Hewie's Views and Reviews
By Hewie Poplock

Welcome to this issue of Hewie's Views & Reviews. Be sure to visit Hewie's Favorites at http://www.hewie.net/ .

In this issue:

++++ Most Passwords Are Easy To Guess
++++ The Windows Sound Symphony
++++ Search Engines Second Only To E-Mail In Internet Use
++++ New additions to Hewie's Favorites

December, 2004

++++ Most Passwords Are Easy To Guess

In a recent poll, most Internet users choose easy-to-guess passwords such as their pet's name, according to a survey by Visa Europe. More than three-fourths of those polled said they choose passwords relating to friends, family and memorable dates. The favorites are nicknames (21%), birthdays and anniversaries (15%), pet names (15%), family members' names (14%) and memorable dates (7%). Two percent even reported using "password" as their password.

"It is not surprising that loved ones and pet names top the most popular list as often people struggle to remember random characters or designated log-in codes and opt to choose their own. Of course, it is important that our passwords are personal and meaningful to us, but also that they are difficult to decipher and not easily guessed," says Visa Europe VP Hugo Bottelier. When choosing a password, Visa suggests avoiding words that appear in the dictionary, as well as words relating to personal information that could be inferred or guessed. The most preferable type of password would have random letters, numbers and punctuation. Make sure that you don't write it down and leave it by your credit card or PC!

++++ The Windows Sound Symphony

Some people have too much time on their hands. Take a look at this Flash. Music takes on a novel format through this Clown Staples Flash Experiment. Watch in amazement as the most popular Operating System in the world transforms into a virtual philharmonic. Play it all the way through. It is not opening the sound recorder, but only showing a screen capture of the program.

http://www.geocities.com/clownstaples/swf/winnoise.html

++++ Search Engines Second Only To E-Mail In Internet Use

About 107 million people -- 84% of online users in the U.S. -- have used a search engine, according to a recent phone survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. More than two thirds of Internet users report employing a search engine at least a couple of times a week, and on any given day, more than half seek information on the Web using a search engine. Pew reports that Web search ranks second only to e-mail as the most popular online activity, and 87% of search engine users say they find the information they want most of the time. (Pew Internet & American Life Project 12 Aug 2004) http://www.pewinternet.org

++++ New additions to Hewie's Favorites
Ask Mr. Excel
http://www.mrexcel.com/index.html
Weekly tips and solutions for users of Microsoft Excel

indezine
http://www.indezine.com/
indezine speaks about powerpoint - you'll find tutorials and tips - and reviews of powerpoint add-ins. also, ideas, resources and links

LiveManuals
http://www.livemanuals.com/
Product manuals, simulations, and support for various consumer electronic items

notlong
http://notlong.com/links/
Free Short URL Redirection - Sites That Shorten Long URLs

Edit My Site Online
http://www.editmysiteonline.com/
This is a pay service to add a dynamic content-management system to any site. Customers then simply edit their site through a web browser

PHP Resource Index
http://php.resourceindex.com/
Hundreds of ready-to-use PHP programs for your web site plus information, books, tutorials, examples and help regarding PHP programming

Center for Early Literacy Information
http://www.earlyliteracyinfo.org/
CELI is a resource for researchers, teachers, families, school administrators and others who are looking for early literacy information from a variety of sources including articles, books, reports, technical papers, and more

Badmovies.org
http://www.badmovies.org/
Website for reviews of films of dubious value

kissthisguy.com
http://www.kissthisguy.com/index.html
Archive of Misheard Lyrics - database of misheard lyrics to pop songs. Browse by song name or artist, or submit your own

VideoHelp.com
http://www.videohelp.com/
Extensive help and guides to create DVDs and convert to and from any format

Webcrosswords.Com
http://www.webcrosswords.com/
Excellent presentation of crossword puzzles

Calorie Counter & Weight Loss Calculator
http://www.caloriesperhour.com/
Calorie counter and calculator for calories burned, food, fast food, low carb, BMI, BMR, RMR and weight loss; diet and weight loss tips and weight loss program info

Food Psychology
http://www.foodpsychology.com/
Collection of information compiled by the Food and Brand Lab at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Nutrition Source
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/index.html
Harvard School of Public Health and Nutrition Research covers latest information on fiber, fats, calcium,carbohydrates, eggs, nutritional pyramids, and fruits and vegetables

World Clock
http://www.weltzeit.de/zeitzonenkarte.php
See the time all over the world with this web clock. It doesn't update automatically, so you have to reload the page to see the current time

Your Disease Risk
http://www.yourdiseaserisk.harvard.edu/
Questionnaires for diseases such as stroke, diabetes, osteoporosis and heart disease, and cancer. Fact sheets which cover specific concerns, along with detailed risk factor sheets

U.S. Constitution Online
http://www.usconstitution.net/
USConstitution.net offers the text of the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, a FAQ, glossary, comment/question area, and links to other resources

Blue Vertigo
http://www.bluevertigo.com.ar/bluevertigo.htm
Many stock photo resource links

Dog Breed Info
http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/
People go to Dog Breed Info to find the right breed for their lifestyle. After they have chosen a breed they can find a breeder listed

Koders
http://www.koders.com/
Source Code Search Engine - allows you to specify keywords, sixteen languages (from ASP to VB.NET) and sixteen licenses (from AFL to ZPL)

craigslist Orlando
http://orlando.craigslist.org/
Orlando online community

People For Good Government
http://www.peopleforgoodgovt.com/index.htm
Interesting view of politics from Winter Springs, FL

Dulance
http://www.dulance.com/index.jsp
Dulance product search and comparison shopping service with RSS feeds. It's free

Windows Secrets
http://windowssecrets.com/
Windows Secrets is a twice-monthly e-mail newsletter with the latest tips and tricks on Microsoft Windows