Alles Voor Internet / Tout Pour Internet/alles voor internet.iso/MacInternet™/Info/mac-chat-059-etx.txt

Internet Message Format | 1995-02-06 | 21KB

Date: Mon, 9 Jan 95 14:24 PST
From: [e-mail] (Tony Lindsey)
Subject: Mac*Chat#59/09-Jan-95

Mac*Chat#59/09-Jan-95
---------------------

Welcome to Mac*Chat, the free, monthly electronic newsletter biased
   toward Mac users who are production-oriented professionals.  Other
   Mac users may find many, many items of interest as well.  I'd enjoy
   hearing your feedback and suggestions.  Unfortunately, due to the
   massive numbers of messages I get every day, I can't guarantee
  a personal reply.

  Tony Lindsey, <[e-mail]>.

Copyright 1989-1994 Tony Lindsey. Nonprofit groups (such as Mac
   User Groups) or other non-commercial publications) are welcome
   to use any part of the Mac*Chat newsletters if full credit is
   given.  All others will need to contact me.

This newsletter is intended purely as entertainment and free
   information.  No profit has been made from any of these
   opinions, which are solely my own.  Time passes, so accuracy
   may diminish.

Publication, product, and company names may be registered
   trademarks of their companies.

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Topics:

Attention Donors!
What An Experiment!
Mac*Chat's Theme, Defined At Last.
Different Personalities In Computer Usage
My Meyers-Briggs Type Index Results
E-Mail Logs
Pentium Chip Party Tricks
America Online Tips
Read This - It Applies To You!
So, What's A Home Page?
Question Of The Week
Zterm Redux
Free Subscriptions To This Newsletter


Attention Donors!
-----------------
  Here's something I felt would be a valuable addition to this
  newsletter:

  From: Andrew Ross <[e-mail]>

  "In your most recent mailing, you mention giving one of your
  readers some advice on what to do with an old Apple One Scanner.
  Super advice, I must say.  I am a Junior High School teacher in
  inner-city Washington, D.C., with a program called Teach For
  America.  My school has virtually no computer equipment, and very
  little in the way of a technology curriculum as a result.  I have
  been begging and scrounging in the Internet for a good year,
  trying to get some badly needed Mac equipment for Douglass JHS.
  I've managed to get my hands on an old Mac Classic and an
  Imagewriter, but not too much else.  We've written grants to
  Apple and Precision Tune, but most grants are for implementation
  of programs with some sort of technological precedent on-site,
  and with very little on-site, we're shut out of the game.

  I would really appreciate it if you'd send some potential donors
  my way.  Since Teach For America is a non-profit organization,
  all donations would be officially tax-deductible, and since my
  school is a terribly under-resourced school in the inner-city,
  it's a good opportunity for a company to get some PR off of a
  charitable donation.  I'm more than happy to talk to anyone you
  send my way.  If you would like to talk with me, please e-mail me
  or call me anytime.

         Teach For America 1993 Corps
         Washington, DC
         [phone]"

  And, while everybody's in the mood for donating, dig around in
  your closets and scour your shelves for program diskettes and
  instruction manuals that will work well with a Mac Plus running
  System 6.  Then, donate them to a worthy school.  Many, many
  schools are struggling along with Mac hardware that simply cannot
  run System 7 because of low RAM or the lack of a hard drive.
  You'd be doing hundreds of children a big favor!

What An Experiment!
-------------------
  In my last issue, I asked for help on a couple of topics.  Three
  days later, I've received over 300 responses, and more are coming
  in as I write this.  I've got enough friendly new material to
  cover four or five more issues, but instead, I'm setting up
  something really, really nice.  I'll talk about it later in this
  same issue.

  The vast majority of responses to my questions were courteous and
  well-spoken, and I'm deeply grateful to the folks who took the
  time to pass their advice along for the benefit of my readers.
  There's a lot of good karma floating around out there.  Great
  job, everybody!

  Oddly enough, I also got a raft of hate mail.

Mac*Chat's Theme, Defined At Last.
----------------------------------
  The folks who sent Nasty-Grams seem to be offended by Mac*Chat's
  light 'n fluffy tone.  Somehow, MY newsletter seems to be
  drifting toward gossip, hearsay and friendly tips, and a casual
  disregard for technical minutae.  Make no mistake, this *is*
  intentional on my part, and the trend will continue.  My goal is
  to make Mac*Chat three times friendlier, and the rigid tech talk
  may catch up some day.  Or, it may not - I really, really don't
  care all that much.

  After all, the Internet contains many, many newsletters that are
  Technical Fact Lists.  It can support a Gossip Rag, too.

