Too cool. Check out Google SMS to find out how you can use Google on your cell phone via text messages.

Javacool Software has released the latest version of SpywareBlaster, a free tool for preventing spyware. I’m not sure what the difference is between this and version 3.2, but you’ll need to install version 3.3 in order to get the latest definition files, which is generally a good idea, especially if you’re still using Internet Explorer. Personally I much prefer Firefox due to its tabbed browsing, integrated search, live bookmarks, and cool extensions that let you obliterate ads from a web page.

By the way, if you already have a spyware infestation, you’ll need to get some tools to eliminate it from your computer. Check out my “Public Service Announcement: Dealing with Spyware” from last July for tips on how to do it.

If you’re sure you don’t have spyware and your computer is still behaving a bit sluggish, you might want to check out Black Viper, buy some memory, or buy a new computer.

Be sure to check out that last link like now:

Inspiron 8600 + $27 – Add $27, Use $750 off coupon = $749 shipped

But don’t be a cheap bastard. Get the high-res WUXGA (I think that’s the one) so you don’t have to buy an external monitor like me.

If you live in the LA area, especially the Westside, I recommend you check out Uncle Darrow’s restaurant in Marina Del Rey. They primarily serve Cajun/Creole food, but I go there for the Chicken Supper: three crispy, meaty wings served with a side of red beans and rice, potato salad, and hush puppies spiced with bits of jalapeno. Not necessarily the best fried chicken I’ve ever had, but really flavorful and light on the grease factor. Friendly people, too; tonight I sped home from campus to try to catch them before they closed, but only managed to sneak in the door as they were printing out their receipts for the day. Suck. I must have looked hungry and pathetic because they graciously offered me some jambalaya and red beans on the house.

For Blogger users…

Let’s face it. Blogger sucks. You type up a great big entry, click Post, and watch with horror as an error page comes up. You click back, already knowing that your latest blogging masterpiece has dissipated into the ether. After a few times, you start copying and pasting your words into a Word document before posting as a precautionary measure, but Goddammit, it shouldn’t have to be this way.

Unfortunately, the only real way to get around Blogger’s sketchiness is to upgrade to a real blogging solution like Movable Type or WordPress.

However, you can reduce some of the pain and misery of using Blogger by using the w.bloggar blogging client.

w.bloggar works on your computer and lets you save posts as local text files. Just click the save button or ctrl-s before publishing and never again will you lose a post to Blogger’s ineptitude.

For everyone…

It’s a pain in the ass to type in the tags to make things boldface, italicized, underlined, or stricken each and every time. Links and images are also a pain. While the addition of DHTML formatting tools helps a bit, I don’t like to click buttons. I like keyboard shortcuts, and I don’t like learning new ones. I don’t like the focus being taken away by a JavaScript dialog box and being forced to click into the textbox to find my place. I don’t like HTML being dumped at the end of post when I really want it placed where I had my insertion point. I don’t like having to go through multiple steps to add images to my posts.

Fortunately with w.bloggar you can get around all of these little productivity-killing aspects of web-based blogging and focus on what you really want to do: blog.

At first you might wonder about a site called Black Viper’s Web Site. I suppose it’s better than Black Viper’s Home Page or Welcome to Black Viper’s Home Page on the World Wide Web!!!, but I digress.

The biggest problem I have with my Dell Inspiron 600 is that it tends to run hot (check out I8kfanGUI if you have a Dell laptop). Under load, the CPU can often reach up to 50 degrees Celsius before the fan kicks in. Heat can hamper performance and even damage your computer. I got myself a little laptop stand that has two built in fans, and that helps a bit–mostly by drawing heat away from the hard drive and memory compartments.

But I still had problems with the CPU experiencing high loads and thus generating heat. I noticed that there were times when I wasn’t doing anything and yet 85-95% of the CPU would be used by a process called cisvc.exe. According to several sites, this was a Windows service, not Spyware or anything malicious. Of course, that doesn’t mean you necessarily want it running.

That’s where Black Viper comes in. Black Viper’s Service Configurations essentially lists the various Windows processes and services, explains what they do, and makes recommendations on whether you want them disabled or not. I suspected cisvc.exe was a completely useless process, but this confirmed that I could safely turn it off. Go ahead and take a peek at the list; you’d be surprised at the number of stupid things that are running at any given time.

Disclaimer: Using I8kfanGUI to override the automatic controls on your fans or Black Viper’s Service Configurations to muck around with Windows carries with it a small element of risk. Personally I think it’s negligible, but don’t come crying to me if you break something.