Your Tech In One Place

Which Version of Windows 7 To Buy?

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 03:16:00 +0000

The most popular windows operating system, Windows 7 is here and you may be wondering which one you should get or what the difference between them is. Hopefully this post will clear things up for you.

Choosing the edition of Windows 7 that is right for you:

The best way to really understand the true differences between the differences between the Windows 7 editions is to look at the below diagrams.

Click to enlarge

And

Click to enlarge

Hopefully this cleared some things up for you.

Asus Eee Pad

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 00:07:00 +0000

The Asus Eee Pad is meant to compete directly with Apple's Ipad.

Asustek Computer unveiled two Eee Pad tablets running Windows software and an e-reader, the Eee Tablet, with a note-taking function.

The Eee Pad EP121 sports a 12-inch touchscreen and has Microsoft's Windows 7 Home Premium operating system and an Intel Core 2 Duo processor inside. This model is meant for internet use, watching movies and multimedia use and can be used as an e-reader.

You can either use the on screen keyboard or one that the device can plug into as a dock. It runs for 10 hours before needing a recharge on the battery. This is just about the same as the Ipad.

There are two docking stations for the Eee Pad. There is one keyboard meant to give users the feeling of typing on a desktop and another to turn your Eee Pad into a desktop machine.

Asustek will offer the docking stations separately. They also plans to build a similar combination of tablet and laptop docking station with a smaller screen and lower-power processor.

The other iPad-style device is the Eee Pad EP101TC, has a 10-inch touchscreen and uses Microsoft's Windows Embedded Compact 7 software. It is 12.2 millimeters thick, weighs 675 grams, and has Nvidia Tegra chips inside.

It is going to cost between US$399 and US$499 when it first hits the market in the early part of next year.

Asustek also says it plans to join the app store business with the Asus App Store, in partnership with the Intel AppUp Center.

Windows 7 Registry Repair.

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Mon, 31 May 2010 18:36:00 +0000

The most popular operating system available right now is Windows 7. It is used by millions of people from all over the world. From the largest businesses to the average home user, Windows 7 is everywhere. It's the most advanced and reliable operating system in the world. As advanced as it may be, it's still prone to running slowly. The most prevalent problem that slows down Windows 7 is a corrupt or damaged system registry. Luckily it is a very fixable problem.

Without going into too much detail, the system registry is a system-defined database used by the Windows operating system to store configuration information. Most Windows applications write data to the registry during installation, and system and system components store and retrieve configuration data through the registry.

Registry repair programs are able to help Windows PCs run faster & smoother, and as are downloaded thousands of times per day. The reason why these programs are so popular is all down to how they work, and the problems and errors they are able to fix inside your system. Registry repair programs are all designed to fix any problems that are inside the registry of Windows. The registry is one of the biggest reasons why Windows runs slowly and is constantly filling up with potentially damaged and corrupt configurations.

Fixing the registry can make your PC run much faster, and to do that, registry repair programs are probably the most effective and easiest thing you can use. Many people now use them to fix the errors that cause Windows to run slow, and getting a good tool for Windows 7 can dramatically improve the speed and reliability of your PC.

To use a registry repair program to help improve the speed of Windows 7, you need to first download and install one of these tools onto your system. There are many of these programs available for download on the internet. Once you download your registry cleaner you should let it scan system, allowing it look through all of your settings and files. It will identify any damaged or corrupted files, settings and configurations and then allow you to repair all of them in one simple click. If you want your Windows 7 system to stay at peak performance then you need to seriously look into getting one of these programs.

FIOS

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Mon, 31 May 2010 02:47:00 +0000

What is FIOS?

FIOS is a service by Verizon and stands for Fiber Optic Service. It uses fiber optic cables to transmit signals via beams of light which allows for extremely high speeds and bandwidth of data to be sent over the cable.

Before you can receive FIOS service you must first check with Verizon to make sure it is available in your area and subscribe. Then a technician from Verizon will come to your house set up the fiber connection. This includes running a fiber cable from the pole to your home and mounting a Optical Network Terminal (ONT) to the outside of your house. Then the technician can install the hookups for the TV and connection to the FIOS receiver. The system is then tested for proper functionality.

Fiber-optic cables transmit data by sending pulses of light through a hair thin optical fiber. The light forms an electromagnetic wave that carries the information. This technology allows for much greater speed, bandwidth and distance. Fiber optics are quickly becoming the primary backbone for all internet and digital TV networks.

How to Speed Up and Fix Your Computer for Free!