  Information is doubling about every 4 or 5 years now.  Most folks
  are on overload.  They don't need data, they want wisdom.  They
  want to know where the safe and friendly stuff is, in a world
  that's keeping them so busy they don't get enough time to see
  their friends or go to the gym.

  I don't pretend to be omnipotent on the computer - I'm just a
  friendly guy who likes to swap gossip, filtering it through
  experience I've gained from having my hands on literally
  thousands of computers.

  Think of Mac*Chat as a big, friendly Golden Retriever of a
  newsletter.  It's a warm hug from somebody who honestly likes
  beginners.  I don't own a pocket protector, I don't claim to know
  all, and I really, really like to write about fun, cool stuff
  that works well for me and my pals.  It's not my goal to out-nerd
  the King Nerds of the Internet.  That's a game I can never win.

  I hear from many of my thousands of readers (over 500 new ones
  sending in subscription requests per week), and they tell me they
  want Mac*Chat frisky, playful, silly and affectionate.  I'm
  writing stuff specifically for my fans.  The Internet is being
  taken over by non-nerds, and they are my target audience.

  So, if I get a scornful, spiteful e-mail message from an Internet
  Overlord who doesn't understand my style, or lacks patience for
  my pitiful mastery over trivia, I just use the special keystroke
  I call the Bit Bucket.

  Kafloosh!

  This leads me gently into the next subject...

Different Personalities In Computer Usage
-----------------------------------------
  In February 1995, I will have been a full-time computer
  consultant for 14  years.  During that time, I have developed a
  certain set of theories about why certain types of computer users
  dislike other types.

  I feel it all has to do with the way that our brains work.

  I'm a very outgoing, creative, sensitive type of person, who has
  never enjoyed reading technical manuals.  I just want to get some
  work done and get the hell away from the computer.  I'd rather be
  out in the sunshine.  I'm a visually-based, people person.  I
  learn best by watching over somebody's shoulder for two minutes
  before I want to take over the keyboard and play with the
  computer.

  The vast majority of my clients are the same way.  We found each
  other through referrals from like-minded folks.  At least 180 of
  my clients are artists and designers.  We're the "Bones McCoy"
  folks - all emotions and visually oriented.  Lots of Mac users in
  this bunch.  The Internet is filling up with millions and
  millions more of these kinds of people ("AOL newbies" is
  currently a nasty thing to call someone who is new to the
  Internet and using America Online), and the old-timers don't like
  their clubhouse being invaded one bit.

  At the other end of the extreme are the folks who relate very,
  very strongly to the hardware end of things.  They read technical
  manuals, and are apt to snarl "Read Your Manual!" at those who
  don't.  They like things tidy and logical, and I've NEVER been
  able to hang onto clients who think that way.  I may try to
  explain to them why a certain problem exists, using drawings and
  metaphors.  However, I could be quacking like a duck for all the
  sense I'd make to my logical-minded clients.  I might
  oversimplify them here as being "Spock People."  Incidentally,
  I've found most of those folks overwhelmingly prefer DOS
  computers.  PC's make more sense to their way of thinking.

  They also prefer the Internet's old, unix-command way of doing
  things, and they can parse a grep command like nobody's business.
  They're a lot like the Radio fanatics back in the days of
  Wireless.  Nobody had radios except a few techno-nerds who loved
  to adjust coils.  Their best days ended a long time ago when
  radios became more wide-spread.

  The day is coming when the Info Superhighway will be as much a
  part in everyone's life as the radio, TV or telephone in your
  living room.  The old guard is NOT pleased to see the newbies
  approaching their tree house, and would love to kick the ladder
  away.

  Needless to say, those are two rather extreme opposites, and most
  people don't fit into such tidy boxes.  I like to use the
  following program sometimes to help me understand folks better...

My Meyers-Briggs Type Index Results
-----------------------------------
  I downloaded a great Hypercard stack, created by Michael Sanders
  MD and Herbert Johnston, Ph.D.  They have adapted an
  industry-wide standard personality test to a nice
  double-clickable program.  It allows me to answer 50 questions by
  clicking on either of two choices.  I might be asked questions
  like this:

  "Does the idea of making a list of what you need to get done over
  a weekend:

  - Appeal to you?
  - Leave you cold, positively depress you?"

  After answering all 50 questions, I'm given several four-digit
  codes that are used to describe my "type" of personality, in
  descending order of likelihood. In my own case, there was no
  doubt at all - I have a 77 percent likelihood of being an "ENFP."
  This is described as:

  "Warmly enthusiastic, high-spirited, ingenious, imaginative.
  Able to do almost anything that interests them.  Quick with a
  solution for any difficulty and ready to help anyone with a
  problem.  Often rely on their ability to improvise instead of
  preparing in advance.  Can usually find compelling reasons for
  whatever they want."

