April Newsletter

How nice is it to be out of the depths of our Siberian winter and to have the lighter nights returning. Fabulous.

 I hope you are keeping fit and well. Here’s a roundup of this month’s news.

Backing up  

I make no apologies for nagging you again to make sure you are backing up your computer regularly.

Last week, my own computer died completely, out of the blue. On Saturday it had been working perfectly, and then I went to start up the next morning and heard the internal fan going crazy like a wind machine. It wouldn’t boot into Windows. Tried it a few times but still wouldn’t start up.

I have a few computers at home, and the fortunate thing was that only the day before, I had done a full backup of all my files and data onto my external hard drive. I simply copied all my important files into another computer, and was back up and running in an hour or so.

I have very good technicians that work for me, and one of my guys came over and had the problem diagnosed and fixed in 10 minutes.

The important fact here was the fact that I do a full backup at least once a week.

Question; When did you last back up your computer? This week, last month, can’t remember, or never?

Is it important to do so? Well, just imagine you were in my situation where the computer suddenly dies unexpectedly. Or you get burgled and the computer is stolen. How much of a problem would that be for you?

I see so many times customers who lose their computers and have no backup saved.

So let’s talk about your options:  

CD or DVD

If you wish, you can back up your important files onto a blank CD or DVD. This is fine, but a bit fiddly and not particularly user friendly. If you do decide to do this, I recommend using CDR or DVD –R disks, NOT the re-writables.  

USB Memory Stick or External Hard Drive

This is my preferred option. You can buy a memory stick starting from about £10. I personally use a Western Digital External Hard Drive. You can buy these now from about £45 from Amazon and hold a huge amount of data, starting at 250Gb (more than enough for most people’s needs). I can supply these and instruct you how to use it properly.  

Online Storage

There are many online storage options, which allow you to back up your files to a safe, secure, password protected website, which allows you to access your files from any computer anywhere in the world.

The one I use is called Dropbox, and the first 2Gb of data is free. You can pay a monthly subscription should you require more storage space.  

Many of my customers wouldn’t know how or where to start. That’s where I come in. If you wish, I’ll come and show you how to do it properly and make sure that your computer(s) has been fully backed up. I can also supply USB memory sticks and external hard drives if you want.  

PS Since I started writing this, my lovely computer has finally died, or almost. So I have just order a fantastic new Dell PC, which is arriving next week A really high spec system with everything I want for just under £450, unbelievable value. I’ll give you a report next month.  

Watching TV shows online  

Many people use their computers to watch TV shows or listen to radio, via their computer.

The most popular site is BBC IPlayer (www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer) which allows you to watch most BBC programmes or radio shows, broadcast in the last 7 days. It is a brilliant free service.

There are similar sites at ITV and Channel 4, as well as SkyPlayer, allowing you to watch Sky TV online.

MSN this week have just launched their own TV player. The MSN Video Player can be found at http://video.uk.msn.com/ and offers a huge range of UK and US TV programmes, all free of charge. It gives you the whole series of many shows, even those from years ago. Take a look, its really good.

Apple Computers

So many of my customers are now switching over from using Windows PCs to Apple Macs. I’m often asked for my opinion and advice as to what I think is better.

Well, let me start off by saying there are pros and cons to using an Apple.

The Pros: They are stylish and beautifully designed and look amazing in any home. They are renowned for their reliability and rarely go wrong. One of the biggest features is that I have never known an Apple to get a virus or malware (even though they recommend having an anti virus programme installed), and don’t get continuing updates every five minutes, as you get with Windows PCs. If you are used to using a Windows PC, it’s really not difficult to adapt to an Apple. It’s mostly the same for using Internet, email, word processing etc.

The Cons: They are more expensive to buy. An Apple laptop (Macbook) will start from around £800, twice the price of a windows laptop. A decent 15” screen will set you back around £1,200. If you want to have Microsoft Office (Word, Excel etc) that will cost an extra £90 or so.

The desktop (IMac) computers are beautifully designed, as they have the computer built into the back of the screen, so there is no separate base unit, just the screen and wireless keyboard and mouse. Everything is wireless, so if you have a wireless printer, then the only cable coming out of the computer is the mains cable.

A decent IMac will set you back from around £900 upwards.

Another problem for some people is that some software programmes are not designed to work on Apples. So you may be used to using certain programmes, then find it is not Mac compatible.

Also most computer games are designed for PCs. So a Mac is not a good idea for gamers.

I set up a new IMac for one of my customers this week. It was simply to set up and copy all the files from her old windows laptop, into the new gorgeous Apple.  She is so happy with her new Apple.

I guarantee that if you were to go the Apple store at Brent Cross, you would fall in love and end up spending loads of money.  

Apple Ipad  

Last night I saw my very first Apple Ipad. Even though it’s not yet available in UK , I saw a man who had bought one on Ebay from America . OMG! It is fantastic. I didn’t get a chance to play with it myself, he was holding onto it like a new baby.

It is about A4 size and wafer thin and does everything that an ITouch can do and a whole lot more.

When they are released here in next few months, I will have to buy one.

I couldn’t see a market for it, but after seeing it for real, it is the next Must Have gadget.

Watch this space for more info in the next few months.  

Spring Clean & Tune Up.  

Is your computer ready for a spring clean and tune up? If it’s been 6 month’s or more since your last service, then it is probably the right time to do it.

I have some brilliant new tools to get your baby running sweetly and securely. First priority is to ensure you are fully protected from all the many nasties that are out their, just waiting to damage your computer and data files.

Secondly, to give it a full 12000 mile service, cleaning the unnecessary files off, and tuning up so that it runs to its best ability. Sometimes it may be advisable to add more RAM memory, which will usually make a huge difference to your computer’s performance.

Thirdly, to give you a full back up copy of your valuable documents, pictures and emails, so in case disaster happens, you have all your files securely copied externally.

For a fixed price, I would come and do all this for you, at your convenience.   

And finally…..  

Back by popular demand, another of the amazing 3D Stereogram pictures.

Can you see the hidden 3D image in this picture.

First person to get the correct answer wins my mortgage! And that’s a lot.

That’s it for this month.  

Don’t forget to call to book your service/tune up.  

Speak soon,  

Henry