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May-June 2011 NewsletterI hope you are fit and well, and with summer around the corner, enjoying the lighter nights and lovely sunshine. Here’s a round up of the latest IT news. Music Downloads
Basically, there are two ways to do it, legally or illegally. I would only ever recommend doing it legally. With illegal sites like Limewire being closed down, by far the best way to get music is to go it legally. The best music sites are Itunes Store and Amazon, where you can listen to a 30 second clip of any track to see if you like it, and then purchase it to download onto your computer or MP3 device (e.g IPhone or IPad). However there are a couple of other sites I like, which may be of interest to you. SPOTIFY: www.spotify.com This is an amazing site which allows you to listen to almost any music track or album, for free on your computer or wireless device. You can create your own playlists which you can access from any computer, so you can get your music when out the house. You can either use it for free (with limitations on the amount of tracks per month and includes advertising) or you can pay a monthly subscription to get unlimited usage and no advertising. There is also a Spotify Ipad/Iphone app so allow you to take your music with you anywhere. Fantastic service. MFlow: www.mflow.com is a new site, which like Spotify, allows you to listen to millions of music tracks, create playlists, and also buy music for download. The big advantage is that there is NO LIMIT and NO ADVERTISING (Yet!!) Napster: www.napster.com was the first illegal music download site which started the revolution. After being shut down, it has now arisen, fully legal and better than ever. For a £5 per month subscription you can listen to millions of tracks, and decide to buy if you wish. Highly recommended. Ipads Vs Netbooks or Laptops
They are two completely different animals, so let’s discuss the difference. Apple Ipad. Although there are a few Tablets now available, the Ipad stands head and shoulders above the crowd, for its sleek design, sheer brilliance at accessing the Internet, and the hundreds of thousands of ‘Apps’ (Applications) available to download. They are fantastic for using internet and email, viewing pictures or videos and movies, playing games etc. The new Ipad 2 starts from £399 going up to £659 for the top of the range model. To see a good review, click on this link below. http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/ipad-and-tablets/apple-ipad-2-review-50003008/ Do you need one? Of course not Should you buy one? If you can afford one, absolutely yes, you would love it. However, a word of warning. There are strong rumours that Apple is launching the Ipad 3 by the end of the year. Netbooks: These are also fantastic and are tremendous value for money, starting at under £200. They are mini laptops, which can do almost everything a full sized laptop can do. The disadvantage is that at the moment, most Netbooks only come with 1Gb RAM, which is not really sufficient. Therefore, they are generally slower than a regular laptop. I’m sure as the technology improves, it won’t be long before they are available with 3 or 4 Gb RAM, which will make a huge difference. I like Dell, HP, Acer and Sony Netbooks.
This offers you the best of both worlds. This clever device combines a Tablet which converts into a laptop. It is a 10” screen Netbook which is one of the few available offering 2Gb RAM, but can be unclipped from its casing, and turns into a Ipad style tablet, so is light and portable, and ideal for use on the move. Take a look at the video by clicking on the link below. Really clever. http://www.dell.com/uk/p/inspiron-duo/pd Internet Security
Malware is an abbreviated term used to describe a "malicious software" program. Malware includes things like spyware or adware programs, such as tracking cookies, which are used to monitor your surfing habits. It also includes more sinister items, such as keyloggers, Trojan horses, worms, and viruses. A keylogger is just what it sounds like. It is a program that logs every keystroke you make and then sends that information, including things like passwords, bank account numbers, and credit card numbers, to whomever is spying on you. A Trojan horse may damage your system, and it may also install a "backdoor" through which to send your personal information to another computer. These forms of malware are commonly used for perpetrating identity theft. It is YOUR responsibility to keep your computer safe. Prevention is better than cure so it’s imperative that your anti virus programme is up to date and you are running a manual virus scan once a week. You also need a separate Malware programme to stop these nasties from infecting your PC. Its also advisable to install a second firewall in addition to the standard Windows Firewall, to prevent unauthorised access by someone from outside accessing your computer. I would be happy to come over and check your security, make sure you are clean or otherwise, and service your computer to ensure it is running to the best of its ability. Please call or email to fix a convenient time. As I said, prevention is better than cure. Do you
want to be a cartoonist???
Click below to visit Paul’s website. http://www.learncartooning.co.uk/ And finally……With the Royal Wedding in mind, here is a brilliant video which hopefully will bring a smile to even the most passionate republican or royalist. Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kav0FEhtLug Enjoy your summer and remember I’m always here if you need any further help. |
So many
of my customers enjoy listening to, and downloading music on their computers.
Others would like to but don’t know how to go about it.
I am
constantly being asked by my customers whether they should buy an Ipad or
Netbook.
Dell Duo Inspiron Netbook:
I am
still being called to fix computers that have become infected by Malware.
Malware is technically NOT a virus, which is why many anti virus programmes
don’t block it or protect against infection.