The Vancouver Sun from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada • 102

E6 THE VANCOUVER SUN. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26. 1998 NETWORKS. Automatic dialing curse foiled by readers John Dvorak Readers frustrated by the experience of automatic Internet connection have discovered 9999 tips on how to deal with the annoyance. bringing distributed computing and similar technologies to the desktop, we need tools to monitor our connections and to deny them before our computers dial out andor turn CPU cycles over to unknown individuals," Good point! The next letter from S.

Samuels I suspect is still one more possible problem and a way of correcting this situation: "I had the same extremely annoying problem as McPhail, whose letter to you appeared in today's column. Here's how I finally corrected it Follow the path: startsettingscontrol mailconnectionschedulecheck new messages every minutes. Then type in 9999 minutes (the maximum). The program will automatically check for new messages upon opening the computer (and will not do this again until after 9999 minutes have passed, if you leave the computer turned on for that long)." I hope this helps. i Visit http: www.dvorak.org for latest columns I A more obscure situation crops up in this situation described by B.

Clancy: "In reference to the comment about a computer dialing out by itself, we encountered the same problem with my son's computer. Our home computers are networked, using a free utility called hhproxy to share a single modem to access the Internet from all computers. My son had been using the Internet for online gaming. Though the proxy made it impossible to play online games, it did monitor all network traffic through the modem and we discovered his computer was dialing out to one of the gaming sites. The requests for connections which came up most often were for mic.zone.com or www.zone.com.

We do not want to think Microsoft has anything to do with this, but some of the software which may have been coming from those sites may have been the problem. We do know for sure though de-installing the gaming software seemed to solve the problem. This experience makes it clear that in this increasingly networked age, with programmers In a recent Ask Dvorak column a problem was described whereby a machine kept automatically dialing the Internet and could not be stopped. It turns out that many readers have had a similar problem. Here are their letters with various tips for resolution.

The first comes from P. Stacker "Joha.your articles are always interesting and one in today's SUN is particularly interesting. My son has exactly the same problem as your second question about random connecting to the net Since first getting it he has had reason to format his hard drive and reload but that did not get rid of it, by the process of elimination he thinks it came when he downloaded 'Real Player' in association with a program. As a temp fix he has taken it off automatic dial-up and uses a password and that works." Stacker wrote in again later and said that his son removed the Real Player and the problem completely ended. I've personally had no such experience with Real Player and assume there is something anomalous with this his sys- Mcphail should take a look at that.

In the meantime, maybe he should take the 'connect automatically' check off the dial-up options." Turning off the 'connect automatically' function seems to be the heart of one problem as explained by J. Wylie: "Today I read your column in The Vancouver Sun and found an interesting coincidence. L. McPhail wrote that their computer was connecting to the Internet by itself for no apparent rea-soa I have had a similar experience, however I have set the automatic login switch off (in dial up networking) so it does not automatically connect." tem. Perhaps it's best explained in this letter from A.

Bryan: "I recently had the same problem of automatic internet connectioa I couldn't for the life of me figure out what it was. I looked. everywhere for a program that was calling the dialer. It always happened when I loaded up the machine or after I had it suspended. I noticed it would the dialer would pop up while it was loading my startup programs, so I took RealPlayer G2 off it's SmartStart because it would pop up while that was loading.

The dialer hasn't popped up since. So maybe L. Saving Zelda gives elves eye-popping adventures net. sites internet.directory www. vaneouversun.com Katherine Monk CRAFTSMAN COLLISION www.craftsmancollision.com PACIFIC HONDA www.pacitic-honda.com MERCEDES BENZ SELECTED PRE-OWNED 209.153.207.87 THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: OCARINA OF TIME Platform: Nintendo 64 Developer: Nintendo Players: One Stars: 5 If you have a child, you've probably heard everything you ever wanted to know about The Legend of Zelda already.

You've heard how the Zelda franchise has already racked up 25 million units in sales. You've been told about the limited gold edition. You've heard about the game's turbo-powered graphics and 256 megs of memory. You've probably even gone out and reserved your very own copy of the game for $10 at the nearest toy retailer to avoid a teary Christmas. Good for you.

You did the right thing, because the new Zelda, Ocarina of Time, miraculously lives up the hype. MADAME CLEO'S Vancouver's Hottest Website www.madamecleos.com hackneyed fairy tale featuring ogres and pretty maidens, the pictures themselves possess detail, depth and ease of motion that no other game (on a fixed console) has ever achieved. The eye candy is altogether pacifying, leaving the gamer more than just a little stunned. To be honest, I sat there and watched the whole set-up play itself out for a good five or ten minutes thinking I was watching a movie before I had to wipe the drool off my chin and push a button. Fortunately, when the time PARKERS MATTRESS FACTORY www.parkersmattress.com GAMES PEOPLE PLAY Like its previous incarnations, Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a role playing game where the player must weave his or her way through a variety of landscapes, hazards, battles and logic puzzles to free Princess Zelda from the dark forces at Death Mountain.