  Well, that nails ME pretty good.  Someone else (a particular
  relative of mine, perhaps?) may come up with a 40 percent
  likelihood of being an "INTP," said to be:

  "Quiet, reserved, impersonal.  Enjoy especially theoretical or
  scientific subjects.  Logical to the point of hair-splitting.
  Usually interested mainly in ideas, with little liking for
  parties or small talk.  Tend to have sharply defined interests.
  Need careers where some strong interest can be used and useful."

  That same person may have a rating of 27 percent for being some
  other kind of personality.  None of the descriptions are what
  anybody would consider to be derogatory, and I like its
  non-judgmental tone.  It just explains what each person's
  strengths are.

  I've found this Hypercard stack to be very useful in a fun way.
  It makes for a great ice-breaker in small groups.  I've never met
  anybody who didn't immediately see how accurately they were
  described.

  You can probably do a software search on the words Meyers,
  Briggs, or Personality on any of the commercial online services,
  and you MAY find a test you can run, but I've heard gossip that
  it gets yanked periodically because of copyright problems or
  something.

  Internet users who have access to Gopher, can find it at

gopher://info.curtin.edu.au:70/11/Subject%20Info/SocPsy

  Or, Netscape/Mosaic users can take the test directly online at

http://sunsite.unc.edu/jembin/mb.pl

E-Mail Logs
-----------
  As you may imagine, I get a lot of e-mail.  Every once in a
  while, I may get some info that I'd like to file away for later,
  or maybe one of my replies would work well in an upcoming
  Mac*Chat.  I have a few MS Word documents I use every day, with
  names like "Family E-Mail Log," or "Mac*Chat E-Mail Log."  These
  are dumping-grounds for anything that I feel could be useful
  later.

  To use the random tidbits I see, I'll highlight and Copy the
  important parts of the e-mail (carefully including the address of
  the sender), open the appropriate log file using MS Word, hit
  Command-PageDown to move to the end of the document, hit the
  return key on my keyboard, pull down the Insert menu and choose
  Date to date-stamp the info, Paste what's in the clipboard at the
  end, and then Save it.  This routine would get very tedious if I
  didn't use a macro program (QuicKeys 2) to accomplish the whole
  thing by hitting a single key.

  I may not ever need that info ever again, but I'd like to have
  the option.  There are many, many times where I was able to find
  exactly what I needed from three months before.  To me, that's
  part of the magic of using a Mac...  Everything works so well
  together.  Many PC users simply don't have the option of Copying
  and Pasting, or realize that it's an option under Windows.

Pentium Chip Party Tricks
-------------------------
  Here's how to bug the hell out of the owner of the
  Pentium-equipped PC who sneers at your Macintosh:

  According to InfoWorld magazine, just use the Pentium PC to
  divide 4,195,835 by 3,145,727.  (I didn't see any advice on what
  software to use)  Then, multiply it by the second number
  (3,145,727) again.  It will come out with 4,195,579, instead of
  the first number.  One such error every 27,000 years, my eye!
  Hee hee hee!  Loads of fun for the whole family!  Kick 'em while
  they're down!

America Online Tips
-------------------
  In my last issue, I mentioned a few great ways to save money
  while using AOL.  I received a few helpful tips from my readers:

  From [e-mail]:

  "When you want to get through boards really fast, using the Mac
  software at least, you can go to your preferences and turn on
  "Autoscroll."

  When you select auto scroll as soon as messages (any window) are
  opened the software automatically scrolls thru the text
  eliminating the need for clicking."

  From [e-mail]:

  "AOLNET is AOL's Beta test high speed network, as opposed to
  Sprintnet or Tymenet.  Supposedly you can get 28.8kbps out of it
  (I'm currently getting only 14.4).  To sign on to the Beta
  program use keyword AOLNET."

Read This - It Applies To You!
------------------------------
  As I mentioned before, I have gotten scads of e-mail containing
  tips and feedback, and I'm a little boggled.  I've been mentally
  processing the best way to use the very, very useful stuff I've
  been sent.  Even after cleaning through the mail I've gotten,
  it's only "reduced" down to about 120 pages of hot tips!

  My quandary is that I simply can't send it all out to my
  subscribers in one big fat chunk, so here's the plan:  I'm now
  creating my very first World Wide Web Home Page, creating links
  to specific categories of tips, and pointers on how to use them
  quickly.  Chances are VERY good you will be interested in what
  I'm telling you, even if you don't currently know what I'm
  talking about.

So, What's A Home Page?
-----------------------
  The sexiest portion of the Internet is the World Wide Web.  It's
  the part that has all the traditional-media journalists all in a
  tizzy, because it provides the friendliest way of getting goodies
  on the 'net for non-dweebs.

