A: The built-in backup program in your iMacs, called Time Machine, doesn’t require Apple’s Time Capsule product to work. It will work with almost any brand of directly connected external hard disk.

For instance, I back up my home iMac to a Western Digital drive that’s connected to it via a cable.

As for hard-drive life, it’s my experience that many seem to die sooner or later, especially if they are used heavily. I don’t know if the ones inside the Time Capsule are especially fragile. But, in just the past six months, I’ve had an external hard disk from G-Tech die on me; seen an internal hard disk on my home Dell die for a second time; and discovered that the hard disk on my colleague’s MacBook died.

One way to protect against the failure of a local backup drive is to consider, in addition to using an external disk, backing up your data to an online backup service like Mozy, Carbonite or SugarSync.

My Dell has Microsoft Vista but I can upgrade free to the new Windows 7. However, I was told my antivirus software won’t be compatible and my email will change—the program will no longer be “Windows Mail.” What do you recommend?

A: I regard Windows 7 as much better than Vista, but you are correct that many antivirus programs will require upgrading and Windows Mail will go away during the upgrade. You’ll have to install a new email program, such as the very similar “Windows Live Mail,” which can import your messages. So, the question really is one of trade-offs. If you’re satisfied with Vista, and would rather not perform these program replacements, you should stand pat. If you don’t like Vista, and are anxious to replace it, then the hassles you describe could be worth it.

Will Office 2003 work with the new Windows 7 operating system?

A: Microsoft, which makes both products, says the answer is yes, though I haven’t tested it.

Is it possible that the Verizon Motorola Droid, which doesn’t work in Europe, could be turned into a “world phone” that could work on European cellphone networks via an app somebody might develop?

A: An app wouldn’t be able to do that for the current Verizon Droid. It’s a hardware issue.

Verizon’s Droid, like most Verizon phones, is built to run on a type of network called CDMA that isn’t used in Europe or most other countries outside the U.S., which use a network standard called GSM.

To run on these networks, the Droid, or any other current CDMA phone, would need an entirely different radio, or two radios, one for each type of network.

Verizon offers a handful of so-called “world phones,” which have both kinds of radios inside, but the Droid isn’t one of them. Motorola may well make a new model with two radios, or even a model with one radio that would work overseas, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it did so.

What could be done with an app is to allow the Droid to make so-called VOIP phone calls via the Internet.

In fact, while I haven’t checked, there may already be such an app for Android—the Droid’s operating system—that would do so. But, in many cases, making such Internet phone calls requires the user to be in range of a Wi-Fi network. Some carriers don’t allow such calls to be made over their cellular networks.

You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online for free at the All Things Digital Web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

A: You will begin to see more touch-screen laptops after Oct. 22, when Windows 7 comes out, because that new operating system has optional fingertip touch-screen navigation built in. In addition, many of the major Windows PC makers are adding their own touch-navigation systems to newer models.

However, I’d offer two caveats. First, not every touch screen will be capable of performing all the multitouch actions and gestures Windows 7 will offer. Some are more limited in their capabilities.

Second, the hardware makers will likely be cautious at first about adding fully capable touch screens to all or most of their laptops.

This is partly because these screens can add significant cost in a price-conscious market, and partly because nobody is certain how popular touch-screen navigation will be on laptops as opposed to, say, on all-in-one desktops where reaching for the screen is more obvious and natural.

I have an Apple iMac, and an Apple iPhone with around 122 apps. My question is, why don’t these iPhone apps work on the iMac? Both units use the same operating system, so why not?

A: While the iPhone and the iMac each use a version of the same operating system, Apple’s OS X, they aren’t the same operating systems. The version on the iPhone is stripped down, and has been modified to support an entirely different user interface, navigation system and set of hardware capabilities.

So there are two separate collections of apps, or programs, that run on the two platforms.

I am currently running Windows Vista Ultimate on my Dell PC. I have regretted it ever since I upgraded from XP because of its terribly slow performance. I have heard good things about Windows 7 but I am afraid I will have to buy the more expensive Ultimate upgrade (which I don’t really need) instead of an upgrade to Home Premium or Professional. Is that true?

A: According to Microsoft, owners of Vista Ultimate can only perform an “in-place upgrade” to Windows 7 Ultimate, not to lesser versions. An “in-place upgrade” is the type most people think of, the type where all your programs and files and settings are preserved just as they were, but you emerge with the new operating system.