While there is nothing all that novel about the set-up itself, being little more than a I i THE VANCOUVER SUN www.vancouversun.com comes to take action, it hap- Eens very gradually: You, the ero elf named Link, are beckoned out of bed by a fairy who tells you that you're needed in the forest. Parents trying to justify any educational value to the purchase can take heart: the dialogue scrolls across the bottom of the screen, meaning your little gamer must know how to read. (Well, at least it demands some brain activity.) Reading makes up a great portion of the game as every RCMP PHOTO RADAR www.uniserve.comphotoradar sign, direction and skill must' enk, 'METROPOLITAN FINE PRINTERS INC www.metprinters.com REMAX PERFORMANCE REALTY Moss David www.househuntinebc.com 36S W.B roadway Ph S72-OSOO Mon Sat tO-6 Over 1000 titles in stock www.sonwarepc.com Games Productivity Act 4 79 HOMESELLERS NETWORK Adobe Acrobat 3jCN 109 Adobe Illustrator 7 199 BC Homes For Sale By Owner. www.bchomesellers.com FREE! Online Learning Training Showcase Adobe Illustrator 299 Adobe Pagemakr6 329 BC INTERNET HOME SALES Adobe PagemillV3 109 Adobe Photoshop 5 429 Homes tor sale by owner! List for Axis Allies Caesar3 Chessmasttr6000 Commandos Enemij Infestation European Air War Final Fantasy VII grand Theft Auto firand Priix legends Half Ufa Hong Kong Mahjong Cord Draw 169 www.Dcnomesrorsaie.com i-ii 1 1 1 1 it- i r-1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Corel Word Perfect 8 69 Cord WP 99 Linux Red Hat Pro 59 lotus Smart SuKe97 44 Lotus Smart Suite MUI64 Mcaffe Virus Nuts 34 See how organizations are using computer and web-based training in the workplace Work HANDS-ON with multimedia training tools. Jeopard NORTHWEST DIGITAL Authorized Technical Education Centre www.nwd.bc.com KUngon Honor Guard 59 MS Frontpage 98 149 MS Office 97 Pro 339 UnksLS6olf99 59 Madden 99 54 Might Magic 6 44 MS Project 98 279 Education Algeblasta 19 Anastasia 24 Arthur's Teacher Trb 14 Barbie Cool Fashion 49 Barbie Hair Styler 29 Cat In The Hat 24 CosmopolitanMakeOv 39 Crayola Art Studio 14 Curious George 19 Disney 101 Damnation 24 Disney Alladin Math 029 Disney Hercules Act 29 Disney Hercules Stry 29 Disney Hunchback St 29 Disney Magic Artist 29 Disney Toy Story Act 29 Fisher Ft Doll House 14 Fisher Pr Sreat Castle 14 Fisher Pri Pirate Ship 14 Fisher Price Western 14 Jutnpstart Kindergart 19 Jumpstart Pre 19 Kid Phonics 2 19 Kid Pix Studio 19 Lego Island 24 Mavis Typing Vers.9 44 Reader Rabbit 14 Reading Blaster 19 Science Blaster Jr 14 Storybook Treasure Mountain 14 UhimateChUdrenEncyl4 Where is Carmen 19 Where in timeCarmen 19 Winnie ThePooh Story24 Winnie The Pooh Print24 MS Publisher 98 119 MS Visual Basic 6Pro 99 MS Visual Pro V6 99 SIGNATURE VACATIONS Monaco Grand Prix 2 54 Monopoly 29 MS Combat Flight 69 NBA 99 54 Need For Speed 3 56 Wednesday, December 16th, 1998 to BCIT Downtown Campus, Room 284 555 Seymour Vancouver, BC www.signature.ca MS Visual Studio 6 499 MSWindows98Upgd 124 MS Windows NT 4 119 FLIGHT CENTRE MS Win NT ServS usr 749 telesales.caflightcentre.com NHL 99 49 Railroad Tycoon 2 59 Raindow6 56 Red Alert domination 44 Riven (Myst 2) 39 Scrabble 29 WD WORLD TRAVEL 687-8836 Norton Antivirus 29 Norton Crashguard 19 Norton System Works69 Norton UninstaDDlx 19 www.wdtravel.com 2 For more information, or to register, call 985-8774 or e-mail us at: workshopsinfopointer.com InfoPoint: "Making Multimedia Training Easy" Shogo 59 Sin 59 Starcraft 39 49 119 69 79 EDGEWATER LODGE Tiger Woods Sotf 99 S4 Norton Utilities PaintShop Pro Partition Magic PC Anywhere VIA Voice (IBM) Simply 3D Talkworks Pro WinfaxProS spasser 59 Lodging Dining on Green Lake www.edgewater-lodge.com 49 249 69 uc uigcsicu luiuugu uic written word.