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Sun, 30 May 2010 17:10:00 +0000

>>The very first thing you should do to speed up your PC is to remove all of the viruses, spyware, malware, trojans and adware on your system. Fortunately for you there are numerous free virus and spyware removal programs that are available for download on the internet.

>>Some of my favorite and most recommended antivirus software are: Avast Home Edition Free Antivirus, AVG Free, and Clamwin Free Antivirus. Any of these programs will remove almost all of the viruses on your computer. They all have a little different interface and some are more light weight than others, but they get the job done! All you have to do is download and install one of these programs by clicking on the links and following the instructions that you are given. Once the antivirus software is installed then you can run your first scan. After the scan is complete you can remove the viruses and reboot. You should run a few scans just to make sure that you have removed all of the viruses on your computer.

>>Most all antivirus software comes with a built in firewall to keep you protected from future virus infections. Be sure and keep your definitions up to date for the best protection. Just use the update feature of the antivirus software that you have. ALWAYS update before you do a scan just to make sure you are protected against the latest threats.

>>Next you need to remove all of the spyware and adware from your computer. This can be done with free antispyware removal software.

>> I recommend the following free programs: Spybot Search and Destroy, Super Anti Spyware and Spyware Doctor 2010. All of these programs will remove all Spyware, Adware, Malware, Trojans, Dialers, Worms, KeyLoggers, HiJackers, Parasites, Rootkits, Rogue Security Products and many other types of threats. They are quite powerful and possibly the most useful tool in speeding up your computer while also keeping it safe.

>> After you have removed all of the viruses and sypware on your machine you should then do a disk cleanup. This is quite easy to do on windows, but surprisingly most people do not know how to do this.

>> Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click Disk Cleanup. Now Windows will scan your computer to see what items are not necessary and can be safely removed to speed up your computer. These files accumulate very quickly and if you haven't done this in a while then it will probably take some time for it to finish scanning.

>> Now you will want to check all of the boxes to clean up all of the junk files you don't need and free up the most space. After you have them all checked click the ok button to start removing them. It will prompt you for a confirmation. Click yes to continue. Now it begins removing all of the unwanted files which will free up disk space and speed up your computers performance.

>> Now you are ready to defragment your hard drive. Disk Defragmenter is a Windows utility that consolidates fragmented files and folders on your computer's hard disk so that each occupies a single space on the disk. With your files stored neatly end-to-end, without fragmentation, reading and writing to the disk speeds up.

>> To run this utility you will Click Start, click All Programs, click Accessories, click System Tools, and then click Disk Defragmenter.

>> Now you click the Defragment disk button to get the process started. It is important that you not do anything on your computer at this point while the utility is running. It is moving a lot of data around on your hard drive which will make the system seem unresponsive at some points if you try to do anything. After it is finished i suggest you restart your computer.

>>Now you have successfully sped up your computers performance, made it safer and more efficient. And it was all FREE! Enjoy your new speedy computer.

The Basics of 4G Mobile Internet

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Sun, 30 May 2010 01:07:00 +0000

4G mobile Internet seems to be the latest and greatest thing available in the ever expanding wireless world. Tons of people are switching all of their internet needs to a 4G connection. This isn't for everyone because 4G isn't available in all areas. It seems to be mostly prevalent in the larger and more tech savvy cities. It really is a very convenient way to connect to the internet whether you are at home, in your office or on the road. Still a lot of people are not quite sure how this type of connection works and aren't sure if it is right for them.

The most important thing that factors into the equation is the network on which 4G operates. The signal gets broadcast from the nearest cell phone tower. Think of it like the router in your home network, but the signal is broadcast over a much greater distance and with more precision.

It all sounds complex and the technology is, but its the basic idea of your home network, but a lot bigger! You do have to have a special device that can receive the 4G signal and it usually plugs in via a USB port.

With mobile Internet, though, the signal is broadcast much further and much more clearly. The 'router' is actually a cell-phone-like tower, and it shoots a signal out over the breadth of an entire city. This type of technology is quite advanced, but it's still the same basic idea of the Internet that you can set up in your home. Instead of using a regular SD card for a wireless signal, though, you have to pick up this signal with a particular type of device, which normally plugs into your USB port. Look around and price everything before you make a decision on your mobile internet provider. You can usually get some kind of discount if you already use the network with a wireless device such as a mobile phone. Sprint is an excellent example of this.

Like all internet connections there are different speeds of which you can sign up for. A lot of people still use the popular 3G network, but its much slower and will most likely be surpassed by 4G fairly soon. 4G gives you up to 10mbps at best whereas 3G only goes up to about 1.6mbps. You will have to check with your provider, but you can probably get a device that is backwards compatible to the 3G network. So if you get out of range with 4G you can still use 3G. Just remember that you can only have this type of internet where you can use your phone because it uses the same towers.

