The Info Examiner

There’s a widespread confusion among Cisco customers as to what the difference really is between Cisco approved memory modules and their third party counterparts.

First of all, it should be clear to anyone interested in this subject that Cisco Systems simply does not manufacture any of its memory parts!

The memory parts customers get when they purchase Cisco equipment are manufactured by a Cisco approved OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer). The OEM could be any company from Cisco’s Approved Vendor List (AVL) which includes companies such as OKI Semiconductor, NEC Electronics, and Samsung among others. It should also be noted that since Cisco Systems no longer releases its AVL to the public, thus the companies mentioned above may or may not still be on the AVL. There will definitely be new companies added from time to time and companies removed as well.

Approved/OEM or “first party” Cisco memory refers to memory parts manufactured by companies on Cisco’s AVL; these memory modules have been engineered specifically for use by Cisco Systems and undergo strict and comprehensive testing before being approved by Cisco for use with their routers and other products. These modules are guaranteed to have 100% compatibility with their corresponding Cisco equipments and are backed by a lifetime warranty.

Third party memory modules on the other hand are manufactured by companies not on Cisco’s AVL and are not tested nor approved by Cisco Systems. The manufacturer does offer warranty and compatibility guarantee for these memory modules but Cisco does not. And although manufacturers of such memory modules claim to be fully compliant with Cisco’s specifications, Cisco does hold the right to refuse service, under warranty, when the fault is deemed to be caused by the 3rd party memory modules; and even if this was only discovered later on then Cisco will bill the customer for the service.

And while 3rd party memory modules are cheaper and useful for certain groups such as students learning about Cisco equipment, they do pose a certain level of risk for any business considering using these modules. Think about any unnecessary downtime and how much that will cost your business. Approved memory modules have undergone stringent testing by Cisco Systems themselves for use with Cisco’s own equipment, they do not affect the service warranty of the equipment they are used in and the memory modules themselves are covered by a lifetime warranty.

It is simply the smarter business choice for any company to opt for approved Cisco memory modules. Even though the initial cost might seem higher, but in the long run they are actually cheaper as there is extremely low probability, if any, of incompatibility or faults. Approved Cisco memory results in a lesser need to maintain and service these modules and the equipment they are used in; think total cost of ownership.

Sabir Rizvi is a seasoned IT professional who writes for CiscoUpgrade.com, an online store that specializes in selling cisco approved memory at discounted prices. Visit the website to read more of his articles at http://www.CiscoUpgrade.com

Chamonix Mont Blanc is a unique place with the infamous Monte Bianco as well as jagged glaciers. All of us enjoy going hiking or from time to time wandering around. I sometimes fly from Neosho and stay at a Chamonix self catered chalet during my break.

My family and I used to visited Marriott Marina Del Rey but it sometimes didn’t meet the standards of its marketing: Overlooking Marina del Rey and five minutes from the LAX airport, this hotel is an excellent choice for exploring Los Angeles and the area’s beaches.The Marriott offers a refreshing outdoor pool with a Jacuzzi and sundeck. The hotel’s restaurant, Stones, serves California cuisine–gourmet pizzas, pastas, sandwiches, salads, and seafood. In the evening, unwind with a drink at the piano bar.Hotel amenities include a car rental desk, concierge, babysitting, gift shop/newsstand, and parking. Guest rooms offer the convenience of a hairdryer, coffeemaker, iron/ironing board, data port, cable television, safe, and air conditioning.

In comparison in Chamonix ski resort the catered chalet is always excellent. Also dining out in our groups preferred bar, Dionysos, eating cheese and tortilla pie is a real treat. Chamonix is a large enough destination to make sure that there is plenty for the visitor to do. Including a spa and a strip of bars, Chamonix provides a choice of climbing, alpine charm and tourist attractions which not many resorts can match.

Do you want to cut your printing costs by up to 50%? There are many ways you can do this. Here are some tips to help you can started.

1. Buy Re-manufactured Cartridges - Purchasing re-manufactured cartridges will generally cost you less than purchasing new cartridges. Re-manufactured cartridges are printer cartridges that have been used at least once and then disassembled, cleaned and had worn parts replaced and refilled. Typically, remanufactured cartridges can save you from 30 to 50 percent off the price of new cartridges, or more.

2. Purchase refilled ink-jet cartridges or self-refill kits. These kits come with all the tools and instructions necessary to refill your own ink or toner cartridge. Purchasing these cartridges saves money and is good for the environment.

3. Buy in Bulk - You can save more money by purchasing printer cartridges in large quantities. You will save a lot more over the already discounted cost on new cartridges. If you frequently do a lot of printing you, can save even more by purchasing recycled or re-manufactured printer cartridges in bulk.

