This week in Contacts Anita called in asking how to get her computer to show the time in standard instead of military time. Miralyn also called in, asking how to combine partitions in her hard drive and Benjamin suggested Partition Commander, Partition Magic, and a few other tools.

Benjamin also gave us a way to view members-only” sites like www.latimes.com without a membership. You can access these sites via other sites which will let you confuse the server. These include www.bugmenot.com, www.googlecache.com, and www.avivadirectory.com/bethebot/. That last one actually fools the site into thinking you’re Google checking out they’re site.

Additionally, Benjamin interviewed Mel from Magic Jack, an inexpensive VoIP which plugs into your computer via USB ports.

Also in lines of phones, Benjamin brought us the Low-down on Femtocells – pricy home service extension phone kits which use your wi-fi to boost your cell signal. Sprint and Verizon both have their own Femtocells, and T-mobile has its own solution called Unlimited Hotspot calling. Obviously these aren’t great choices because of their price, but they show a start. For now, however, I’m sticking to landlines.

Last week was the German Center of Office and Information Technology, the only technology show in the world larger than CES. Its not consumer based, however, and caters to governments, businesses, etc. This is an interesting show to look at because it shows all sorts of new technology, including where viruses are going. It turns out that they are going strong despite the economic crisis. People are all aboard for making money, so the get-rich-quick scams that many viruses hide behind are extremely effective. Make sure you protect yourself, as hackers also use social networking sites to gain information about people. All in all – be careful.