Saturday, October 03, 2009

'Free' Windows 7 upgrades not always free, says consumer group

"To me, whether it's $12.99 or $17.03, the charges are all outrageous," said Edgar Dworsky, the editor of Consumerworld.org

Report: Final version of free Microsoft Security Essentials to ship September 29 | All about Microsoft | ZDNet.com

"Microsoft is targeting MSE at customers who are unwilling and unable to pay for security software."

My question is: Are you going to trust Microsoft for the security of your computer? Will it work?

This is a good idea, I have a lot of customers that don't have any idea what they need to protest their computer from threats.

I have noticed Windows Vista doesn't break as easy as Windows XP did. I hope Windows 7 is better.

AlaskaJoe

Friday, October 02, 2009

US relinquishes control of the internet

After complaints about American dominance of the internet and growing disquiet in some parts of the world, Washington has said it will relinquish some control ...

Thursday, October 01, 2009

Windows 7 OEM Prices Revealed - PC World

"For those of you looking to grab an OEM license of the admirable new operating system, you will be happy to know that Windows 7 comes in at a slightly cheaper price than its predecessor Vista."
Here is a way to get your hands on a copy of Windows 7 for a lot less money.

AlaskaJoe

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Upgrading to Windows 7 the Easy Way - OS, Software & Networking by ExtremeTech

"Are you planning on upgrading your computer? Especially if you're running Vista, Windows 7 offers a compelling combination of faster boot times, improved responsiveness (since there are fewer processes running at any given time), and several fun and practical user interface enhancements. But what about your stuff?"

I always do a clean install. You need to remember, if your computer isn't running right, then upgrading just brings the problems along.

This Windows Easy Transfer wizard makes a clean installation so much easier. You need someplace to put the data like a NAS, or USB drive. I have my Documents ETC.. on my server so they can be accessed from any computer on my network.

To do a clean installation of Windows 7 is easy, once you have your data backed up just put the disk in the drive and reboot your computer and follow the prompts. It ask you a few easy question along the way. Like do you want to upgrade or do a full install? The next question you need to think about is do you want to do a fast format, a full format or leave the drive the way it was. I always do a fast format. Then you just let it run. On my system Intel Core 2 Duo CPU E8500 with 4GB RAM GeForce 9500 GT 1GB video care. Windows 7 found all of my drivers and I didn't need to do anything. Then I installed my 2 network printers, and a few apps I use all of the time and it was finished. I installed the 64 bit version.

You will find "Windows Easy Transfer" by clicking Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools. It is in the same place in Vista and Windows 7.

I think you will enjoy Windows 7

AlaskaJoe

The Cheapest Way to Get Windows 7! - Windows 7 OEM Prices - Gizmodo

"Newegg has listed prices for OEM copies of Windows 7—technically intended for little computer building businesses, but there's nothing stopping you buying them. And as long as you understand some mostly-minor limitations, you can save some serious money."

This is a good way to get your hands on a copy of Windows 7. As long as you don't need to call someone like Dell or HP for support.

I am using Windows 7 as my main computer these days, and I love it.

AlaskaJoe

Sunday, September 27, 2009

OnComputers Radio show Podcast 09-27-09

This is the On Computers Radio show podcast for 09-27-09. You can listen live every Sunday from 10AM to 1PM Pacific that's 1PM to 4PM Eastern. Join us for the live show and chat. If you prefer, you can download the same MP3 file here via ftp.

Links from the Gregg Zone

1) Every now and then I run across something that gives me hope, when it comes to getting off the oil merry-go-round this really hit home. These are links to a video, and a home site from the video. This is about Shai Aggasi who shocked the software world by resigning his position with SAP just as he had been appointed the next CEO to undertake this project. He is heading a new way of introducing fully electric cars to entire countries. They have Denmark, Israel, Hawaii, Australia, and the San Francisco Bay Area, either singed up or in progress. They have a deal with Renault-Nissan to build the cars. The trick is separating battery ownership, from car ownership. They plan to sell electric minutes, as opposed to petro miles. Kind of like a cell phone you pay for the minutes. Video link here http://www.ted.com main site link here http://www.betterplace.com/
2) This is a site sent to me by my friend Tony in Playa Del Rey California, part of my morning Skype coffee group. When he mentioned spray on batteries I knew there would be a place for it here. Nano-technology is at it again at the nano-scale things get interesting, it may be possible to use the movement of your fingers while typing to power small applications. Even stranger they say it will be possible to grow batteries using viruses, but the idea of charging your phone by walking, walk to work the long way and recharge your lap top. What is next, I can’t wait... link here http://www.cnn.com
3) My Troll link for the week; this is something that Riley might find interesting and Joe frustrating. It seems Microsoft may have found a way to solve the touch screen keyboard you need to look at what you are typing problem. I found another one of these solutions a few weeks ago they had a tactile answer using small balloons, I have to admit I think this makes all that research and development obsolete before it hits the prototype stage. Evidently with this all you have to do is put your fingers on the screen and it will automatically orientate the keyboard to where your fingers are. Very cool thanks Troll, link here http://news.cnet.com
4) I ran across this term biomimicry, had to add that to dictionary, anyway the term got me interested. Going to use two links here again the first to the main page for The Biomimicry Institute, it is a term referring to mimicking nature to form a product or process design. As an example there is work being done studying how geckos can climb glass walls, there is a beetle that extracts its drinking water from fog. The list is quite long, there is a new science coming from this line of study. The second link is a site where you can search your needed application to see if there is a relevant process in nature that may help to solve your problem. Main page link here http://www.biomimicryinstitute.org/ search for your application here http://www.asknature.org/
5) This is probably a site every one knows about, but was just discovered by me, that’s not anything new in my geek spot. Anyway I just found it and for a surfer like me it is very interesting, and helpful. It is a listing of over four million suggested sites, broken down into over a half million categories. The search engines are so commercial I find them more and more difficult to use, even the advanced search dictating the URL as org. or gov. eliminating words like shopping cart, shipping, and price do not have the same effect they used to. Anyway I like this site as a tool for surfing, http://www.dmoz.org/