4. Purchase a compatible inkjet cartridge or toner cartridge. These are cartridges made from new parts and manufactured to OEM specifications for you exact printer. If you cannot find a compatible cartridge for your inkjet printer, you may want to consider remanufactured inkjet cartridges.

5. Buy ink and Refill your Cartridges whenever possible - Whether you’re printing documents, photos or web pages, refilling your empty printer cartridges can save you up to 50% compared with buying new. You don’t have to spend a fortune on inkjet cartridges and printing costs.

There are many other ways to save money on printer cartridges, but shopping around before you buy can also make it easier to get the best value. When shopping around for the best prices on printer cartridges, use shopping bots (Froogle, Dealtime), bargain sites, Coupon sites and Auction sites (eBay). Shopping bots are essentially search engines for gathering prices for products from a variety of vendors. They allow you to quickly search for merchandise across a wide variety of sites. They are an effective way to quickly get a feel for the available deals. Bargain or Discount sites get excess merchandise from other retailers and sell the merchandise at bargain prices.

Copyright © 2005. Clive Chansa writes for the Discount Printer Cartridges
Website at: http://www.discount-printer-cartridges.org.uk/ and he’s also a regular
contributor to the Power Batteries Website at
http://www.power-batteries.co.uk/

One statement I’ve made over and over in my writings, and every time I speak on the topic of computers, is that there are only 11 major parts in a PC. If you think you can connect just eleven items, then you can build your own.

Recently a gentleman who was interested in building a computer wrote to me. In his letter he said, “I opened up the side of my old machine just to see what it looked like in there. I wanted to get an idea of how complicated it was before I tried building one myself. There were cables going every which way. Are you sure there are only eleven items to connect?”

After a bit of questioning back and forth by email, we determined that my new friend had a very early Pentium that had served him well through the years. In the era of his computer, virtually every port on the back of the case had to connect to the motherboard by means of a ribbon cable. I was building computers back then, and it was a bit like wrestling a squid.

Now, all of those ports are hard-wired to the motherboard, as can be seen in my book “Building a PC for Beginners”. There’s no more trying to plug in everything in a three square inch area. The inside of a computer is much less congested, making the assembly process way simpler than it was.

Another great step to simplify things took place when case and motherboard manufacturers agreed on standardizing screw hole locations. Now you can be sure that the holes for the standoffs that support the motherboard will match with the holes in the case. At one time this wasn’t so.

Michael Quarles is the publisher of Monkey See Monkey Do Books.

VILLA TITINA RESIDENZA: Villa Titina is a historical residenza dating back to the beginning of XX century. It belongs to Iaccarino family who are known for their devotion in promoting Sorrento tourism, since four generations. The Residenza boasts a priviliged position on the main street in S.Agata sui due Golfi, just few meters from its main square.

Villa Titina Residenza has been created from the recover of the old family house, which they have transformed in a wonderful bed & breakfast, that is composed of 4 bedrooms with private bathroom. Some bedrooms are also provided with sitting room, terrace, kitchen corner and a breathtaking view at Capri. At guests’ disposal we can list the guarded free parking, the garden, the solarium, and the warm welcome of people who transform the warm welcome into their house into a form of art, so that you will feel in the right place to enjoy a relaxing holiday.

Villa Titina Residenza is located in the heart of S.Agata sui Due Golfi, which is embraced by the majesties of the Gulf of Naples and Salerno, and right in the middle the eyes are caught by the island of Capri and its Faraglioni Rocks, where sirens used to live at the time of the wandering Ulysses. S.Agata can be easily reached from Sorrento driving on Via Nastro Verde and from there it is easy to find other two world famous sea resorts: Positano and Nerano. The last offers to its visitors the beaches of Marina del Cantone.

S. Agata sui due Golfi has a perfect climate and natural surroundings that can be explored thanks to several roots immersed in the luxurious vegetation of the extraordinary beauty of nature. Trekking is the perfect activity to enjoy it at its best. As a matter of fact its central position between Sorrento and Amalfi coast gives lots of opportunities for several and comfortable excursions. The buttonhole flower of S.Agata is the famous restaurant “Don Alfonso 1890″, which has been awarded with two stars on the Restaurant Guide by Michelin and boasts guests of the international jet set.

ROOM DESCRIPTION: TOTAL ROOM NUMBER 04.

If you stay up on the Scientific Magazines and Journals you will know that NASA has come a long way in their research to study our Earth. They now have more data than ever before and can use this data with the aid of super computers to process it. In the past computers could not crunch the numbers fast enough to handle the massive data sets and numbers of data sets. Now super computers have changed all that, now we can develop models to answer questions, which help us know the future. To many these models appear like magic.

