooke
Arci 418-542-6457 2510 Rue Des Merles Jonquiere
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Canada Cad 450-973-1223 800 Boul Chomedey Laval
Cdi College 514-849-1234 416 Boul De Maisonneuve 0 700 Montreal
Centracces Formation 819-824-8884 888 3E Av 107 Val-D'Or
Centre D'Affaires Micro 819-727-1795 221 3E Rue E Amos
Centre De Formation Champlain 819-563-9574 554 Rue De L'Ontario Sherbrooke
Centre De Formation Profession 450-667-3934 672 Boul Des Laurentides Laval
Centre De Recherche Info 514-840-1234 550 Rue Sherbrooke 0 100 Montreal
Centre D'Etudes Collegiales 418-748-7637 -1 110 Rue Obalski Chibougamau
Centre D'Integration Sociale 450-978-7107 4415 Boul Notre-Dame B8 Laval
Centre Informatique Ordicom 819-764-3919 139 Boul Quebec 201 Rouyn-Noranda
Champlain College Saint-Lambert 450-672-7364 900 Riverside Drive Saint-Lambert
College Bart 418-522-3906 751 Cote D'Abraham Quebec
College Cdi De Technologie 450-662-9090 3 Place Laval 400 Laval
College De L'Estrie 819-478-8877 455 Boul Saint-Joseph Drummondville
College D'Informatique Marsan 514-525-3030 1001 Boul De Maisonneuve E Montreal
College Ellis 819-477-3113 400 Rue Heriot Drummondville
College Info-Technique 514-685-0126 1805 Rte Trans-Canada Dorval
College Info-Technique 450-646-0126 174 Boul Sainte-Foy Longueuil
College La Salle 514-939-2006 2000 Rue Sainte-Catherine 0 Montreal
College Multi Hexa 418-690-0270 930 Rue Jacques-Cartier E C200 Chicoutimi
College Multihexa 418-662-3797 100 Rue Saint-Joseph S Alma
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Edumicro Inc 514-844-7777 1265 Rue Berri 800 Montreal
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 Power Pellets: Games Geared to Do Good
So-called "serious games" are out to change the way you think about global issues
The video games most of us are familiar with are typically designed with the sole enough to deliver their messages? Would you want to play a game that has been
purpose of entertaining. With rare exceptions, such as the recent Metal Gear Solid 4: explicitly designed with no way to win, as is the case in many of these games?
Guns of the Patriots, which delivers a commentary on privately-funded militaries Medium aside, who plays serious games? ICED was developed in conjunction with
and the consequences of war-based economies, the vast majority of commercial New York teachers, community organizations, and students, but will its unconcealed
games amuse without distilling any useful insights about us, our culture, or the world political agenda keep it from finding its way into classrooms and other environments
in general. capable of delivering it to the people it was designed to influence? A quarter of a
However, there is a growing movement of so-called "serious games" that have as million people have downloaded Real Lives, but are these the sort of people who
their aim the dissemination of political ideas. Usually free, these PC-based titles are could do with a lesson in global injustice, or do they already understand the
made by activists, charitable organizations, lobby groups, governments, and inequities of birthplace?
-individuals interested in distributing important concepts and information across the Put plainly, are serious game; preaching to the converted? It's impossible to
Internet by novq1 means. measure tangibly their impact on public opinion, especially since they often rely
The diversity of serious games is impressive. heavily on the Internet's viral nature for their distribution.
Real Lives (www.educationalsimulations.com) allows players to simulate a life from However, while the efficacy of games designed to promote political causes is still
birth to death in one of 190 countries around the world. As your character ages, he unknown, they do prove at least one thing: There are game designers out there with
or she will endure issues relevant to his or her region. Someone growing up in ambitions to use the software they create to say something meaningful. And, from
Burma, for example, might contract hookworms, be drafted into the military, or my perspective, that's just one more step for games in their march to gain
forced to work a menial job, whereas people born in an affluent western country will recognition as a legitimate art.