Even then, you must be careful to buy the edition of Ultimate that matches the type of architecture your machine possesses, either 32-bit or 64-bit.

However, you can downgrade to the Home Premium or Professional versions of Windows 7, if you are willing to do a lot more work, by opting for what Microsoft calls a “custom installation,” something commonly known as a “clean install.” This typically means, first, backing up all your files and settings to an external hard disk, then allowing the Windows 7 installation disk to wipe your hard disk clean before installing your preferred version of Windows 7.

You would then copy back all your files. But you cannot do the same with your programs. For these, you would have to reinstall every one, from their original disks or downloaded installation files, and then download and re-install all the patches and program upgrades that have been issued by their makers since you acquired them.

You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online for free at the All Things Digital Web site,

http://walt.allthingsd.com.

I haven’t tested campusbackup.org, whose Student Backup service copies an unlimited quantity of word-processing, spreadsheet, presentation and PDF files, once nightly, to a remote server for $50 a year. But there are other, more versatile options I have tested that, unlike Student Backup, copy photos and music and other types of files. These include MozyHome ($4.95 a month for unlimited storage, at mozy.com) and Carbonite ($55 a year for unlimited storage at carbonite.com). All three work with either Windows or Mac computers.

I read that importing the newly remastered Beatles CDs into iTunes and listening to them on a computer or portable player is like buying a masterpiece and staring at a photocopy of it. Any truth to this? Does importing really lose that much quality?

It depends on how sensitive an ear you have. In most cases, when you import a CD into iTunes or any other software jukebox program, you are converting the songs into a compressed file, such as an MP3 or AAC file. This saves a ton of space on your hard disk, but at least subtly diminishes quality. To an audiophile, that can make a big, negative difference, especially when you add the insult of listening to the music through iPod headphones or small computer speakers. To most of the rest of us, though—especially with rock, pop, urban or country music—it’s no big deal.

However, there is a compromise. If you don’t care about the songs taking up lots more space on your hard disk, iTunes will allow you to import them in a much less compressed format called Apple Lossless or an uncompressed format called WAV. You can choose which format to use in the iTunes Preferences settings. In the latest version of iTunes, called iTunes 9, this particular option is found under the General tab in Preferences, by clicking on the button called “Import Settings.”

Previously I had a Dell and Windows and used Family Tree Maker for genealogy records. Now that I’m an Apple owner, I find that Family Tree Maker does not work on an Apple, only Windows. What can I do about this?

It seems to me that you have three obvious options. If you still have your old Dell, you could crank it up again just for the purpose of running Family Tree Maker. Or, you could buy a boxed copy of Windows and install it on your Mac, which is fully capable of running Windows and Windows programs (assuming it’s an Intel-based Mac). Finally, you could switch to one of the native Mac-based genealogy programs and import your data from Family Tree Maker via the standard GEDCOM file format used in genealogy. One such program, called Reunion, includes specific instructions on importing data from Family Tree Maker on its “Top 10 Questions” page, at leisterpro.com.

You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online for free at the new All Things Digital web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

In your review of Amazon’s Kindle 2 e-book reader, you didn’t say much about its ability to display newspapers, magazines and blogs. How does it do with this type of content?

The new model’s handling of periodicals and blogs is quite similar to that of the old model’s, which is why I didn’t dwell on it. This wasn’t an area where Amazon changed much.

While I know some Kindle owners happily rely on the device for newspaper reading, in my opinion, the Kindle doesn’t do as well with periodicals and blogs as devices like laptops and the best smart phones. Its ability to render the content optimally is limited by its low-power monochrome screen, and its navigation system is fairly primitive compared to that on a laptop or a good smart phone. Kindle’s features were built mainly for books, which, unlike periodicals, don’t contain links and prompt little navigation in most pages.

Whenever I watch an Internet movie, the monitor on my desktop Vista PC shuts off every 10 minutes unless I touch the keyboard. How can I solve this problem?

Unless your monitor has its own feature that turns itself off after some time period, this is usually easily controllable from within Vista. You simply need to go into the Control Panel, find the power settings, and set the option for automatically turning off the display to “never,” or to some very long interval. Remember to re-enable the screen dimming feature after you’re done with the movie, so you don’t waste energy. If this doesn’t work, check to see if the manufacturer has installed its own software for controlling power settings. If so, you may have to change the settings there.

