Discount Computers

If you have an ear open to new computer technologies, you are
sure to have heard about VoIP. Voice over Internet Protocol
(VoIP) is an emerging set of applications which allows you to
make telephone calls over the Internet. It is already starting
to replace existing telephone networks, with some people and
businesses opting to cancel their traditional phone line and use
VoIP instead.

VoIP was originally developed to provide voice communication
between computer users in different locations. Although it still
has this application, it has been further developed into a
telephone network in its own right. People using VoIP can call
any telephone anywhere in the world and can receive calls on
telephone sets connected to the Internet or Local Area Network
(LAN).

Background

It all started back in 1995 when Israeli computer enthusiasts
made the first computer to computer voice connection. In the
same year this technology was developed into a software package
called Internet Phone Software. All that was needed to talk to
another computer user was a modem, sound card, speakers, and a
microphone.

The software digitized and compressed the audio signal before
sending it over the Internet in data packets. These voice
connections could only occur between computers which had the
software installed. The sound quality was very poor — nowhere
near the quality of standard telephone connections.

The technology continued to be developed and by 1998 gateways
had been established to allow PC-to-phone connections. Later
that same year phone-to-phone connections that used the Internet
for voice transmission were set in place. These phone-to-phone
connections still required a computer to initiate the call, but
once the connection was established, the callers could use a
regular phone set.

VoIP Today

There are currently many VoIP services available for residential
and commercial use. Some of these still rely on PC-to-PC
connections but may offer other services such as PC-to-phone and
phone-to-phone.

Internet phones are available that plug into the sound card or
USB port of a computer. These phones may have number pads and
ringers that allow you to use them the same as traditional
telephones. The computer can be bypassed completely by
connecting a phone directly to a broadband modem (either DSL or
cable).

How Does It Work?

The first step in using VoIP is converting your voice into
digital data. This is done by \’sampling\’ your voice — dividing
the analog sound signal into discrete steps that can be assigned
a number value. Once your voice is digitized, the data can be
compressed.

This compressed digital data is split up into \’packets\’ of about
1500 bytes that can be transferred over the Internet. As well as
the voice data, the packets contain information about their
origin, their destination, and a timestamp that allows them to
be reconstructed in the correct order. Once they arrive at their
destination, they are reassembled and converted from digital
back into analog so that the receiving party can hear your
voice.

In order for voice data to be transmitted without noticeable
delays, a broadband Internet connection is necessary. Many
households and businesses are already using broadband (either
DSL or cable) so adding VoIP is relatively simple.

About the author:
Mark is a technology consultant in the great Orlando area. His
blog can be read online at http://www.voipblogonline.com.

If you are a graphic artist, you probably have several different
graphic programs gathering dust and taking up disk space on your
computer because you probably have one or two basic programs
that you use all the time. These will either be the ones you
learned first or have come to appreciate over time for either
their features or their ease of use.

But, what any serious graphic artist really needs is a complete
set of integrated programs to satisfy your creative urge such as
Macromedia Studio or Adobe Creative Suite. However, these
packages are very expensive and usually beyond the means of
someone who is just starting out, like a college student.

Luckily, if you shop smart, you can save a great deal of money
when purchasing these products. One of the easiest ways to
satisfy your need for high-performance programs is to purchase
the academic software version. Academic software packages are
also commonly referred to as student software. If you attend any
accredited educational institution you can probably qualify for
student software purchases which can save you a lot of money.
Academic software packages are the same programs sold to
businesses but priced so students, teachers and schools can
afford to buy them. The only requirement is that you agree to
use the software only for education and not for commercial
business purposes.

Most academic software packages are designed for student use in
classroom environments where thy have access to their
instructors as well as other students. As a result, student
software packages do not usually include user manuals or any
other materials normally included in the \”full\” boxed retail
version of the software.

The availability of free online tutorials (try Googling \”free
tutorial\”) can compensate for the student software package\’s
lack of a printed user\’s manual. However, many of these programs
come complete with excellent online help files and built in
tutorials so there are more than enough resources available for
you to learn everything you need to master even the most
advanced software features.

