backtoamac.com

A friend wrote me about my Geocities post.  The one thing she missed about the internet of the 1990s was the price of service.  Whatever happened to those cheap ISPs?  Well, firstly, they were all on very slow dial up, but there just seemed to be more options out there than there are now.  Perhaps since broadband technology costs more to maintain, there are no longer as many local ISPs.

I stumbled across BasicIsp.Net. They offer old fashioned $6.95 a month internet service. Granted, you may not get all the bells and whistles, but if you are looking for the basics, its definitely “retro.” The website design looks like they madeit in 1997 and haven’t changed the feel of it as well.  There are a multitude of access numbers, so it leads me to believe the service is all dial up. That may be okay, considering the price. There is an accelarated package that you can also opt for.

The service is Mac compatible. You just need to be running OS 8 or later. In other words, if your Mac was made in 1997 or later, it is most likely compatible. Those G3s and original IMacs would be just as capable of handling the load as the new models that are running Snow Leopard as an operating system.

If you are just looking for a cheap ISP to use to check your email, it may do just fine. Have you tried Basic ISP? If so, what do you think?

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Periodically, I look for new accessories for my Mac. It is easy to find software and extras for my IMac, but I often have to hunt a little harder for items for my G3. A lot of new components are compatible, but they may not be age appropriate. The whole look might be a little off. I have a few trusted sites, but the new sites that I stumble across don’t have a way to simply order. You have to register for a profile and give up all sorts of other information. I find that my inbox is loaded with all sorts of junk mail after a purchase. Most of it is legal junk, as they are communications from the site I actually used, and not third parties.

What I most worry about is credit card theft. Not all sites take Paypal, and Paypal sometimes comes with its own headaches. I found that ShopShield.net is a new Secure Payment Agent that really is the answer to all of my concerns.

Shop Shield anonymizes your email address and the payment is processed without the places you shop having your actual credit card number. Shop Shield creates a temporary credit card number for the transaction that expires when the transaction is complete. The temporary credit card number can only be used for the amount of the transaction, so if the number is stolen, it cannot be charged on. The original funds are still debited from your credit card balance, but the temporary number is not traceable and does not recharge your card.

To protect against spam, Shop Shield creates a proxy email address. Pertinent communication is forwarded to your actual email address, but a company never has your real one. There is a Shop Shield companion that you can download for your web browser. Right now, it works with Firefox on both Mac and Windows.

Have you tried Shop Shield?  Let me know what you think!

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I was at a party last year, and someone happened to mention Geocities.  Everyone seemed to have a personal page parked there.  I didn’t, but it was “the thing.”  By today’s standard, the sites are very simplistic in design, but it was your way to put yourself out there.  Oh, and another thing.  Do you remember sites becoming unavailable if you had too much traffic?

Everyone had a “neighborhood.”  Depending on the theme, you could have your site on “RodeoDrive,” in “Hollywood,” or in the Colosseum.  Honestly, I think it was on the honor system and no one really checked. It was later scrapped, but sometimes you could still stumble across sites with a “city” in their url.

Oddly enough, Geocities is still around.  Well, they were until today.  Geocities is going offline, and joining the big Angelweb in the sky. Registrations ceased in April, and today was the end.  Farewell, Geocities, and Godspeed. May the flash animated websites of sparkly dancing aliens and Gilligan’s Island Fan Sites give thee rest.

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I use an optical mouse rather than a trackball mouse with the iMac. Up until this time, and with previous computers, I used a trackball like everyone else. The biggest complaint I had with trackball mice is that they tended to stick when they got full of dust and grime.

An article I was just reading, Why Do Disk Errors Occur, mentioned that while an optical mouse seems to the the antidote to a sticky mouse, they still need cleaning.   They can periodically catch dust in the opening that the electronic eye “sees” through.  Typically, the opening is shaped like a keyhole.  The other parts that might accumulate dust are the rollers and bearings.  Of course, the “stick” factor is a lot more slight in an optical mouse, but it still can occur.

Instead of cleaning as regular maintenance like I would do on a traditional mouse, I tend to only think about my mouse when there is a problem.   It got a little jumpy once, and I sort of just rattled it a second and that seemed to work.  Now that I know that I can clean my mouse, I will probably do it as preventative maintenance to keep it in good condition.   It is easy to be envious of someone who has a pristine old Mac, but they got that way because they were taken care of in the beginning, when they were new.

Surprisingly enough, I also learned that disk errors can occur because of very simple things like this.  There may be dirt and grime lurking around your hardware, and it is a much easier fix than giving up on your computer and buying a new one, or paying an expert.  For more tips, check out the article.

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A lot of websites neglect MacIntosh computers when it comes to supplies.  There are some that are universal no matter if you have a PC or Mac, and because of the, Mac seems to develop crossover products or programs that can read the PC extensions.

There is actually a page at Castleink.com that helps you choose the right printer ink for your Apple Stylewriter and Laserwriter printers.   Just select the type of printer, and the model name.   The chooser will give you recommendations on which cartridges are correct.

Of course, you can buy ink at the store that is universal, but sometimes you just can’t remember which on it is if the boxes are not clearly marked. If you don’t find the right ones, inkjet cartridges can be refilled with a little syringe but its a big pain in the rear and it involves a syringe.  I won’t be going down that road again after having a real leaker.   It caused more damage than it was woth   To some, however, replenishing their own cartridges provides enough of a cost savings to make it worthwhile.  Granted, they may have a better and less haphazard method than I do when it comes to going about it.  If you are one of the brave, you can find refills like that at Castleink, too.

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Apple has been hush hush for months about the health of Steve Jobs.  When he became a little scarce, they stated officially that his health was a private matter.  The news broke recently that he is recovering from a liver transplant that he received two months ago.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

Mr. Jobs didn’t respond to an email requesting comment. “Steve continues to look forward to returning at the end of June, and there’s nothing further to say,” said Apple spokeswoman Katie Cotton.

Was Apple smart to keep this as a secret, versus going public?  It remains to be seen.  It could be that there would be speculation on whether he was able to “jump to the front of the line” as a celebrity, or it could have been an opportunity for him to raise awareness.

We wish Mr. Jobs the very best, and hope that he returns back to doing the things that he loves soon.   Hopefully, we’ll see his jeaned and black mock turtlenecked self at MacWorld someday again.

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