Such modeling can help us understand the effects of an asteroid or god, forbid a comet hitting the earth and what will be the most likely outcome of such. Which regions will be devastated by the blast and which regions will receive its long-term effects and where life will survive conquer and adapt.

We can use such modeling to predict pollution coming from Fires in CA or China and how they affect the entire Earth Atmosphere Grid. We can know the currents of Volcanic Ash as it sweeps and dissipates around the planet. We will even be able to predict what this ash will most likely do to the current and near future weather patterns and what such a chain reaction will do to our surface plants and animals long term. We can also understand the climate changing effect of burps of Earth through volcanic activity and the extent that space weather, solar flares and our own pollution contribute or take away from the whole of the atmospheric earth system. Super computers are making this a reality today. Think what this means to the future of mankind?

“Lance Winslow” - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

Think Small. Think Cheaper. That’s the way the industry seems to be heading these days. Laptops are outselling desktops in some places. Those who can afford them are buying Palm Pilots. Zip drives are nearly all but forgotten. CDs and CD writers are now as common as floppies were in a previous computing life. Now USB drives are hitting the market and showing no sign of going away. You can store so much in them now and they are getting so cheap. Nearly $100 per gigabyte of space. Wow.

But what does all this have to do with the Multi-Function Centre? Well, that should be enough. People have less room to put their toys, let alone their computers (or are they one and the same?). People are purchasing slim line computers and LCD flat screen monitors now, along with cosy desks for the space conscious, as they take up less room. Once upon a time, you had to have a desk with plenty of space. What with your big 17″ CRT monitor, your massive computer tower, keyboard, mouse, speakers, and if you went on, you would have a printer, a scanner, a draw to store your paper and a pile of floppies in the corner. Well, all but one has disappeared or shrunk. Until now.

Multi-Function Centres (aka Multi-Function Devices aka All-in-One Centres) are the grand summary of desk space saving. In these gadgets you have your scanner, you have your printer, you have a rudimentary “photo copier”, some even have built-in fax machines! They are good. They really are. For many reasons: less cables getting tangled, less power cables required (less power plugs about the place), less electricity being used (we hope!) and some are quite compact. You can now fit everything into a small 2-foot wide desk. Are they convenient? I think they are. Instead of stretching out to go from your scanner to printer, or vice versa, then over to your fax machine, you do it all in one go, which saves a lot of time.

For small business, they are a must. I highly recommend the ones that come with 4 separate ink cartridges (if bubble jet), as they are cheaper to run than the standard 2 ink cartridges (if you only have 2 ink tanks, if you run out of blue, but use no red or yellow, you still have to buy a new whole cartridge. If you have 4 ink tanks, if any of them run out, you just go and buy a cheap replacement cartridge and be on your way).

It’s really not worth it, economically, to get them separate any more. You get a printer for about AU$70, a scanner for $90-$120, or get a cheap MFC for $90-$140 in which you get the scanner, you get the printer, you get a copier and in some cases a fax machine and/or a media card reader (for reading the memory cards used in many digital cameras), plus being able to print directly from the media card itself without even needing a computer! You’ll soon have an answering machine and an LCD screen by which to control the whole thing. Oh wait, they already have those now.

I would say they are definitely living up to the hype. Plus they can only get better.

Martin Coleman is a freelance writer, computer programmer and computer geek. He runs http://www.computerhelppanel.com, your first and only stop to getting expert advice and answers to your computing questions. He can also be reached at http://www.martincoleman.com

When it comes to problems with CD Burners things can get ugly and users most of the time gives up hope of ever completing a successful CD Burning session. PC technology can be confusing as almost anything could cause a CD Burning problem such as software conflicts, faulty hardware and bad media brand of CD-R or CD-RW discs.

So where does one start when it comes to troubleshooting a CD Burning problem?

That’s easy, start looking at the hardware, the CD Burner itself and the motherboard - this way you are making sure the key piece of the CD Burning process is actually working.

Apply the most recent firmware for the CD-Burner as this will fix any bugs that your model of drive may have, make sure to check with the CD Burner manufacture before doing so.

Make sure the CD Burner drive is recognized in the BIOS and has the manufacture model listed. Install the latest BIOS update for the PC but again make sure to check with the OEM of the PC before installing.

Software conflicts can be caused by almost anything installed onto the Operating System such as anti-virus software, screen savers, drivers among other things. It’s important the System is free of any virus’s or spy ware software as these can cause major problems for the CD Burning session.

It’s advisable to troubleshoot any software problems in ‘Safe Mode’ of the operating system as this makes no programs have loaded during start-up.

Uninstall any programs that are no longer used making sure to free up more resources.
Do the usual house-keep on your PC by deleting temp internet files, cookies etc and also defrag the system. It’s important for the CD Burning process that the system has the resources to support the session.

