Month: November 2012

Microsoft tell us that 40 million copies have been sold already. With respect to the sales figures, had Windows 7 been sold as cheaply as Windows 8 is being offered, Windows 7 sales figures would have been much harder to catch. At $15 if you bought a Windows 7 PC since June, or $40 if you had a qualifying OS, who wouldn’t try Windows 8 out. The real question is how many will continue to use it as it installs ‘out of the box’. I am telling all who don’t like the out of box experience to use a 3rd … Continue reading 8 balled.. It isn’t getting any better for some..

This is not my own work but I think that it is important enough to put out.. What Windows 8 refresh does.. When you refresh the computer here is what it does. a) Your files and personalization settings won’t change. b) Your PC settings will be changed back to their defaults. c) Apps from Windows Store will be kept. d) Apps you installed from discs or websites will be removed. e) A list of removed apps will be saved on your desktop. Using Refresh will restore the system to the same condition as when it was first installed, before you … Continue reading Windows 8 refresh..

And no, none of us had to queue up for hours.. http://www.connectedmagazine.ca/news/rogers-hi-speed-internet-delivers/ This is the kind of event that I like. I now get 25mb download, a rise of 7mb, and upload rises from 512k to 2mb.. I suppose that I should really thank ‘the cloud’ for forcing Rogers hand..

I wish that I was a software author. I would be able to see how easy it is to get a Microsoft Partner logo. I am talking about this.. Put this on your website and you could get a lot of business from it. The logo suggests that Microsoft is endorsing your product, and in the minds of some that Microsoft is recommending it, almost taking it on as it’s own.. Places to see this logo.. almost any website offering products which claim to speed up your PC. It is for this reason that I would never want to be … Continue reading Microsoft Partners..

Boo hoo hoo. Neither do i, for the record. You don’t have to go to the trouble of reverting back to Windows 7. That takes a lot of work All you have to do is add a 3rd party start menu. What? You don’t like to add 3rd party stuff? What do you think Adobe reader is, or McAfee or Norton anti-virus? They may be included in your computer package, but they are NOT Microsoft products. They are 3rd party stuff. Well, so are Start8, Pokki and Classic shell 3rd party products, and they are more benign than the three … Continue reading So you don’t like the Windows 8 start menu..

Both are related to the computer either becoming unresponsive and/or having to shutdown. 1. The Ultra power supply When the computer started to shut down, I knew that it was an issue with the supply itself. That removing the power cord and re-inserting it, told me as much. I had chased down other routes, changing the power cable, changing the internal power switch cable etc, and nothing had worked. So, the last time it happened, I switched the main power cable and when inserting the replacement, I noticed that the connector went further into the socket on the power supply. … Continue reading Tying up loose ends..

It battered parts of the US East coast, leaving many people without power and, in the worst cases, without homes. It also battered business and infrastructure. Guess what is included in ‘infrastructure’? How about ‘Internet servers and routers’? The Internet as a whole is quite resilient considering the amount of traffic which uses it, but as anybody living in a large metropolis will tell you, if one or several main arteries become congested or completely blocked, chaos follows and everybody’s drive to work or home can extend exponentially. Such is it when parts of the Internet infrastructure fall over, and … Continue reading Hurricane Sandy..

A simple task:: To create a user folder and move email into it This has always been a simple task. Place the cursor on the mail account name in the left hand list Right click and select ‘New folder’ Name the folder. Drag the mail into it The above works pretty much for ANY local mail client. Now try doing this in the Windows 8 mail app. I can’t see any way to do it from within the app, so what next? Click on the ‘desktop’ app and hope that you have not removed IE from the taskbar because you … Continue reading Windows 8 Email

Steve Sinofsky is no longer an employee of Microsoft. Apart from being there for two decades, his greatest claim to fame was Windows 7 which was delivered on time and working. Take up was huge, and it has been an unmitigated success. Until recently, it has been the best Windows ever. If you wanted to quit on a high, Windows 7 would be it. Steve Sinofsky didn’t quit. He stayed on to manage the development of the next Windows. The new Windows is with us, and initial reception is not what you would call electric, and if you did, it … Continue reading Somebody has left the building..

.. and hopefully less intransigent than the Toshiba was. The new laptop is a July 2012 Lenovo T71 G780, Windows 7, Core i3 2370 (Sandy Bridge), 4gb, and a 17.3” display. Specifications are better than the Toshiba by virtue of the fact that the Lenovo is newer by almost three years. The Toshiba in it’s overall glossy black coat looked very slick, but the Lenovo has a more durable finish, a better keyboard, and way better sound. The wireless adapter seems to be more reliable too. The newer August Lenovo’s sport a 3rd Generation Core i3 3110 and HD4000, but … Continue reading A new member..