typically face less worrisome medical problems and have the opportunity to begin
better paying careers. The Political Machine 2008
ICan End Deportation (a.k.a ICED—wwwicedgame.com) is designed to educate Reviewed on: Windows PC (Windows Vista; 3.0 GHz Intel Dual Core processor; 2GB
people about problems surrounding American immigration. It places the player in the of RAM; 512MB ATI Radeon X1900 XT graphics card; displayed at 1440 x 900 on a
shoes of a well-meaning immigrant who, despite spending his or her time paying Dell 2407FPW 24-inch LCD.)
taxes, donating blood, and giving money to homeless citizens, is just one misdeed Score: 3.5/5
away from being detained and deported. Various bits of information, such as the As Canadians without the power to determine the next American president, many of
fact that immigrants can serve in the US military but can't vote, pop up throughout us observe US politics as though it were a game. As it happens, that's the perfect
the game. attitude to carry into Stardock's The Political Machine 2008, a sequel to the four-
Impact Games' The Peace Maker (www.peacemakergame.com/) gives players the year-old original that adds, among other things, fresh new candidates in the form of
power to make, decisions necessary to bring peace to the Middle East. BBC Science Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and John McCain.
& Nature's Climate Challenge (www.bbc.co.uk/sn/) is an infuriatingly difficult exercise For those who missed the first Political Machine, it put players in the shoes of a
in managing the policies, resources, and diplomatic relations of the European presidential candidate who spends 41 weeks zooming around the country giving
Nations as they-relate to reducing carbon emissions. Darfur is Dying speeches, wheeling and dealing with PR specialists and spin doctors, and setting up
(www.darfurisdying.com/), winner of a contest that tasked conscientious local and national ads. Once a player's money or stamina ran out his turn would end
programmers to create a game about the Darfur genocide, provides players with a and play would pass to an opponent who would promptly perform some political
glimpse of what its like to be a Darfurian refugee foraging for water and facing such manoeuvering of her own.
dangers as being kidnapped and either recruited or raped by Janjaweed militias. The new game doesn't mess with this formula too much. The same basic turn-driven
Indeed, if there's a cause, chances are a game has been made in support of it. play returns, and with a few exceptions, such as new outreach centres that help
However, the question of whether a game can be an effective means of drum up support wherever you build them, most campaign decisions are similar to
communicating important ideas remains. Are people interested in learning something those we were tasked to ma ie before.
while they play? Are these games capable of keeping their players' interest long That said, there are some k )y changes that make the sequel well worth its modest
$20 price tag. For starters, the new edition
makes players take stands on current issues,
such as rising gas prices, the collapsing housing
market, and the war in Iraq. It also bases play on
real world demographics and exit poll figures from
all 50 states. Plus, it lets players guest on fake
versions of real shows, like the Covert Report and
the O'Malley Factor, includes an impressive
candidate creator, and even offers a few fantasy
scenarios, such as an election that takes place on
an evil alien world.
What's more, the graphics have been given a
minor overhaul. Candidate caricatures have been
replaced with shiny bobbleheads (perhaps an
indication of what the game's designers think of
their real-life counterparts?), and the old 2D map
has been swapped out for a more polished, 3D
board that proves much easier on the eyes over
the course of a ten-month campaign.
It's not a sequel so much as an upgrade, but that
shouldn't stop political junkies who'd love to prove
that America would be better off if the reins were
PROGRESS • ----- A FREEDOM * in their hands.
POINTS110 RISK ; V By Chad Sapieha
ICANENDDEPORTATION

MT36 H U B : TheComputer Paper- Montreal • August 2008 hubcanada.con1i▶

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 The Last Byte
Greening the home office
The soaring price of dioxide emissions by 24 million tons per year. (Other with power efficiency. For desktop computers, the
gasoline provides yet countries' estimates of waste are even higher, up to internal power supply has to be 80 per cent efficient
another benefit to 13 per cent.) at 20 per cent, 50 per cent and 100 per cent of its
working from home rated output.