People seem to get hung up on what would be the best brand of CD-R or CD-RW disc. This could have a conflicting answer but from experience it all depends on the model of your CD Burner. Some drives take well to using TDK when others don’t, the same with Kodak and even unbranded discs. The best advice would be to purchase a number of different branded discs and find which one works best for your drive.

If problems still do occur during the CD Burning process then contacting technical support maybe required. You could also go in-depth by using valuable resources on-line that provide amazing technical guide.

Gavin Duncan is the editor and publisher of http://www.cd-burner-help.com , a site to help people facing problems with Burning CD’s.

The family dentist is quite often one of the most important people you or a family member will ever see. Regular appointments and check-ups with the family dentist can be one of the most vital things that you will ever do for you or your family’s health. Did you know that even though these visits are so important, roughly half of Americans today rarely if ever visit the family dentist? Many times people go see a family dentist only in cases of emergency and not for regular routine checkups and preventative measures.

Chances are your family dentist is one of the most educated people you know. The average family dentist has had at least 8 years of formal training and education. Your family dentist probably received one or more of several degrees which may include a Doctoral of Dentistry (DDS), Doctoral of Dental Medicine (DMD) or a Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS). Once a dentist receives his or her educational degree or degrees, it’s off to take the rigorous state board dental exams to obtain a license to practice dentistry.

So what do you do if you have never been to the family dentist, or have moved to a new location or for some other reason you are just looking for a new family dentist for you and your family to see. How do you know where to go or how to find one? Usually the best way to find a new family dentist is to get a referral from a friend or family member. Someone who has had positive experiences with their family dentist can be a great place to start.

There are also other services that provide help and support in finding a new family dentist such as 1-800-DENTIST. Although services like 1-800-DENTIST can be a great tool in locating a new family dentist, be aware that this is a provider service that is paid for by dentists. Regardless, information gathered from such services can be valuable in locating someone who is within your neighborhood or has had experience with certain age groups.

When you meet your new family dentist for the first time, it may be important to ask them a few well prepared questions. Keep in mind, the family dentist is a human being just like you, each and every one of them being different in everything from their personalities to the way they run their business. This is someone that you will be taking your family to so it may be wise to set up an initial consultation appointment to get a feel for how they operate their practice. The most important thing that you can do is find someone that you and your family are going to mesh well with.

Sony, Nike, Gucci, BT, Microsoft, Ford, Armani… and so on, names we come across in daily life, these are top “manufacturer brands”, then there are Tesco, Next, M&S, GAP, Burberry, Virgin etc, these are top “retail brands”. Most of us are very familiar with these brands as we have seen them around for a long time and have grown to trust them, we know who they are and what to expect from their products.

It is also common practice for people to become brand loyal too, i.e. you try and like the products of a brand and then stick to that brand, or buy a product like a Fuji digital camera and use a Fuji memory card to go with it. In fact, the brands actively encourage brand loyalty e.g. if you buy an Epson printer, the company’s literature will encourage the use of Epson ink cartridges.

Many people are then surprised, to learn that their famous brand camera, watch, car, clothing, computer etc, is not actually made by the company whose name appears on the product, but by another company they perhaps have never heard of. This company is known as the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) being the actual manufacturer of the product which is sold under it’s own brand, or the brand of another company, often using that company’s design, specifications etc.

Some OEM relationships are public knowledge e.g. Tesco do not produce instant coffee, so, an instant coffee producer makes Tesco instant coffee. Other OEM relationships are less obvious e.g. BT fax machines are mostly made by Olivetti, early Hewlett Packard digital cameras were made by Pentax and 70% of the notebook computers sold in the world (Dell, Compaq, HP, Apple, IBM, Sony etc.) are made by Quanta Computers in Taiwan and MG City Rover is made by Tata, the largest car manufacturer in India.
Many OEM relationships are well-kept secrets or at least kept discrete and known only to industry insiders e.g. Dell and Lexmark, from 2002 Lexmark produce Dell inkjet printers, laser printers and related print cartridges. Sony and Sandisk jointly develop and produce Memory Stick cards, which are sold under both brands etc.

So, is this a good or bad thing? Well, it’s a good thing for the consumer because these joint collaborations drastically reduce new product development and production costs, ultimately this saving translates into lower prices of products for all of us. However, it is worth bearing in mind, that a more expensive brand may not necessarily be a better product, or even any different to a lower priced product.

For our part at Mouse2House, we actively offer major brand products as well as alternative brands that in our experience we have found to represent good or better value.

Article by Iggy Quazi director of Ecommerce business www.Mouse2house.co.uk based in Essex, England stocking a wide range of digital imaging devices. For more information of a wide range of flash memory cards and more articles visit www.mouse2house.co.uk/index.php?CatURN=637