I am retired and would like to buy a small, wireless computer for travel that would have email and Internet software and very few other applications. The keyboard would be bigger than a Blackberry’s and smaller than a laptop’s. Can you recommend something?

I would look for a so-called “netbook.” These are little laptops, with screens generally 10 inches or smaller, that usually weigh almost nothing and sell for under $500. They typically come with relatively slow processors and relatively limited storage, but every one that I’ve seen is wireless and does a decent job with email and the Internet. There are many models, from companies like Acer, Asus, Hewlett Packard, Lenovo and Dell.

• You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online free of charge at the new All Things Digital Web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

Do you still recommend the Dell XPS One all-in-one computer that you favorably reviewed last December? I am not a techie at all but need to replace my 5-year-old Dell and was interested in an all-in-one.

Yes. In fact, I now own two of these Dell XPS Ones and use them as my Vista desktop computers, at home and in the office. I still believe, as I wrote in my review, that this Dell’s hardware is superior to that of the competing Apple iMac, though the Vista operating system is inferior to Apple’s. And the base XPS One now costs the same as the base iMac — $1,199 — instead of $300 more, as it did last year. So, if you want the Windows operating system, and like the look and convenience of an all-in-one desktop, I still favor the XPS One. You can find my review at tinyurl.com/2xw 6mv.

Will Apple’s new MacBooks and MacBook Pros run Windows directly without an intervening “virtual machine” program like Parallels or Fusion?

Yes. All Apple Macs running the current Leopard operating system, including the new laptops, come with the ability to directly run Windows XP or Vista. Using Apple’s built-in “Boot Camp” feature, you can start up the computer in Windows, instead of the Mac’s own operating system, which turns the Mac into a pure Windows machine, with no trace of the Mac operating system running. The upsides of this approach are maximum Windows speed, and compatibility with the most graphics-intensive Windows programs, including games. Note that, to run Windows on a Mac, you must obtain and install a fresh, boxed, full version of XP or Vista. Apple doesn’t supply Windows.

I have a Yahoo email account, and wonder if Yahoo allows receipt and storage of email directly via a computer email program, such as Outlook, or is it all Web storage? Can you do both?

Yes. Yahoo offers a “Plus” option, for $20 a year, that permits users to receive and store their Yahoo email using a locally installed, instead of Web-based, email program. This approach does work with Microsoft Office, as well as many other local email programs. And you can still use Yahoo’s Web-based email interface at the same time. The Plus option also includes other benefits, including the elimination of ads and a doubling of the size limit on individual messages, to 20 megabytes.

• You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online free of charge at the new All Things Digital Web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

Does any PC manufacturer offer an option to order a Windows (MSFT) PC without any extra software preinstalled?

Dell’s XPS models can be ordered without most preloaded third-party software if you are very careful about clicking all the “no” options when ordering online. But you still are likely to find yourself with Dell’s (DELL) own sometimes annoying networking software.

I have two Windows machines, one for work and one for home. Both use Outlook for email. How can I best transfer many emails from the machine at work to the one at home and still be able to read them in Outlook — without forwarding them all?

Outlook has an “Import and Export” function that will allow you to export any of your email folders to, say, a transferable medium such as an external hard disk or flash drive. You can then take this removable medium to the home computer, plug it in, fire up Outlook, and then import the folder you had exported earlier at work. You can find these import and export functions under Outlook’s File menu.

Can Internet Explorer and Firefox 3.0 coexist on the same computer?

Yes. In fact, you can have 2, 3, or 4 different Web browsers installed on the same personal computer, whether Windows or Mac (AAPL). You can even run different browsers simultaneously. For instance, as I type this, I am running IE 7, Firefox 3.0 and Safari 3.0 on the same computer at the same time.

The only slight hassle is that you will have to decide which to designate as the default browser, the one that launches when, say, you click on a link in an email.

• You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online for free at the new All Things Digital web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

After reading your positive review, I downloaded Firefox 3.0, only to discover that some of my favorite add-ons, including a search toolbar, are incompatible. What can I do about this?

