IE 9 RC still not ready for prime time but Google Chrome is a blast!

Well, I installed the new Internet Explorer 9 release client and, although I loved the "pinning to the taskbar" capability, the ability to designate an entire list of pages to open as default pages and the clean interface that lets you see so much more of each web page you are browsing, I ran into some significant problems using it on my new 64-bit Windows 7 workstation.

Image via WikipediaFirst, I tried to install Zemanta, a blogging assistant extension, for use with my Blogger accounts under this new browser and, even though Zemanta said it was installed, when I opened one of my Blogs to begin editing, the Z
emanta extension interface would not open.  I tried reinstalling, made sure I had "allowed" Zemanta to make changes on my computer, etc. but no joy.

Then I was up on Amazon looking at the new educational game "Roman Town".  I added it to my cart, went through logging in to my account and setting the shipping address but when it came to loading the screen where I would select my payment options, I got nothing but a white screen with a location bar at the top.  I retried the purchase several times but finally had to give up and use a different browser to complete the transaction.

Next I was reading my Google news alerts and went to "share" an article I had read on one of the web pages I pulled up to read and when IE 9 tried to open the Twitter interface I again got a plain white screen with just a URL and my Twitter icon.  Obviously, it recognized that I was already logged in to Twitter but could not draw up my status page.  Again, multiple attempts to successfully tweet from the web page failed.  I ended up shortening the URL myself with bit.ly and posting it manually to Twitter.

Then I went to read an article on Stacy Johnson's Money Talks News (http://www.moneytalksnews.com) that included a video and saw that the video had a question mark on it.  When I clicked the video I got an error message that the video contained a third party component that I would need to install but it didn't tell me which one.  I had never had a problem with any of Stacy's videos before.  So, I sent an email to Stacy's tech support people and they suggested I contact the tech support for Blip.TV which is the video host they use.  So I emailed Blip.TV and they suggested I install the latest version of Quicktime and try again.  I checked my Quicktime version and compared it with the latest one available and I saw that I already had the latest version.  I told Blip. TV that videos on YouTube seemed to play properly.  They were baffled.

So today I reluctantly gave up using IE and set my browser default to the new version of Google Chrome that I had recently installed.  Like IE 9, I was able to define a list of pages to open by default.  I found that I could still drag a page to my taskbar and "pin" it - apparently a default action allowed by Windows 7, and the interface was as clean as IE 9.

Then I went to Blogger and installed Zemanta and it came up without a hitch.  I went back to Money Talks News and the video I could not view under IE 9 played perfectly in Google Chrome.  Then, I held my breath and logged into my online bank.  I had used an earlier version of Google Chrome at one point but it turned out to be incompatible with my secure banking logins at two different banks.  This time, however, it worked wonderfully.

Then, I remembered a friend of mine had sent me a news article about Google Chrome's new web store so I went up there and found extensions for my Evernote account, bit.ly, Google Translate, Webpage screenshot, Web of Trust search advisor (WOT - a handy tool to avoid websites known for malware, scams, etc), an Internet Movie Database access tool to quickly access the movie database by clicking on a movie title mentioned on a webpage or in a blogpost, my good old "blog this" helper, a Share tool for those websites that  don't have it already built in (like many foreign news websites), and even Chrome for a Cause that records my search clicks and donates to a charity of my choice (from a small but adequate list).  Since I do a lot of research I like the idea that my productivity also serves another worthy purpose.  All of these very useful extensions were found on just the first twenty pages of the Extensions listed on the Chrome Web Store site and there are a total of over 10,000 available.  So, I have been able to regain all the features I liked in IE 9 without all of the technical problems and added some great functionality from the Chrome Web Store too!

Now if I could just get Samsung to add more useful apps to my TV's app store!!

Related articles

• 7 Chrome Annoyances and How to Fix Them (mt-soft.com.ar)
• Have Firefox Add-Ons Caused You Problems? (lockergnome.com)

HDMI 4.1 fills the bill even for 3-D devices coming this holiday season

Until I read this article I thought HDMI was the only choice for new HD electronic components but I guess there is something called Display Port.  Since I retired I guess I'm getting a little slow on tracking electronic trends!


Image via Wikipedia

DisplayPort is another new video connector that’s being included on newer equipment, especially laptops.  It was designed as the successor to DVI and VGA on computers, but hasn’t seen as much adoption as either DVI or HDMI.  However, it is being included on all newer Macs and many Dell, HP, and Lenovo computers.  It is actually very similar to HDMI, so it streams both HD video and audio on the same cable, and can output up to 1920×1080 resolution and 8 channels of audio on a single cable.

 On the good side, DisplayPort does support HDCP, so you can use it to playback protected HD content from Blu-rays and more.  You can also connect it to an HDMI or DVI port with a  convertor, since the digital signal is compatible.  The problem is, few monitors and TVs include DisplayPort ports, so you’ll almost have to have a convertor if you want to connect your laptop to a larger screen. -What’s the Difference Between HDMI and DVI? Which is Better?

 I was relieved to see that "Geeks" agrees with my favorite bargain hunter, Stacy Johnson, who says a cheap $10 HDMI cable is all you need too.  Monster cables costing hundreds or even thousands of dollars are a ridiculous waste of money.  That company needs to reinvent itself now that digital video is becoming so widespread.  


The one question this article didn't answer for me, though, was whether the current crop of HDMI cables will handle true 3D that will be available on HD televisions this holiday season.  But, I found this statement about the new HDMI 4.1 standard.

The latest version of the HDMI standard establishes critical infrastructure for implementing 3D video in the home, defining input/output protocols that will allow 3D displays and source devices to communicate through an HDMI link. It’s a major milestone on the path to bringing true 3D gaming and 3D home theater to the mass market, supporting resolutions up to 1080p in 3D.
3D technology is evolving rapidly, with several competing approaches under development, so the HDMI 1.4 specification establishes protocols for a number of popular 3D display methods, including:

• Frame, line, or field alternative methods
• Side by side methods (full and half)
• 2D plus depth methods

  - HDMI.org