Home Computers

Hundreds of thousands of personal computer users are participating in the search for extraterrestrial life by allowing their computers to be used for processing radio signals when they are not in use by the owner (www.setiathome.com). Now, British climate scientists would like to harness more of that untapped computing power to make climate predictions.

North Korea recently launched a cyber attack on South Korean TV stations and banks. Iran carried out a cyber campaign against U.S. banking sites. The U.S. and Israel released malware that disabled Iranian nuclear centrifuges. Or did they? There's no doubt someone did all these things, and there are reasons to believe that those suspected are responsible. But because of the way the Internet is designed and the poor general state of computer security, it is extremely difficult to pinpoint an attack's origin.

Some say it was bad marketing strategy to name it the "junior," but that turned out to be an appropriate moniker for giant IBM's ill-fated entry into the market for cheap computers. The PCjr has managed only a pint-size sales record since its ballyhooed introduction in November, 1983. Now, International Business Machines Corp. has given up on the home computer and will stop production for good in April.

Kathy DeGrego's T-shirt lets you know right away she isn't an old-school librarian. "Shhh," it says, "is a four-letter word. " That spirit of bookish defiance has guided the makeover of the suburban Denver library system where DeGrego works. Reference desks and study carrels have been replaced by rooms where kids can play Guitar Hero. Overdue book fines have been eliminated, and the arcane Dewey Decimal System has been scrapped in favor of bookstore-like sections organized by topic.

Computerized at-home shopping, information and entertainment services have been an expensive graveyard for many ambitious business ventures. Yet the nation's largest computer company, International Business Machines, and the nation's largest retailer, Sears, Roebuck & Co., are expected to unveil plans today for such a service that would start Oct. 1 in the Los Angeles area.

When you're shopping for your child's holiday gift, consider something that he or she will enjoy and learn from: educational software for your home computer. There are hundreds of home learning programs that are challenging and fun, but here are some titles especially favored by many local elementary school teachers. These programs are found in software stores throughout the county and work on IBM, Apple and Macintosh systems. Most range in price from $35 to $50.

Former CIA Director John M. Deutch publicly apologized Tuesday for mishandling top secret information on unsecured home computers, saying he never intended to violate security rules and believes none of the information was compromised. "The director of central intelligence is not above the rules," a contrite Deutch told reporters after testifying behind closed doors for 2 1/2 hours before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. "I very much regret my errors." Committee Chairman Sen.

When you're shopping for your child's holiday gift, consider something that he or she will enjoy and learn from: educational software for your home computer. There are hundreds of home learning programs that are challenging and fun, but here are some titles especially favored by many local elementary school teachers. These programs are found in software stores throughout the county and work on IBM, Apple and Macintosh systems. Most range in price from $35 to $50.

Home computing is a male activity, researchers calculate. Women shun the machine in the house and so do their daughters. Moreover, home computer owners sleep less than those who don't own a machine. But they may spend more time with their children. These are among the findings of Project NOAH, an Old Testament acronym that stands for a secular flood--the National Outlook for Automation in the Home.

Authorities, seeking to learn what led postal worker Patrick Henry Sherrill to shoot 14 people to death in the post office, were interviewing co-workers, relatives and neighbors and trying to get access to the information in his home computers, it was reported Saturday. Meanwhile, counselors skilled in helping people cope with tragedies joined mental health workers at two centers set up to aid families of victims, co-workers and others affected by Wednesday's massacre.

The Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy who detailed Mel Gibson's anti-Semitic rant during the actor's arrest on drunk driving charges is now a focus of a criminal investigation over who leaked information about the incident to an entertainment website, according to sources close to the probe.

Until last year, Juan Lara's family didn't have a home computer. Now, the fifth-grader stands beside an Apple iMac in front of fellow Isla Vista Elementary School students and gives a PowerPoint presentation on the life of Sam Houston. Each new fact about the famous Texan that slides onto the screen is accompanied by applause, which Juan has programmed into his presentation. Principal Lisa Maglione is so impressed that she vows to learn how to add the effect herself.

So far it has spilled military secrets and the private phone numbers of TV stars, airport security access codes and elementary school children's grades. And the dirty work of this computer virus may not be done. With almost daily reports of more private information being pumped from personal computers and splashed over the Internet, there is a growing unease that Japan is under insidious attack from within.

For aspiring Stanley Kubricks -- or "Super-sized" Morgan Spurlocks -- digital technology and DVDs have become the great equalizer. Anyone with a bright idea, a camera and a little luck can wind up with a consumer review of his or her movie "posted on Amazon.com, right next to Roger Ebert's," as one filmmaker put it.

An Orange County judge charged this month with possession of child pornography faces additional counts after a search of his home and computer uncovered more than 100 images of child pornography, according to a federal indictment. A federal grand jury on Wednesday returned six new counts of possession of child pornography against Superior Court Judge Ronald C. Kline, 61. The images, according to Assistant U.S. Atty. Deirdre Eliot, depict sexual intercourse and lewd conduct involving male minors.

The nation's leading Internet security group issued an extraordinary warning Monday that vast numbers of home computers with high-speed Internet connections are being targeted by hackers who use them to launch potentially devastating online attacks. The CERT Coordination Center at Carnegie Mellon University said the rapid growth of high-speed, always-on Internet connections has turned average computer users into the unwitting foot soldiers of malevolent hackers.

The 700 or so Internet industry insiders who attended Upside Media's Internet Showcase conference in San Diego last week are hardly typical home PC users. Yet I was amazed at the response when a speaker asked the attendees to raise their hands if they had more than one personal computer at home. Virtually all hands were raised. Most had three or more, and one attendee had 13. Homes with more than a dozen PCs are, of course, extremely rare. But a growing number of families now have two or more.

Computers are becoming almost as common in homes as microwave ovens. And for good reason: Using educational software at home is a great way for children of all ages to practice academic skills and receive one-on-one electronic tutoring. In addition, there are thousands of educational software programs to choose from, in subjects from astronomy to zoology. Now is a great time to buy a home computer for your child. Prices are lower than ever; they've dropped nearly 40% in the last year or so.

Staggered by declining sales and a financial loss in the last three months of 2000, Apple Computer Inc. on Tuesday announced new high-end machines in hopes of bringing the Mac faithful back into stores. Chief Executive Steve Jobs demonstrated a skinny, 1-inch-thick titanium laptop computer with a wide screen that will sell for about $2,500, plus a lineup of faster desktop computers, including one model that will allow consumers to record their own digital videodiscs.

The Second Byte Foundation in the Westlake area is looking for 10 underprivileged schoolchildren in the Conejo Valley and San Fernando Valley who would like to get home computers this holiday season. Teachers and nonprofit groups with specific candidates in grades six through nine are asked to call Juliette Harris, the foundation's executive director, at 497-4675 or 1-888-263-2983. "We're trying to get this done before Christmas," Harris said.