part or all of the time. The simplest way to stop these little robber bricks is
But if you work at to cut power to them when they are not being used. If Arevised Energy Star standard called the Tier 2
home remember that you use a power bar, you could use its switch to Energy Efficiency Metric will go into effect on January
the cost of running an functionally "unplug" anything connected to it, but this 1, 2009, which will mandate better performance as
office, which might all or none approach doesn't often work because you well as a broader set of performance criteria, such as
Iotherwise be paid for may want to keep some devices on. Interestingly, the ability to maintain full network connectivity while in
by your employer, Belkin has announced the Conserve Surge, which is a sleep mode.
now comes out of your pocket. A few extra devices surge protected power bar that allows you to turn off
might not seem like a big deal, but why not keep as power to some outlets while leaving others powered. Most of the tech industry tries to meet Energy Star
much of your money as you can. There are some This product should be available by fall, with a price of and the European Union's RoHS (removal of hazardous
simple things you can do to reduce your energy bill around $50. substances) standards and also have their own green
and have a greener home office at the same time. programs, which is good because a lot of the
Power bricks aren't the only sources of phantom materials going into the manufacture of computer
Let's start with something we all have: the AC/DC loads. Any instant-on device like a computer or a components are definitely not green. Dell vowed last
adapters for notebook computers and other monitor in standby is also drawing power, albeit at a year to become the greenest technology company in
electronics devices-. What we commonly refer to as lower rate than when the machine is being used. In the world. Apple too has publicized the efforts it is
power bricks have been ID'd as big time energy 2007, the US Environmental Protection Agency taking to eliminate the amount of toxic materials it
robbers by many organizations in many countries. toughened the Energy Star logo program so that uses in the manufacture of Macs. But in fact most PC
While plugged in, power bricks may be drawing power electrical and electronic products would have to meet makers have given the nod to green in their •
even when they are not powering the device they were higher standards of energy efficiency in order to use manufacturing and recycling practices.
intended for, and are thus responsible for what are the Energy Star logo on their products. The Canadian
known as phantom or ghost loads that drive up our government has adopted large parts of this revised This means that for us consumers, it is getting easier
utility bill without providing any benefit. Each brick may to
program (see vwwv.oee.nrcan.gc.ca/residential/personal/ buy green. However, the choices are sometimes
not be sipping much, but how many do you have for categories of products falling under the program). riot as clear cut as we might hope. For example, flat
floating around your house? I was surprised to count It is the standard for office equipment addresses panel displays have been largely hailed as an Earth-
more than a dozen that we regularly use around our several categories of gear, including computers and friendly choice because they contain far less lead and
house for cellular and cordless landline phones, monitors; printers, fax machines and multifunction other hazardous materials and use far less power than
external drives, notebook computers, scanners, PDAs, • devices; scanners and so on. CRTdisplays. But The Guardian (www.guardian.uk.org)
rechargeable battery chargers, Internet access points, recently ran a story about a chemical called nitrogen
routers, USB hubs, and the sort. A lot of the standard deals with power use during trifluoride, which is used in the manufacture of flat
standby or sleep modes. With desktop computers, for panel TVs. The Guardian article says that it is about
The US-based Electrical Power Research Institute example, to qualify for the Energy Star logo, models 17,000 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a
estimates that there are six to 10 billion AC/DC have to consume no more than two watts in standby contributor to global warming.
adapters in use around the world. It says the best mode, four watts in sleep mode and, depending on
units are up to 90 per cent efficient, but some can be the class of the computer, between 50 watts and 95 Until next time,
as low as 20 per cent efficient. The institute estimates watts in idle mode. For notebook computers, the David Tanaka
that power adapters are responsible for needlessly baselines are lower: one watt or less in standby
consuming around two per cent of the energy mode, 1.7 watts or less in sleep mode and 14 watts
produced in the United States, and better efficiency (for Class A notebooks) to 22 watts (for Class B
could save around $3 billion US and reduce carbon notebooks) at idle. Another part of the standard deals

Tear Into It TCro

The New hubcanada.com Canadian
MT38 H U B : TheComputerPaper - Montreal - August 2008 hubcanada.con*
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