Jonathan likes lists! And sometimes he finds a list he just has to share! Like a list of annoying things Windows 10 does that you can make better! Win 10 Annoyances, and what you can do! So, naturally, we have to share! https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/how-to-fix-the-most-annoying-things-in-windows-10
Browsers! Time again for Brooowsers! (3/13/21 Part 1)
Microsoft Edge is being retired for Microsoft Edge, now back on MacOS! Chrome came in as the fast, lean, and new browser, but now is sort of bloated and slow. Firefox joined a gym shedding weight, gaining speed, and is back in fighting shape. Opera went from being a scrappy indie browser to joining the cool kids. Egad! What’s a person to do? Browser Wars, et. al. Well, make sure you’re not using Internet Explorer, that’s what. Join Jonathan, LD, and Sam as they talk about Browsers! https://www.google.com/chrome/browser-features/ https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/features/ https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/edge/features https://www.opera.com/features https://www.apple.com/safari/
Need Office Software? We’re talking about it! (2/13/21 Part 1)
For work, volunteering, and school there’s no more a ubiquitous kind of software than office productivity. Office Suites! Word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, its all common and useful stuff! Compare All Microsoft 365 Plans (Formerly Office 365) – Microsoft Store Home | LibreOffice – Free Office Suite – Based on OpenOffice – Compatible with Microsoft Apache OpenOffice – Official Site – The Free and Open Productivity Suite Corel Wordperfect – Home and Office We talk about it a little!
More On SSDs: now and the future! (12/5/20 Part 2)
We continue on with SSDs! SSDs and why you want one – Part 2 This is the alphabet soup segment as we talk about SLC, MLC, eMLC, MTBF, and more! SSD Reliability: Can You Really Rely on Your SSD? (wepc.com) SSD Lifespan: How Long Will Your SSD Work? (enterprisestorageforum.com) Do this to increase your SSD’s lifespan! – CNET SSD optimization in Windows 10 (pugetsystems.com) How to achieve the best transfer speeds with external drives | AKiTiO
Preparing that new computer! (11/28/20 Part 2)
When you get a new computer, its a great time! Its exciting! Aaaaaand its not quite ready to use. Outta the Box! You’ll need updates. You’ll want to take out any crap-ware. You’ll want to so much stuff. Where to start?! Need some useful links? MalwareBytes Windows Defender (free with your copy of Windows) 6 Easy Ways to Uninstall Programs
Consumers rejoice! Intel loses the crown! (11/7/20 Part 1)
AMD’s new Ryzen 5000 series is out and its finally toppled Intel for performance. Even if you only like and buy Intel, this is great news. Why? Because competition is good. Chip Wars Resume! And right now Intel has no choice but to really buckle down and come up with a response. If you want some deeper reviews, we got them for you right here! https://www.anandtech.com/show/16214/amd-zen-3-ryzen-deep-dive-review-5950x-5900x-5800x-and-5700x-tested https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2020/11/hands-on-zen-3-testing-with-amds-ryzen-9-5900x-and-5950x/ https://www.tomshardware.com/news/amd-ryzen-9-5950x-5900x-zen-3-review Too much to read? Have a video as well!
Keyboards 101! Don’t cheap out! (9/19/20 Part 1)
People spend tons of time and money for new computer hardware: fast processors, tons of RAM, and big hard-drives, but they don’t often think about the humble keyboard. Well, that’s the topic for today! Keyboards 101! While Jonathan, LD, and Sam talk about that, here’s some questions to ask yourself if you’re looking for a new one for yourself: Wired or Wireless? USB keyboards are trusty and reliable, especially if your computer is somewhere that isn’t wireless friendly (like under your desk). However, cables can get pulled, yanked, plugs damaged and more. Wireless keyboards often use Bluetooth (although Logitech has their own special kind). These are nice, but do keep in mind you’ll need to keep batteries around, check them periodically (sometimes they corrode inside the keyboard), and make sure that it will actually work with your setup. Wireless signals can be blocked by thick wood, metal, and other things. Membrane versus Mechanical Membranes are lighter and inexpensive, but as they age the membrane can get stiff or mushy making typing difficult and unpleasant. Mechanical are heavy, providing a very satisfying typing experience. Many professional writers love these! However, they can be loud, plus are usually on the expensive side. Some of the nicer ones can be disassembled for cleaning or replacing mechanical switches. Traditional layout and Ergonomic Traditional keyboards are fine for many people. This is what almost every computer comes with, and what you’d learn how to type on in school. Ergonomic keyboards comes in many shapes, but they are meant to help with …
Disaster Preparedness: Have you backed up lately? (7/25/20 Part 2)
Its time for a backup show! Backup BEFORE the Disaster! Yes, yes, much like the doctor nagging you to eat right and exercise, we’re telling you to back up! We talk about online backups, archives, and a basic 3-2-1 plan for backups!
Batteries 101! (5/9/20 Part 2)
A tech reporter from Ananadtech did research finding that one smartphone company’s fast-recharge tech ages your battery prematurely. Wowzers! How do you keep your laptop, phone, and tablet batteries going for a long time? The Battery Episode Taking care of your laptop batteries! https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/how-to-care-for-your-laptops-battery/ Laptop batteries have a lifespan of X-many power cycles (0%-100%). Going from 100% to 0% is one power cycle. Going from 100% to 50% is half a power cycle. Cycles are like mileage. As the battery gets older and has more cycles, it starts holding less charge per cycle. Using your laptop’s more power efficient settings will help you get more mileage out of each charge. Windows Battery Saver – https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/component-guidelines/battery-saver Windows Power Slider – https://www.laptopmag.com/articles/windows-10-give-power-slider-optimize-speed-battery Mac Energy Saver – https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202824 Shutting down programs or suspending services (like cloud services), wifi, etc., when not in use will help extend battery life. Reducing screen brightness will help as well. Nickel-Metal hydride (NiMH) versus Lithium-Ion (Li-Ion) Old NiMH batteries used to develop “memories,” where they would not fully charge. This was a problem with the tech at the time. Li-Ion doesn’t have this problem. You do NOT have to completely discharge the battery before recharging a Li-Ion. Best practice is currently getting down to maybe 20% or so before recharging. You CAN keep Li-Ion batteries plugged in as power management is better now, and the device should stop charging once it hits 100%. Keeping it comfortable. Batteries do not like to get hot! If you’re doing resource heavy work, be sure to give your …
Don’t be a Pirate! Yaaaaar! (2/22/20 Part 2)
Computer piracy is probably more common than people admit. Especially in the business world. All those companies have tons of money, so no problem, right? Sorry, afraid not. Yarrr! Its illegal! Obviously, yeah. You want to save some money, but it could get you in trouble with the law. Employees (especially disgruntled ex-employees), even customers who know you’re pirating can actually report you with the possibility of getting a cash reward/bounty if you get busted. nopiracy.org The fines can be pretty bad (they’ve got rewards to pay out). https://techcrunch.com/2016/05/10/software-piracy-claims-can-ruin-your-business-and-reward-those-responsible/ While unlikely, a software vendor could possibly request an audit to make sure you’re in compliance. https://redmondmag.com/articles/2010/09/01/beware-the-bsa.aspx Its not safe! Trojans, malware, and viruses oh my! Many common programs have inexpensive alternatives, even free/open-source ones. LibreOffice or OpenOffice (OSS). GIMP, Inkscape, and Scribus for some of Creative Cloud. Affinity and others for cheap. Do you really NEED the big fancy name software? Being paid/legit means you can get support from the company. Important for updates. Important for compliance within your industry (HIPPA).