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August 2010 Newsletter

 

I hope you are fit and well and enjoying this lovely summer weather, for a change.  

Not much to report this month, so I thought I’d give you a round up of some of the latest computer news and some of the best websites I’ve found from recent months.  

 

A number of my customers comment on my pretty backgrounds and animations whenever I send an email, and ask me how I do it. The answer is that I use a fantastic programme called Incredimail, which is the only thing I use for sending and receiving my emails. The basic version is totally free, and allows you to add a huge selection of backgrounds, animations and sounds, whenever you send an email. It works exactly the same as Outlook Express or Windows Mail, so the layout is already familiar to most people. The difference is that you have the option to make your emails fun and interesting. It also has many other features, too numerous to mention here, but the bottom line is that I love it and would highly recommend it.

You can download it free from www.incredimail.com otherwise I’d be happy to come and do it for you, and teach you how it works properly. You’ll love it!  

 

I also use a brilliant free programme called Log Me In. This allows you to access your computer, from anywhere in the world. It means if you are away from home and need to get into your home computer, you can use this to see your computer and access your files or emails (Your home computer MUST be turned on and connected to the internet, it won’t wake itself up).

There are a few similar programmes available, such as Go To My PC, but they are paid for services, whereas LogMeIn is free. This is what I use for my customers who subscribe to my Technical Support service. It only takes about 5 minutes to download and install from www.logmein.com but again if you would prefer me to come and do it for you and show you how it works, I’d be happy to do so. 

 

Are you, like me, constantly forgetting which passwords you have used for different websites? Are you fed up with having to enter your name, address etc whenever you have to fill in a form on the internet?

Well, the answer is Roboform. Another fantastic free programme which allows you to store all your passwords and personal information. So whenever you go to a website where it asks you to enter your username and password, all you need to do is to click one button on the Roboform toolbar, and hey presto, it does it all for you instantly.

Same for form filling. Instead of having to type in your name, address, telephone, email address etc, you just click on Roboform, and it does it all for you. Brilliant. The free version allows you to store up to 10 passwords. If you require more than 10, then I recommend buying the Pro version, for £19.99 as a one off payment, which gives you unlimited passwords and unlimited user accounts, so more than one user can store their details. The free version is available at www.roboform.com or I would be happy to come and do everything for you and get it set up properly.  

 

Are you a Hotmail, Yahoo or Googlemail User?

If you are, then I can highly recommend using Windows Live Mail, to send and receive your emails. It is ideal for people who use a web based email. The main advantage is when you are sending or receiving attachments. WLM makes it a piece of cake to open any attachments you receive, as they come in with the message, instead of having to be downloaded separately. When you wish to send an attachment, it is so much easier to do with WLM. Obviously you can continue using your web mail as normal, but WLM is an additional programme which many people switch to as it is so user friendly and useful, particularly for attachments.

You can download it free fro http://explore.live.com/windows-live-mail or I could come and set it up for you properly.

 

 

I don’t know about you, but I’m still in awe of what all this new technology can do. One site which will blow you away is Google Translate. It allows you to translate either text, or a whole website, from one language to another, instantly, for free.

As I’m typing this now, I’m looking at Google Translate and still can’t believe what it can do.

You MUST take a look for yourself by going to www.translate.google.com and simply type in a sentence or two and then choose a language to translate it to from the extensive list. Or type in a www address and see the entire website translated. It is about 90% accurate and will never be as precise as a human, but its sooooo clever.

 

Netbooks

 

Many of my customers are buying Netbooks or asking my opinion as to whether I would recommend them, so here is my honest advice.

I have just bought a Netbook from Dell a couple of weeks ago. There are a few advantages and disadvantages to them:

Advantages:

They are very light and compact, so ideal for people on the move, and have a fantastic battery life, which can be up to 10 hours or more. They can everything a full sized PC or laptop can do. They are really cheap compared to a full sized laptop, starting from about £200. My Dell was £265 and is fantastic.

Disadvantages:

At the moment, the majority of Netbooks come with Windows 7 Starter Version and a maximum of 1Gb RAM. Windows 7 Starter is a watered down version of the Home Premium version, so has a few limitations, such as not being able to change the desktop background. Annoying but not the end of the world. The bigger problem is that at the moment, the maximum RAM is 1GB. A computer running Windows 7 really needs at least 2Gb RAM or more (I run on 4Gb) for it to be fast and efficient.

I’m sure that within the next year or so, technology will improve to allow it to run on Home Premium and more RAM.

It is still possible to buy a Netbook running Windows XP, which is not as power hungry as Windows 7. Therefore it is much quicker and efficient. This option won’t be available forever, as stocks run out.

Therefore, if you are thinking about buying a Netbook, you have three options:

1.      Buy one like mine, knowing it will be a bit slower than a normal PC

2.      Buy one with Windows XP rather than Windows 7

3.      Wait until technology improves to allow more RAM

 

If you do decide to buy a Netbook and need help setting it up, please don’t hesitate to call or email me.

 

And finally…..

Back by popular demand, another 3D stereogram for you to see if you can find the hidden image. Let me know. The first correct answer wins my stupid bloody summer cold, with all my used tissues!

 

 

That’s it for this month. I hope you enjoy the remainder of the summer and I look forward to seeing you again soon.

 

Regards

 

Henry