Do remember to back up anything that's valuable before taking advice from anyone.
Hi LJ, On the radio I heard about a wireless surround sound system that bounces off the room walls - a clever box sizes up the room and does the rest but I can't recall who made it or its market name. Can you help? Many thanks. Ian, Isle of Wight Hi Ian, it's a pleasure to help! I think you might mean Yamaha's sound projector, and you’re right, it's really clever. This device uses at least 20 directional speakers and delayed amplifiers to "beam" sound around the sides of the room to create true 5.1 surround sound. You can mount it above or below your TV. http://www.yamaha-uk.com/sound_projectors/
Hi LJ, what is my IP address? Leah, Westbury Hi Leah, what an interesting query! Use this tool to find out: http://whatismyipaddress.com/
Dear LJ, I have an iRiver iHP140 MP3 player and can't locate the Firmware that came with it. Could you help? Martin, Goole, East Yorkshire Dear Martin, Firmware is the name given to software that's kept permanently inside things like cameras and MP3 players, even when they’re switched off. It’s a kind of software kept on hardware, hence the name. Firmware tends to load when you start up your device and can be updated relatively easily. I believe your iriver IHP-140 is part of the H100 series - Go here for a list of iriver downloads: http://www.iriver.com/support/down_list.asp
Dear LJ, I want to control a PACE 4001 box from another room – what kit do I need? Thanks. Ann, Harlow Dear Ann, Thanks for your email. You mention that an infra red "Magic Eye" might not be enough in this case. Well, there's a new product from Oneforall that works by replacing a battery from your remote control (AA or AAA). This turns your remote from an Infra-Red sender (line of sight) into a Radio Frequency sender (through walls) The converter will control up to 3 devices and is also good for those of us who want to keep our DVD players and set top boxes out of sight behind a cabinet. Link here: http://www.oneforall-int.com/?pag=39&prodnr=101
Dear LJ, I have an email address with Yahoo. When adding my email address to Outlook 2003, what should be the server type, mail server provider and server URL? Samuel, Luton Dear Samuel, Apparently, Yahoo will let you use other email clients (such as Outlook) but you have to upgrade your account to Yahoo Plus for the privilege. If you want to use Outlook with web-based email, you'll need POP3 details for your email account. Here's a link to Yahoo’s step by step guide for Outlook 2002 and 2003. http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/mail/original/mailplus/pop/pop-06.html
Hi LJ, My father can only receive cable TV in the flat where he lives. He currently gets TV services from NTL but is about to buy a new TV which contains Freeview. Will he still need the NTL decoder box? Derek, Cheshire Hi Derek, Your father’s new TV has a built in Freeview receiver, which means he should be able to receive digital channels on Freeview directly through his aerial, depending on where he lives. Some areas have better coverage than others, although by 2012 everyone should have Freeview. You can check your coverage on this site by entering your postcode. There's a list of channels here as well. http://www.Freeview.co.uk You may be aware that NTL is now Virgin Media, so if there's a particular channel available on cable that isn't on Freeview that your dad enjoys watching, he may want to keep his cable subscription – have a look here for channels. http://allyours.virginmedia.com/websales/service.do?id=1
Dear LJ, What are the best freeware virus protection programs to use? Michael, UK Dear Michael, You can get some excellent anti-virus and anti-spyware for free these days, although you tend not to get technical support, so I'd bear that in mind if you're considering this as a solution. AVG have a good antivirus program, downloadable here: http://free.grisoft.com/
Dear LJ, how do I remove the Trojan "Vundo"? Joanne, North Shields Dear Joanne, Trojans are computer programs which pretend to do legitimate things, but install malicious software when you're not looking. I don't have enough info about your system to give you specific instructions on how to remove this Trojan, however, I have found a link to instructions and a download for you from Symantec. Most people print out the instructions first before running anything like this, as you have to disconnect from the net to run most virus/trojan fixes. I'd also back up anything valuable just in case. Good luck. http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2004-112210-3747-99
Hi LJ, I’ve got a Sony DVD camcorder that takes 8cm discs. Is there any software that can make movies out of them? When I go to America for my hols, there’s always about 4 or 6 discs of movies when I come back. I'd like to put them all on one DVD then reuse my 8cm discs. Thanks... Gary, Sutton in Ashfield Hi Gary, A great program called Movies to CD and DVD will either capture movies direct from your camcorder or you can put your 8cm disc into your PC's drive. This program allows you to add captions, edit your movies, and burn a professional-looking DVD with menus for posterity. My favourite feature is a "one touch" button which automatically creates a themed movie from all your clips, complete with music soundtrack, whilst you can put the kettle on for a nice cup of tea. http://www.magix.com/uk/movies-on-cd-dvd/
Gary, I expect you already know that you can only re-use your 8cm discs in your camcorder if they are RW or DVD-RAM, although thinking about it, you could re-use your old discs as lovely coasters for that tea. Have fun in the States!
Lots of love, LJ x
If you have any gadget and tech enquiries you'd like LJ to answer send them in here.
