Tom Spring - Author - PC World Australia

Stories by Tom Spring

Article | 9/12/2002 Sneaky new form of online ads pops up

A new breed of pop-up messages is proliferating that can evade ad-blocking programs and may indicate a security risk as well as present a nuisance.

Article | 5/12/2002 New tool makes DVD copying easy

Hollywood says that it's illegal to burn a backup copy of your Austin Powers Goldmember DVD, and it builds in copy protection to stop you. But a small...

Article | 26/11/2002 What can you squeeze into a USB pen drive?

With the large number of USB pen drives hawked at the recent Comdex show, it may be only a matter of time before they come free inside cereal boxes.

Article | 19/11/2002 Preview: Mobile connectivity rules

You can't be too mobile, wireless, or connected at the Comdex trade show, where a smaller than usual field of about 1000 exhibitors are gathering this...

Article | 1/10/2002 AOL unveils a slim, trim ICQ

If size matters, someone forgot to tell America Online Inc.'s ICQ instant messaging division. This week it is releasing ICQ Lite, a condensed version ...

Article | 24/09/2002 Google launches news service

Google is beefing up its site by using its search engine technology to add breaking news services this week.

Article | 12/09/2002 The Internet: Ground zero for 9/11 analysis

Sometimes even around-the-clock cable news isn't enough. When war broke out, millions went online to the globe's biggest water cooler for chatter and ...

Article | 28/05/2002 Who's reading your instant messages?

Instant messaging may be a handy and quick communications tool, but experts on the technology warn that it's also a security risk--vulnerable to eaves...

Article | 23/05/2002 First look at Netscape 7.0

Opening this week is "Browser Wars: Episode 7." Like a sequel lumbering into the cineplex, Netscape Communications's latest preview of its Netscape 7....

Article | 22/05/2002 MSN launches AOL defection tool

In Microsoft's ongoing efforts to unseat America Online as the 300-pound gorilla of online service providers, its MSN Internet Access division is roll...

Article | 20/05/2002 Companion service launches on Kazaa

Users of the Kazaa Media Desktop will be offered a controversial update starting Monday, with the introduction of a second file-sharing service that i...

Article | 8/05/2002 Kazaa sneakware stirs inside PCs

It sounds like a "B" movie plot: Return of the PC Snatchers. Millions find their PCs' bandwidth and hard disk space siphoned for mysterious but worthy...

Article | 3/05/2002 Feds eye copy locks for PC gear

You might want to stock up on CD and DVD burners now, before both are considered contraband. That's no joke: Hollywood wants to put hardware-based co...

Article | 30/04/2002 Digital video forecast goes fuzzy

The next-generation video standard known as MPEG-4 promises to dazzle you with fast, high-definition video on your desktop and TV. But developers enth...

Article | 19/04/2002 Boost dial-up to broadband speeds

Trying to get broadband speeds out of a dial-up modem is like cramming a watermelon through a garden hose. But that's exactly what Artera Group Intern...