Apple Iphone 4G

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Fri, 28 May 2010 20:32:00 +0000

Are the rumors true? Is the iphone 4G really going to be released before the holidays?

The iPhone 4G is Apple's next-generation iPhone, due later this year which is rumored to be named "iPhone HD". Although there is no official release date set for the new iphone 4G, all of the research i've done has pointed to sometime in July. Its cost is probably going to be somewhere around $599.

Features that the new iphone 4G might include are:

A front facing camera, better battery life, a new widget interface for the music player, tethering for AT&T customers and a higher-resolution display. Apple also plans to include some type of video-conferencing that can be used with other iPhone and mac users with iChat. Those are just some of the features i could find that are rumored to be included.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs is supposed to address the release date and some more features im sure on June 7 at the Company's Worldwide Developers Donference. Supposedly there might be new contracts signed on the same date to allow Sprint or Verizon to carry the very popular iPhone 4G. So all in all, we should find out when and with what provider the iPhone 4G will be released on June 7th at the WWDC.

How to choose the right HDTV for you.

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Fri, 28 May 2010 18:16:00 +0000

Here are some of the top things to consider when you are looking to buy an HDTV:

Size. This is where most people start their search. First you need to be aware of how the TV is going to look where you place it. If you have a small room for example you might want to get a smaller screen size. This will save you money as well as give you a better viewing experience. If you have too big of a TV for the size room you have it will not look quite as crisp because you are sitting so close to the screen. This seems obvious to most people, but you would be surprised how many people think that bigger is always better. Just make sure you have the space if you are going to go big.

Type. There are two major types of high definition TVs –LCD and plasma. An LCD TV is based off of the same technology that most modern computer monitors use. LCD stands for Liquid Crystal Display. However, a plasma works by vibrating gas particles inside the TV. Plasma TVs usually have a higher contrast ratio and are typically brighter than an LCD TV. LCDs are starting to catch up though. The best way to decide is based on what size TV you’re considering. For smaller sets, LCD is usually the way to go, and for larger sets, plasma would be the better choice. You can do your own research as to how exactly the two technologies differ.

Supported Formats. HD video generally falls into two categories – 720p and 1080p/1080i. In order to get the maximum experience from your TV (and especially your Blu-Ray player/gaming console), 1080p is the way to go. Most HD broadcasts are currently in 720p or 1080i, but this could change in the near future. 1080p is the highest available HD format and therefore provides the best picture quality.

Contrast Ratio. The contrast ratio on a TV is the difference of the brightest color on the screen to the darkest color that the set is capable of producing. So a higher contrast ratio will result in a richer picture. The brights will look brighter, and the darks will look darker. Always shoot for the highest possible contrast ratio in order to maximize your viewing experience.

Sources. Connecting an HDTV to an analog cable signal will not yield very good results. Be sure to stop by your local cable company, pick up an HD set-top box, and sign up for HD digital service. Also, if you want to take advantage of of all of the capabilities of your HDTV i would recommend getting a Bluray dvd player.

Those are pretty much the basics and the most important things to look for before you purchase an HDTV. I hope it helped.

Easy Way to Back Up Your Data!

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Fri, 28 May 2010 07:53:00 +0000

How can you back up all of your important files on a Windows XP system?

It's pretty easy actually.

Lets start with Windows XP Home edition. This OS does not come with the data backup feature, but you can install it from the installation CD you got with your computer or an OEM Windows XP home edition CD. The file is located in the CD drive:\VALUEADD\MSFT\NTBACKUP folder. If you don't have access to an installation CD you can download the file here: NTBACKUP.MSI

Windows XP Professional edition comes with this feature already installed so you don't have to worry about the previous steps used with Windows XP Home.

Now you are all ready to start the backup process!

Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click Backup to start the wizard.

Click Next to skip past the opening page, choose Back up files and settings from the second page, and then click Next. You should see the page shown below, which represents your first decision point.

Don't click All information on this computer unless you have a lot of space (the amount of space currently being used by your hard drive basically). The My documents and settings is a much better choice. This selection preserves your data files (including e-mail messages and address books) and the personal settings stored in the Windows Registry.

If you have a lot of people who use your computer you will want to choose the Everyone's documents and settings option.

If you have other files you want to backup then choose the Let me choose what to back up option. This option takes you to the Items to Back Up page shown below:

You can now browse the My Computer hierarchy to select the additional files you need to back up. If some of your files are on a shared network drive, open the My Network Places folder and select those folders.