This provide? a nice, and much-needed break from the overpowering reti-' nal stimulation and stffss factors that can turn a six-- year-old into a dysfunctional bundle of blown nerves. Remember, this is still a video game, however. Stress disorders are part of the beast and time limits on. gameplay are always a good idea staring at any screen for more than two hours isn't good for anybody, especially a kid with budding brain cells. I Several features make the game relatively gentle for first-timers, including a training area to give you a feel for the controls, automatic prompts on the screen, a detailed map and a new option that lets you face the right direction with the push of a button.

I That said, some of the new features proved to be a bit of a nuisance. For insfeanie, when played with a Rum-blePak (the vibrating controller add-on) you get buzzed during the narrative set-up, when you hear the roll of thunder and pretty nuch any time you bump into something you shouldn't have. This can interfere with your all-important concentration and I eventually decided to play without the jiggle machine, Believe it or not, there's also a downside to the excellent graphics: when you die, it looks positively gruesome. I got hit by a rolling rock and after watching my blood pour into the dirt for the fourth time (complete with awful stereo screeches), I felt a little nauseous. The sickness was amplified by changing the camera angles, which proved to be disorienting for the first few hours of gameplay.

That said, the game has so many different levels, secret places and enemies to defeat that it will no doubt take a long, long time to finish. That's good news for gamers who can look forward to days of thunder, mystery and adventure. It's even better news for parents who will never want to hear another word about Zelda until next Christmas whenyno doubt, you'll be harassed anew. The legend Unreal 49 Wheel of Fortune 29 You Don't Know Jack 14 WILDWOOD LODGE ON BLACKCOMB Add .95 to prices shown Prices and availability subject to change (generally lowerX http:www.wildwoodlodge.com INTERNATIONAL VACATIONS INC. mui I Lrntos It llccesserissl 111 www.internationalvacation.com EmSi'sluiisiKateSsskBsseller rTHINK BIG CONCEPTS INC.

Website design, web hosting, url listing Duy Lease Online vcr ISO r.ledcls! www.thmkbig.net 730-8950 wro.notctcslicity.ccrn COMPAQ. Compaq Preiario 1235 Visit Netsites on the Web! Netsites is published on the Vancouver Sun's website at www.vancouversun.com Visit the Networks section via the main index. Pll -100MHz Mainboard 64MB PC 100 RAM 8MB AGP 168BIT Video 3D 16 Bit Sound 56KV90 VoiceFax Modem 6.4GB UATA Hard Drive 40XUDMA CD Rom Panasonic Floppy Windows Keyboard 2B Mouse 100W Speaker 15" SVGA Monitor Included 266Mhz4G32MB12.1HPA24X16Bit56K Acer txtefua 368D S2470 lent SWrnKVLuniid Ojy $1020 leo.SOmWllto $3000 UwilUnMiillMlfr 233Mmx3.2C32M12.1D5IN20X16Bi56K Toihibo Satellite 4020CDT PH 300W6.4G32JW13.3 XGiIE24X16Bif Audio Toshiba Tecra 8000 S4CS0 LwiMMWLnruledQiy: 3 YEAR LABOUR 1 YEAR PART WARRNTY 1 MONTH FREE INTERNET OPERATING SYSTEM NOT INCLUDED VISIT EOTH LOCATIONS TO SEE THE 7 LATEST COMPUTER SYSTEMS, I EQUIPMENTS COMPUTER PARTS Pll 266IW4G32B12.1 lfI24X16Bil AudioFax 56K TOSHIBA COMPAQ. FujfrSU Cackar" Intelli All listings are hotlinked to the advertiser's website To advertise your website in this directory call: Jamie Leigh at 605-2356 or Peter Ryznar at 605-2494 SHARP Rnn irJW.JIwiTrWmTfl"! We will beat ujmes price ei ill trail mes iiiriiteed iJi7ij.r:oTEcnn:iciTY.cc:.i mil riMMMI I uaum rTTi.a.i email: salesaspert.co http:www.aspert.com 3.