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Recent
Developments ..
by Roger Davies
Nov 1998
Soft Serve Direct
Box 389, Magrath,
Alberta, Canada T0K 1JO
Phone (403) 388-4332 Fax (403) 758-3505
Email comments to news@ssdirect.com
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Nothing is constant except for change. Coming at us this
month are several new versions of software.
Windows Updates
Have you tried the Windows 98 feature on your [Start]
button the menu item named [Windows
Update]? It takes you to a Win98 update facility at the Microsoft website. We
recommend you visit regularly to get the latest program updates and fixes.
Browsers
With the final release of Communicator 4.5, Netscape Communications
offers a fast, powerful--and remarkably reliable--tool for browsing the Web. The browser
suite, which includes messaging and Web page creation tools in addition to its much-hyped
integration with Netcenter, is now available for download from: [home.netscape.com/download]. Be
patient, the download size is 16 to 26 MB, depending on options selected, and the download
sites are sure to be very busy with happy downloaders.
Not to be outdone, Microsoft has scheduled IE 5.0 to ship during the
first quarter of 1999 and has made the latest beta version available now. If you're not
comfortable with beta versions, you might want to wait. However, since this version seems
stable so far, you might want to give it a try. You can download the latest IE versions
directly from Microsoft's site: [www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/download].
Utilities
One of my favorite (and indispensable) Windows shareware utilities is WinZip
from the Niko Mak company. "WinZip brings the convenience of Windows to the use of
Zip files and other archive and compression formats. The optional wizard interface makes
unzipping easier than ever. WinZip features built-in support for popular Internet file
formats, including TAR, gzip, Unix compress, UUencode, BinHex, and MIME. ARJ, LZH, and ARC
files are supported via external programs. WinZip interfaces to most virus scanners."
Version 7 has just been released. You can download an free evaluation version from [www.winzip.com] and of course, you
can plunk down a little dough to buy the registered copy. Try it, you will like it.
Another great newly updated utility on the Internet is the free Real Player G2
beta sound and movie player program. (FYI: The Real Player Plus G2 player is the
commercial version). In the old days, internet sound and movie files had to be completely
downloaded to your computer to be able to hear or see them. With the RealAudio and
RealVideo streaming content format, the content is presented as it is being received. This
'RealContent' is currently available from several sites. For example, from [www.broadcast.com] or [www.deseretonline.com]
(just one of several sites I like) you can access and listen to archived audio files of
the latest LDS General Conferences - providing you have the right player software loaded
on your computer. See [www.real.com/products/tools].
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