Chrome trumps IE

At least one counter has Google Chrome in front ...

Although it depends on who you believe (like all usage counters) it would appear that Google Chrome is certainly making significant headway whilst Mozilla Firefox usage is basically unchanged.

Chrome trumps IE as world's top browser: Google's Chrome edged past Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE) last week to become the world's most widely-used browser, according to data from an Irish metric firm.

Choosing a Laptop

A very difficult choice ...

Buying a desktop PC is simple for me as I would always build or get one built to my specification. Unfortunately you cannot do this when buying a laptop. At the moment you can get good value for money if you shop wisely. I would go for an Intel processor which range from i3 to i5 to i7 and unless you really want budget at i3 or high end gaming at i7, I would target an Intel i5 processor. Assuming that this is going to run Windows 7, I would be looking for 4GB of RAM and at least 320GB of hard disk. DVD-R/W, decent speakers, microphone and camera should be automatic inclusions. Connectivity should include Wi-Fi (802.11n at least), Bluetooth, Ethernet, HDMI and both USB2.0 and USB3.0 sockets. Battery life is a difficult one as this is often over rated by the manufacturer and, of course, it depends what the laptop will be used for. Aiming for a 3 hour battery life would be a good start as this tends to fall off as the laptop gets older.

My overriding rule is not buy more than you need just because the salesperson says it is "an excellent buy". The less you pay for what you require is the "smart" buy. The laptop will probably be superseded before you get it out of the shop! Better to buy one for $800 now and another for $800 in three years than buy one for $1,600 now! The lower the price, the less risk if the laptop has an unfortunate accident or gets stolen.

I often get asked to recommend a particular Make of laptop and this is almost impossible as all laptop manufactures have some very good models and they also have some bad models. I recommend the buyer looks at various (maybe 3 or 4) Makes and Models that meet their requirements and then accurately takes down their specific Make and Model numbers. The precise Model number can often be found on the underside of the laptop. Then do a Google search on the Make and Model number and look for hardware reviews written by independent reviewers like the PC Magazines. If bad reviews are found about a particular Make and Model, cross it off the list of candidates and go to the next one!

Netgear Network Monitor

Free home network monitor ...

I have given this free network tool a try and although a bit limited at the moment, may prove to be quite useful given further enhancement.

Netgear Genie lets you monitor and control your network:

Netgear has released a new app for computers, smartphones and tablets which allow users to easily monitor, maintain and repair your home network.

Netgear Genie is free and can be downloaded for the PC and Mac as well as for the iPhone, iPad and Android smartphone and tablets.

Once the app is connected to your network users can check the state of the wireless networks and even allow guests access to your home wi-fi.

Overheating Problems

Blocked CPU heatsinks can lead to severe overheating ...

Over the years of repairing PC desktops and laptops I have found some good examples of totally choked CPU heatsinks which can lead to CPUs running 20 deg C hotter than desirable. CPUs these days do not "burn out" but rather reduce their work load to keep their temperature within their upper limit which maybe a high as 75 deg C. Below are some photos of particularly bad examples! You can click on the pictures to take a closer look!

The first two show what can happen to a laptop exhaust port when too much fluff builds up on the heatsink fins. Left is the dismantled laptop and right is a closeup of the blocked heatsink.

These two examples are typical of totally blocked desktop heatsinks. Both resulted in CPUs running about 20 deg C hotter than normal which resulted in load shedding and a very slow PC!


Left is the typical condition of a 3 - 4 year old desktop PC that has never had its CPU heatsink cleaned! (Apologies for the slightly out of focus photo but it was such a good example!)

It is a good idea to keep desktop towers of the floor particularly if it is carpet. If the tower has to sit on carpet then try not to use a vacuum in the room when the PC is running as the PC fan draws air in at the front with any dust and fluff that has been raised by the vacuum head.

Whilst you can certainly look inside a desktop tower case to check the condition of the CPU heatsink it is not recommended that you try and clean it unless you are confident that you know what you are doing!

Free Password Managers

No more passwords on Stick-Its stuck on the monitor ...

This Tech Republic article reviews 5 free Password Managers. I have used KeePass but currently use Password Safe (not reviewed here) that is almost identical to KeePass.

Five free and secure password management apps: Maintaining a large assortment of strong passwords is a challenge. Here are some apps that make the task more manageable.

Organised Support?

IT Support requires a clear head ...

This has been doing the rounds for a while!

 

Study these 2 photographs closely (you can click on the pictures to enlarge them), then read the message. It will explain a lot of things...

 

THIS IS  INDIA ...

IT'S WHERE YOUR SUPPORT CALL GETS ANSWERED WHEN YOU

HAVE A TECHNICAL PROBLEM

WITH YOUR PHONE...

Google Drive vs MS Office

Is MS Office looking down the barrel? ...

If you read my last post you will see that this battle is really starting to heat up. The next couple of years could see a tremendous change in this area. Already many small business have moved to Gmail and Google Docs to save money and eliminate IT Support requirements. Gmail and Google Docs is a natural combination for consumers.

Google Drive will help kill Microsoft Office: Google's hard drive in the sky, Google Drive, is a big threat to other cloud storage products like Dropbox and Box. But it's also a stab straight at the heart of Microsoft's mainstream business software, Microsoft Office.

Good Bye MS Word?

Has the transition started? ....

I have certainly started to use Google Docs seriously. I still use MS Office for those documents already created but I am trying to use Google Docs for new documents, spreadsheets and presentations as it offers all the features that I need and it will save me moving from my current Office 2003 to Office 2010, 2012 etc.

How I learned to say, 'Hi, Google Docs; bye, MS Word': Do I really need all of those features? No. And so, I've created my last document in Microsoft Word, a product that I first began using 27 years ago.

Cloud Storage Compared

An update to my post on 19th March ...

I have now got accounts with DropBox, Skydrive, Google Drive, ADrive and Evernote - a total of 82GB of free cloud storage!

Free Cloud Services Compared

Program Uninstallers

Possibly worth a try ...

I have not used any of the programs in this article but maybe worth a look if you have a stubborn program that refuses to fully uninstall.

Five uninstallers that really work: Remove all traces of unwanted programs with the help of these uninstaller tools.