Wait. As I noted in the review, when major new versions of Firefox come out, it takes a while for some of the many add-ons for the browser to be updated so they are compatible with the new version. Because these are written by a very large number of different companies and individuals, the process will be gradual, and some will be updated more quickly than others.

As for search toolbars, like those from Google (GOOG) and Yahoo (YHOO), I doubt that most people still need them. When they first came out, these toolbars provided things the top browsers lacked: a permanent search box, pop-up blocking and a few other useful features. But all the major browsers now provide these things without requiring the installation of any external toolbar. The companies that make the toolbars can use them to sell advertising or attract you to their search engines. But, for many users today, they are redundant.

I don’t want to run antivirus software constantly, but I would like to periodically run a program that could scan my computer and remove viruses and the like. Does such a program exist?

Yes. Here’s one example. Microsoft (MSFT) makes a small, free program called the Malicious Software Removal Tool that looks for, and tries to remove, a limited number of the worst examples of malicious software. It can be downloaded at www.microsoft.com/security/malwareremove.

However, this isn’t a comprehensive antivirus program. Microsoft says it detects and removes only “specific, prevalent malicious software,” and advises that “You should also use up-to-date antivirus software to help protect your computer from other malicious software.”

I am in the market for a laptop. I was considering a Dell (DELL) or an H-P (HPQ) but have learned that Apples now run Windows. I have financial (Quicken) and other business files (Excel, Word and PowerPoint) that would need to be transferred to the new computer. Would this be possible on an Apple (AAPL)?

Yes, in the same ways you could transfer files from one Windows PC to another. For example, you could burn them to a CD or DVD, copy them to an external USB drive, or transfer them over a network or via the Internet. In fact, if you buy your Mac at an Apple retail store, the store’s staff will move your files over free, or for a modest fee, depending on which folders, and how many, you want transferred.

Once the files are on the Mac, you can either use native Mac programs to read and/or modify them, or you can install Windows and run your usual Windows programs to handle the files.

For instance, even if you never installed Windows on an Apple, your Excel, Word and PowerPoint files could be used in the Mac version of Microsoft Office. However, the Mac version of Quicken isn’t as compatible with the Windows version’s files. So, for Quicken, I suggest installing Windows on the Mac and running the Windows version of Quicken.

• You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online for free at the new All Things Digital web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

Last week, when you wrote about the ChaCha cellphone search service, you didn’t say how they make money. Are they collecting phone numbers from customers so they can send spam text messages, or sell the numbers to others who will do so?

ChaCha allows you to ask any Web-searchable question, by speaking it or texting it over a mobile phone, and then it sends you the answer via text message. The company charges consumers nothing, but says it is hoping to make money by striking deals with cellphone carriers to incorporate the ChaCha service into their current 411 phone-number look-up services. Also, it hopes to eventually include ads in the text message answers it provides.

In addition to the message that includes the answer, ChaCha sends you a message saying it is working on your request and restating your question, so you can see if it understood you correctly. It also sends an introductory text message to first-time users and occasional tips on how to use the service. Scott Jones, ChaCha’s chief executive, asserts that “we do not spam” and “we never make phone numbers and/or email addresses available to others.” He said the company is updating its privacy policy to make that clearer.

We have DSL service. I use several Web-based applications, one of which is online backup, and my husband is concerned that they degrade his use of the Web, which includes creating Web sites. I contend that that is like saying turning on one light bulb is using too much electricity, that two people on one DSL line aren’t using up too much bandwidth. Who is right?

Every situation differs, depending on exactly which programs you are each using, how you have them set, whether you are using them simultaneously, and how fast your DSL connection is. However, in general, your husband is correct that it is possible for heavy Internet usage on one computer in a home to slow down Internet speeds on another.

This is especially true with something like online backup, because it relies on your DSL account’s upload speed, which is typically far slower than the download speed. If your online backup program is trying to push a bunch of files over a slow upload connection, while he is in another room trying to upload new versions of a Web site over the same narrow upload pipe, it could affect the speeds he gets. You might try coordinating or staggering those online activities that involve heavy uploading. Normal Web surfing or emailing shouldn’t require any such coordination.

I am thinking about purchasing a Dell (DELL) XPS One all-in-one desktop, but I have one question. Does the Dell’s built-in TV tuner require any extra attachments to watch TV right out of the box?

