FAQS! FACTS! FAX! 017 (06/08/96)

OUT OF TIME

With regard to the poor accuracy of PC clocks (FFF! 9/7/96), a program called Socketwatch automatically logs on to a selected master atomic clock whenever an Internet connection is made. It then automatically corrects the PCs clock. It is shareware ($10), small, but only works on Windows 95. It can be found at: http//www.midtenn.net/pub/mirrors/winsock-1/Windows95/time/.

T.F.O

MORE TIME...

For the additional cost of an MSF receiver you can synchronise your PC’s clock to time signals transmitted from Rugby, on a frequency of 60 kHz. This requires only a tiny piece of resident software, available as freeware from many Internet sites.

‘R’.

LAST TIME...

There is a fix in the form of a $10 shareware program called Clock 382, which does what should have been done by the designers of the IBM PC in the first place. It sorts out clock drift in the internal hardware (CMOS) clock, allows the DOS software clock to be periodically relocked to the CMOS clock, adds support for timezones, and more. Enquiries can be made to: Ronald Q. Smith, 11 Black Oak Road, St. Paul, MN 55127-6204 USA, who can also be contacted on CompuServe 71620,514.

A.B.

A

Thanks to these respondents and the many others who came up with suggestions for improving PC time-keeping accuracy. Logging on to atomic clocks on the Internet provides a temporary lock but drift will occur again as soon as the PC goes off-line. The MSF radio clock idea looks promising but as far as we’re aware they’re only available in DIY kit form, from companies such as Maplin Electronics (01702) 554161, moreover a certain amount of expertise and dexterity with a soldering iron is needed to build and install these devices. Clock 382 seems to be the best overall solution so far. According to the information we have, long-term accuracy can be in the order of plus or minus a couple of seconds a month.

CARD SHARKS?

I would like to use the shopping facilities on the Internet but I’m concerned about credit-card fraud. Can you clarify the risks? What does it mean when the retailer says they are a ‘secure site’ and do the credit card companies take any responsibility for fraud on the net? Does Barclay Square, with its close connection with Barclays Bank and Visa card, offer any protection to consumers?

J.P. via Internet

A

Barclays Bank assure us they’ve haven’t had any problems with credit card fraud on the Barclay Square Web site. This requires the use of a Netscape browser in conjunction with encryption software, that ensures that cardholder details cannot be intercepted. An on-screen indicator shows that the encryption system is active. For those unwilling to commit their card numbers to cyberspace, all of the retailers in Barclay Square will take credit card orders over the phone. Card holder liability is the same for all types of transactions, including sales via the Internet. The maximum penalty for Barclays Bank Visa card-holders is £25, (on most other cards it’s £50), though Barclays say that in practice they rarely make such a charge when they’re promptly informed about a lost or stolen card. 

KIDS KEYS

I have a three year old daughter who loves playing on my PC, but she can’t cope with the upper-case letters on the keyboard. Does anyone manufacture a keyboard with only lower-case keys?

G.T. via Internet

We’ve drawn a blank on this one. There used be something called the Kids Keyboard, sold through PC World for around £40, but that appears to have been a conventional QWERTY keyboard, dressed up in a colourful case. Tomy, the toy manufacturer, produce the Comfy Keyboard, but this is simply a keypad, designed to work with a range of specially-written games. You could always modify a normal keyboard, by sticking labels over the keys, or, better still, give your daughter a head-start and introduce her to upper case letters.