April/May 14

April 14 Newsletter

I hope you are fit and well and enjoying the longer warmer nights.

Here’s a roundup of the latest IT News.

Heartbleed Bug

You’ve probably heard on the news in the last few days about this potentially devastating bug going around the world, called the Heartbleed bug, which supposedly makes any computer (PC or Mac) vulnerable to being hacked into. There is much conflicting advice, ranging from ‘on a scale of 1 to 10, this one is an 11’, to other reports saying the bug has been fixed and there’s no need to change your passwords.

I have no further inside information other than that being published on the news channels.

It would be a major hassle to change every password. As of now, I haven’t done anything about changing my passwords, but I’m keeping an open mind and watching the situation on a daily basis.

If it turns out to be a major danger, I will email you and advise you accordingly, but for the moment, do nothing other than taking the usual security precautions to ensure your computer is virus and malware free.

Windows XP

I have written before about the closure of Microsoft’s support for the good old, trusty and reliable Windows XP, but in case you missed it, here is a reminder.

From April 8^th Microsoft is no longer issuing security updates for Windows XP. The impact of this is unknown, but it could go one of two ways.

It could have little effect on XP users and nothing major will happen.

OR as I suspect, it could be horrendous, with XP users having their computers hacked into and your data being viewed, stolen or deleted completely, or even having their PC infected with viruses or spyware.

My strong advice for anyone still using Windows XP is BUY A NEW COMPUTER NOW. DON’T TAKE THE RISK.

If you are now thinking of buying a new computer, you have a choice of 4 options, depending on your needs and budget:

1. Replace your tower only. You could keep your screen, keyboard and mouse. Costs start from around £300, but Dell do a really good one for £369, click here http://www.dell.com/uk/p/inspiron-3847-desktop/pd?oc=cd84713&model_id=inspiron-3847-desktop

2. New Laptop – Starting from around £350, but if I was buying one today I’d go for something like this: http://www.dell.com/uk/p/inspiron-15r-5537/pd?oc=cnr1515&model_id=inspiron-15r-5537

3. All in One. They are fabulous, giving you a superb slim 23” HD screen, with the computer built into it, so there is no tower. It also has a wireless keyboard & mouse. So an important benefit is the fact that there is only one lead coming out of it, the mains cable, that’s all, everything else is wireless. So no more spaghetti underneath the desk. If I was buying today and could afford to spend £750, I’d go for this one: http://www.dell.com/uk/p/inspiron-15r-5537/pd?oc=cnr1515&model_id=inspiron-15r-5537

4. Apple Mac. They say that once you’ve had Mac, you never go back! And I can see why that is. You simply can’t fault them; they are stylish, efficient and just work perfectly. But they are considerably more expensive than a Windows computer, with laptops starting from £950 going up to £2,200, http://www.johnlewis.com/laptops/apple=brand/c80000398 and IMac desktops starting from £1,150 - £1,750 http://www.johnlewis.com/electricals/desktop-pcs/apple=brand/c60000874?showAll=&sortOption=priceLow

Microsoft Office for Free!

Microsoft’s flagship Office suite is still one of the world’s most popular programmes, with around 90% of Windows computers running some form of it. If you wanted the latest version of Office 2013, prices start from around £95.00 going up to £324 for the top of the range package.

However, Microsoft has just announced they have revamped their totally FREE version of Office, called Office Online. It has been around for about a year, but it is now easier to find and use.

As the name suggests, it is all done online, so an Internet connection is required. Your files are saved online so therefore accessible from any internet connected computer or tablet.

Try it, it’s really good. It gives you fully featured versions of Word, Excel & PowerPoint.

Go to www.office.com and take a look.

AOL Emails hacked

I simply do not understand why Internet giants like Yahoo and AOL are still unable to stop the continual hacking of their customers’ email accounts. In the last few days alone, I’ve received 4 emails from AOL and Yahoo email users, who did not send them out, but a spoof email has been sent from their email account to all of their contacts, with no covering message other than a link to a dodgy website.

If you are a Yahoo or AOL user, my advice is to change your email password NOW and your security information e.g. mother’s maiden name.

If you have been a victim of hacking, you understand the frustration and inconvenience it causes, and you should also take a full backup of your emails (Inbox, Sent Items etc) and also your Address Book. This is a precaution so that if your email account is hacked, it’s possible they could also wipe out all your emails and contacts too. It’s happened to 2 of my customers recently

Of course, if you don’t feel able or confident enough to do this yourself, I’m happy to come over and do it all for you. Prevention is better than cure.

Spring Clean & Tune Up

Now that Spring is here, it’s probably time to treat your PC to a spring clean and tune up. If your computer is running too slowly and not performing as well as it used to, then I could come and give it a full service, check the security and back up all your data. Please call or email me to fix a convenient date.

Google Chromecast

I’ve only just seen today an advert for this new tool which will allow anyone with a Smart TV to be able to watch anything from their computer or smartphone or tablet, on their big TV. How brilliant. It costs £30. I’ve just ordered one today so I’ll give you a report in my next newsletter, but take a look at it by clicking on the link below.

And finally…..

OMG you’ve got to see this. This is a genuine video showing how amazing Photoshop is when in the hands of someone who really knows how to use it properly. You won’t believe your eyes.

Look at this stunning girl and then see how the picture has been made from scratch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COk_o_1JcVo

That’s it for now.

I wish all my customers a very happy Pesach and Happy Easter.