You can watch over-the-air stations and analog basic cable stations right out of the box, without added equipment. However, you may want to connect a small desktop antenna to improve reception, which is what I did when I tested this machine. To use the XPS One with digital or premium cable or satellite stations, you would have to connect it to a cable or satellite receiver, just as most people do with their TV sets. This requires the use of an adapter that comes with the machine.

• You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online for free at the new All Things Digital web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

I am considering the purchase of the MacBook Air (AAPL). If this computer freezes up, as my current Dell Inspiron does on occasion, how would I correct for that? I usually remove and then replace the battery on the Dell (DELL). But what would I do if this happens with the Air, since it has no removable battery?

You can force a frozen MacBook Air — or any current Mac laptop — to shut down and restart without removing its battery. You just hold down the power button for a few seconds until the machine shuts off, then wait a few seconds, then turn it on again.

I am a Verizon (VZ) customer and have a Palm (PALM) Treo 700W for personal use. I would like to replace the Treo but, in light of Verizon’s announced “open network” policy, I am wondering if this is the right time.

It’s far too early to know what new phones will be available under the new Verizon program, since that depends on which phone makers decide to make devices to run on the “open” network, and what kinds of devices they might produce. There is the potential for phones that are more creative or interesting than what is available today, but it’s only a potential. Verizon has just laid out the first details of the plan, and no product announcements are likely for quite a while. If your Treo needs replacing soon, and you want to remain a Verizon customer, you will have to choose from the company’s current smart-phone offerings.

Are there any cellphones that allow for two separate phone numbers? Right now I carry two devices, both with the same carrier.

At least in the U.S., each cellphone, or each SIM card that goes in a phone, is normally tied to a single number. To use two numbers on a single phone, you could purchase an unlocked phone running on a GSM network and then purchase two SIM cards, each with a separate number, and swap them in and out. But that would be an inconvenient process, since inserting and removing SIM cards typically requires opening the phone and even removing the battery.

You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online free of charge at the new All Things Digital Web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.

I listen to opera and other music in languages other than English. Much of this music comes with lyrics and English translations. I like listening on my MP3 player, but I don’t like having to carry around the CD notes to read while I listen. Is there a portable player that would allow me to read the lyrics while I listen?

Yes. The Apple iPods are capable of displaying lyrics while you listen. This capability has been on the standard iPods and on iPod Nanos for a while, and has just been added to the new iPod Touch and to the iPhone. It requires the lyrics to be entered into the song file, either manually or by cutting and pasting.

You enter lyrics using Apple’s companion iTunes software, on either a Windows or a Macintosh computer. To do so, you select the song, then, from the File menu, click on “Get Info.” You then select the tab called “Lyrics,” which brings up an empty window. You can type in the lyrics or first copy them from a Web site (or other source) and then paste them into this window. You then click OK, and, when you synchronize the song with your iPod, the lyrics come with it.

On the standard iPod itself, to view the lyrics while listening, you press the large center button multiple times until the lyrics appear. On the iPod Touch and iPhone, you tap on the image of the album cover while a song is playing. If the song file contains lyrics, they appear.

Does Kodak’s photo software allow one to add titles to the photo — for instance, names of people in group shots?

Yes, as with most photo software, you can add captions or titles to pictures organized inside the Kodak EasyShare software that runs on your computer. You can also add captions to pictures you upload to Kodak’s online photo organizer, which is called Kodak Gallery.

I want to give our five-year-old Dell with Windows XP to a charitable organization. How do I assure myself that all my personal files are safely removed?

One option is to reformat the hard disk, which would leave the computer unusable unless you or the charity bought and installed a copy of Windows, or obtained and installed a free copy of the Linux operating system.

The other option is to leave the operating system and programs intact but “wipe,” or permanently delete, all the personal files that concern you, using a “file wiper” program that overwrites the contents of the file with nonsense data. There are a variety of such programs, including some that are free. To find these, go to download.com and search for “file wipe” or “file wiper.” If you’re willing to spend $30, you might want to use a program I have tested and can recommend called Window Washer, available at webroot.com. It has a “bleaching” function that wipes files, and also has the ability to erase any tracks left by your Web browser.

You can find Mossberg’s Mailbox, and my other columns, online free of charge at the new All Things Digital Web site, http://walt.allthingsd.com.