  When I get the final word on the Internet address I'll be using
  for my Home Page, I'll publish that address in every issue of
  Mac*Chat.  If somebody uses a nice, friendly program, they can go
  directly to my page and see the treats awaiting there.

  Which friendly programs?  Well, if you are on a commercial
  service like America Online or the like, you'll need to go to the
  "Internet" section and look for anything to do with "WWW."  If
  the "WWW" button doesn't do anything yet except promise to
  provide WWW access in the next few months, be patient.  It's
  worth waiting for.  Folks with regular Internet connections can
  currently use programs like MacWeb, Mosaic or Netscape.

  I'll describe my own Home Page very briefly, since I'm still
  designing it.  The first page will be a plain screen with a few
  words of greeting and a menu of choices:

  - About Mac*Chat
  - How To Subscribe
  - About Tony Lindsey
  - Mac*Chat Back Issues
  - Searching For Treats

  If you click on any of those choices, you will be shown yet
  another page which will show you more choices.  There may be cute
  graphics, depending on the subject matter.  That's the way the
  WWW works.  There are a LOT of Home Pages out there already, and
  thousands more every day.

  Mine, however, will have a very, very nice difference.  This is
  something I've decided upon in the last few days.  Mine will be a
  collection of the BEST possible ways to get stuff done.  Sure,
  there are always at least fifty ways to find something useful on
  the Internet, but I'm only interested in the best of the best,
  according to my own tastes.  I'm setting it up as if it were for
  my own selfish purposes, and then letting everybody else use it
  too.

  I want to be an Information Trillionaire, able to reach out and
  get anything I want on the 'net with a minimum of effort or
  cranium-stretching.  I assume that's what YOU want, too.  With a
  Home Page acting as Grand Central Station for seeking and
  finding, it'll be a breeze.

  I'd love to go into more detail, but right now, all I have is a
  very primitive start and some big ideas.

  Here's why I'm doing this... I was president of a car club here
  in San Diego for ten years.  During that time, I had a mania for
  collecting information on how to find parts and services for the
  old cars we collected and restored.  Several of us in the club
  typed all of that data into computers and then laid it out nice
  'n pretty.  We gave it away to every member, so if they needed
  their 1940's radio repaired, they could choose from 30 different
  places instead of working for weeks trying to track down just one
  on their own.  It was a big, big success, unmatched by any other
  club.

  Needless to say, most of the folks in the club weren't interested
  in contributing to the effort, but they sure wanted the final
  result.  That's human nature.  However, I'm calling upon all of
  my readers who want to *help* make the Mac*Chat Home Page a
  success...

Question Of The Week
--------------------
  What is your favorite way to find specific INFORMATION on the
  Internet?

  For instance:  If I need to track down the annual rainfall in
  Paraguay, or the best inexpensive hotel in New York, or all about
  the different breeds of dogs, or anything else I can imagine.

  Specifically, I'm looking for the best places to start the
  search, and how to go about it.  I prefer places that get results
  and yet aren't so busy that I'm continually frustrated.  I don't
  care whether you use Gopher, a specific online service's internal
  procedure, or whatever.  Just let me know how you do it, with
  every step carefully plotted out.  Give examples.

  Your suggestions will be tested and re-formatted to fit the Home
  Page's format.

Zterm Redux
-----------
  Many of my readers were baffled by my complaints about Zterm.  As
  I was reminded by a friend, the problems were ALL involving a
  PowerMac or AV Quadra with an Apple-standard Geoport Adapter
  (nicknamed "The Squid" because of its shape).  There are a LOT of
  them out there, since salespeople pushed them so hard.  I forgot
  to mention which conflict I meant until AFTER I sent the
  newsletter out.  Zterm gags and chokes on squids in my
  experience, even using the newest beta version I could find.
  Folks with plain old modems don't have any problems at all,
  judging from my mail.

  I received a heaping pile of suggestions on what programs to use
  instead of Zterm, but I goofed and forgot to ask the right way...
  Which ones work well with the squid?

Free Subscriptions To This Newsletter
-------------------------------------
You may subscribe to Mac*Chat by sending e-mail to:

                 [e-mail]

The Subject line is ignored, so it can say anything.

In the body of the message include the following line:

                SUBSCRIBE MACCHAT Your full name

As an example: SUBSCRIBE MACCHAT Juliana Tarlton

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===================   ____   ========================================
Tony in San Diego     \ _/__     Hey!  It's a BEAR thing for me, too!
[e-mail]  \X  /   B1 f+ t++ w dc- g++ k++ s- m+ e+ h- q-
======================   \/  ========================================