These academic software packages allow you to save anywhere for
60-80% off the retail price. Major software companies
specifically designed the student software packages to allow
students to learn their craft on the latest versions of
professional software. They do this for two reasons: to be good
corporate citizens and contribute to educating students and for
sound business reasons. The software companies know that most
people will use the first software package they learned
completely throughout their entire career as long as it still
meets their professional needs. This simple marketing strategy
crates lifelong customers for these software companies.

You will have to prove that you are a student or teacher to
purchase academic software packages. All you will need to do is
send a copy of your staff ID, student ID or class schedule along
with your order. If you believe that you are eligible for the
student software discount, contact your school\’s bookstore or,
to save even more, order it online from an academic software
reseller.

About the author:
If you are a student, teacher or educational institution that
qualifies for the academic software discount price, please visit
http://www.sprysoft.com to
see what is available.

TFT LCD monitors are rapidly becoming shipped with new computers
by default. On this page I explain you the frequent trouble of
TFT monitor and how to resolve them.

No display or white screen:

If this is a new install make sure the refresh rate is not set
too high. If you installed a new video card in your system make
sure the refresh rate is not set too high. Under Windows, reboot
the system and go into \”Safe Mode\” (Use F8 key on boot up)
select safe mode and change the refresh rate under display
properties to either 60Hz or Default. Then reboot the system and
the screen will turn on. Maximum mode on 15\” TFT screens is
1024×768 and maximum mode on 17\” and 19\” TFT is 1280×1024. Check
to see if the green light is on with the external power adapter.
Make sure all plugs are secure and the video cable is properly
attached to the computer.

Dark screen in games:

TFT Liquid Crystal Display monitors are a unique devices that
are manufactured to meet excellent picture clarity and
reproduction in a native mode. Outside a native mode graphics
will be darker, fine lines and text will be thicker. Native mode
for 15\” TFT panels is 1024×768, 17\” and 19\” TFT panels are
1280×1024. Most games can be configured to run at 1024×768 which
should produce clean graphics.

Thick text:

As described above, TFT LCD monitors perform best in their
native modes. Other modes can be used however the reproduction
of text will vary in thickness depending on the mode the monitor
is running in. Best text reproduction is view in the monitors
native mode.

Faint or unseen text:

TFT monitors are Bright! So bright that sometimes text in a DOS
program may be very faint or not seen. In order to see this
text, you can reduce the contrast level down until the text is
visible. TFT LCD monitors were manufactured to perform in a GUI
environment such as Windows, Linux (X) and Macintosh. Older
designed programs may have upgrades to enhance this effect to
make the text legible.

Wavy lines on the screen:

In some instances you may encounter wavy lines on the screen.
These are usually 1/4\” thick and move in a vertical motion. This
is caused by a noisy electrical feed from a wall outlet. If you
change your vertical refresh rate under display properties to
75Hz this effect should disappear.

Small dot on screen:

TFT panels by their very nature are difficult to manufacture.
KDS uses displays from various suppliers including; Samsung,
Hyundai and Acer, who all guarantee the display to be 99.99%
free from pixel defect. What that means is a 15\” LCD display can
have up to about 6-10 broken pixels and still be considered
\”acceptable\”. Broken pixels are individual pixels, which are
stuck on, off, or as one particular color. Depending on their
location and intensity, they can be next to invisible or
obvious. This is common to ALL TFT screens and is not considered
a defect by the screen manufacturer.

Dark areas:

Retail TFT LCD monitor products employ the use of a single TFT
backlight. This backlight is responsible to deliver full edge to
edge brightness across the screen. On some models the screen may
not be as bright in the center or the edges as other areas. This
is due to the design the actual panel manufacture took to keep
costs down so that the TFT panel is affordable for the retail
environment. Prices of TFT panels vary according to added
features (TV tuner, SVIDEO etc.). They also vary according to
the number of backlights that are in the panel. High-bright
monitors with multiple backlights can cost upwards of $2,500.00
for a 15\” panel.

About the author:
Willson Peterson is computer expert and network engineer. He is
the author of and \” tml\">Monitor Glossary of Terms.\”

Click here ==> http://www.ebookarticle.com to visit his
website.