I've had this same issue, and fixed it. For me it was NOT a software issue at all. I may have mixed feelings about M$ too, but blaming Windows for hardware problems is just stupid.
I don't know the technical details, but I can say that adaptors like this consistantly work great, while adaptors like this don't work at all.
As far as I can tell, since the adaptors which work are always larger, I assume they have extra electronics inside so they can communicate with the USB port more intelligently.
If someone else knows the technical details of how this works, I'd love to hear about it.
The trick still works fine, but you got the search term wrong, it's not "Great French Military Victories," it's just "French Military Victories." Here's the full search results
(Clicking "I'm Feeling Lucky" just opens the first link automatically, and makes for a better punchline if you're showing a friend.)
I was in your situation about a year ago. I first tried newsfeeds, but they sucked. Then I tried Giganews, and stayed with them for a long time - their service is terrific, and for what you get, their prices aren't outrageous.
Then a couple months ago I switched to Easynews, and discovered their service is just as good, and a lot cheaper.
Also, I notice a lot of the big multimedia posters use Easynews, so using the same service means fewer missing parts. Depending on what you want to download, you might check what news service the major posters use, and sign up for that.
Also, if you want to save money, remember to use your ISP's newsfeed as much as you can first (their bandwidth may be limited, but since it's already paid for, it's effectively "free") - then for what you can't get from your local ISP, use your paid service. I do this with two separate copies of Agent (one for mt ISP's feed, and another for Easynews). I understand some other newsreaders can handle multiple newsfeeds at the same time, I just love Agent so much I'm willing to put up with this minor annoyance (which will hopefully get fixed in the next version).
And, as always, read the FAQ in any group you're interested in (many FAQs for binary groups will cover this very question), and if you have additional questions, post on Usenet itself, and you're sure to get lots of replies.
Sorry, when it comes to credit card numbers, that's often not accurate.
I'm an e-commerce Web/database programmer, so I've actually built systems like this. I've found through experience that storing the name, expiration date and LAST FOUR digits of the customer's credit card number is all we need for issuing credits, accounting, etc. Even if a hacker were to steal our database (which has never happened), they wouldn't have enough info to make charges on our customer's cards.
IMHO nearly all sites that get their databases of (full) credit card numbers stolen were stupid and asking for trouble for storing all that unnecessary info in the first place (CD Universe, anyone?). I've built completely functional e-commerce businesses which run just fine without it.
Sure, our customers have to re-enter their credit card number (only) each time they visit our site, but so far no one's complained. As a customer myself, I consider it a very small price to pay for the increased security. Wouldn't you?
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I don't know the technical details, but I can say that adaptors like this consistantly work great, while adaptors like this don't work at all.
As far as I can tell, since the adaptors which work are always larger, I assume they have extra electronics inside so they can communicate with the USB port more intelligently.
If someone else knows the technical details of how this works, I'd love to hear about it.
www.OnlyTheBestFreeware.com
(Clicking "I'm Feeling Lucky" just opens the first link automatically, and makes for a better punchline if you're showing a friend.)
I was in your situation about a year ago. I first tried newsfeeds, but they sucked. Then I tried Giganews, and stayed with them for a long time - their service is terrific, and for what you get, their prices aren't outrageous.
Then a couple months ago I switched to Easynews, and discovered their service is just as good, and a lot cheaper.
Also, I notice a lot of the big multimedia posters use Easynews, so using the same service means fewer missing parts. Depending on what you want to download, you might check what news service the major posters use, and sign up for that.
Also, if you want to save money, remember to use your ISP's newsfeed as much as you can first (their bandwidth may be limited, but since it's already paid for, it's effectively "free") - then for what you can't get from your local ISP, use your paid service. I do this with two separate copies of Agent (one for mt ISP's feed, and another for Easynews). I understand some other newsreaders can handle multiple newsfeeds at the same time, I just love Agent so much I'm willing to put up with this minor annoyance (which will hopefully get fixed in the next version).
And, as always, read the FAQ in any group you're interested in (many FAQs for binary groups will cover this very question), and if you have additional questions, post on Usenet itself, and you're sure to get lots of replies.
Sorry, when it comes to credit card numbers, that's often not accurate.
I'm an e-commerce Web/database programmer, so I've actually built systems like this. I've found through experience that storing the name, expiration date and LAST FOUR digits of the customer's credit card number is all we need for issuing credits, accounting, etc. Even if a hacker were to steal our database (which has never happened), they wouldn't have enough info to make charges on our customer's cards.
IMHO nearly all sites that get their databases of (full) credit card numbers stolen were stupid and asking for trouble for storing all that unnecessary info in the first place (CD Universe, anyone?). I've built completely functional e-commerce businesses which run just fine without it.
Sure, our customers have to re-enter their credit card number (only) each time they visit our site, but so far no one's complained. As a customer myself, I consider it a very small price to pay for the increased security. Wouldn't you?