Now decide where to store your backup files.

On the Backup Type, Destination, and Name page, Windows asks you to specify a backup location. By default, Backup proposes saving everything to your floppy drive (drive A). This is NOT good unless you want to use several hundred floppy disks for your backup.

Instead, your best bet is to click Browse where you can choose your hard disk, a zip drive or a networked computer or device.

After you've chosen a backup location, enter a name for the file, click Next to display the wizard's final page,(shown below), and then click Finish to begin your backup.

And that's it! You've successfully backed up the data you want backed up for safe keeping! I'll put together another post for how to do this in Windows Vista and Windows 7 soon.

Newegg

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Fri, 28 May 2010 05:42:00 +0000

I get a lot of people who ask where i get all of the parts to fix and build their computer. My answer is always Newegg.com. People are surprised and didn't even know such a site existed.

Newegg has excellent customer service, quick and usually free shipping and the best deals on the internet! They have shell shocker deals every day. These deals are drastically discounted products that range from CPUs to HDTVs.

Its very quick and easy to set an account up with Newegg and they take your privacy very seriously. I've spend several thousand dollars with them and have never regretted a single penny.

I have received a few DOA products, but they quickly resolved my problem by instantly getting me an RMA number to send it back. They sent me a brand new one very quickly every time!

It's the one stop shop for all of my computer needs! You can build a computer system for as low as $250 and it is not going to be a crappy machine! Its going to be quite capable and have lots of memory and storage space. You can buy TVs, CPUs, RAM, HDDs, speakers, tools and much, much more!

I've built several high end and low budget PCs all of which i got my parts from Newegg. If you are looking for the best prices on the internet then you have finally come to the right place. Check them out at Newegg.com! You will not be disappointed!

Best P2P programs.

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Fri, 28 May 2010 00:38:00 +0000

I'll list a few popular freeP2P programs i have personally tried and share my thoughts about each.

Vuze - I have found that Vuze is very good for video downloads and sharing and has some very nice features over other similar programs.

First of all you can stream movies and music to your PS3, Xbox360, psp, ipad, ipod, iphone and tivo. You can simply drag the video from your library in vuze to the devices tab to whatever device you happen to have connected to your network. I have only tried the PS3 because its what i have and use. It has worked out extremely well so far and i can even stream bluray quality dvds!

It also has a tab for burning DVD's. You just drag and drop the file you want to put on the dvd, follow the steps and burn. It really is that simple. This has quickly become my favorite program for video content.

The best way to find out is to download it and try it yourself. Its fun to play around with and has a lot of cool features. Give it a try! Vuze.com

Limewire- I'm sure you have all heard of this one as it probably the most popular P2P program out there right now. It is still the one i prefer for all of my music downloads. Vuze wasn't that great for finding music, but Limewire is. I think limewire is just the opposite of Vuze really. You usually get crappy quality videos from Limewire, but Vuze has a very large selection of all different formats and they are usually good quality. Its pretty simple to navigate and usually has almost every artist you can think of, but because it is a P2P program you aren't going to find all of them. Again, the best way to find out if it is good or not is to really try it out for yourself. Limewire.com

Frostwire - This is another one i've found floating around on the net and it seems to be very popular. It is supposed to be the equivalent of Limewire Pro which you have to pay for. I haven't really tried this one out, but it seems to look like a good one to try.

Teamviewer and what it is.

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Fri, 28 May 2010 00:29:00 +0000

What is Teamviewer? Teamviewer is a computer software package for remote control, desktop sharing, and file transfer between computers.

It really is quite amazing what you can do with this program. There is a free version which does pretty much anything you can think of. Remotely connect to a PC, transfer files share a desktop with some friends. Excellent for remote troubleshooting or online collaboration for a project.

You can use it to remotely connect to a persons PC and remove viruses, spyware, malware and any other unwanted programs. There is even a feature that allows you to reboot in safe mode and regain control even before the user logs in! As you can imagine this can be very useful in getting rid of pesky viruses. You can also connect and configure backups and any other management features of Windows you would like.

Just imagine not having to go to a customer's house or run back and forth downloading and installing updates or performing system management tasks such as disk clean up and defrag. You can do all of these things right from your very own computer in the comfort of wherever you like.

If you want to use this program for business situations you can purchase for a relatively cheap price compared to other similar services available. It includes tons of features not included with the free version such as having multiple users and setting up priorities for customers waiting in line. It also includes unlimited phone support for any problems you might encounter. There are many more features i will not explain in detail because it would be very time consuming and long.

If you would like to check it out go to the teamviewer website at teamviewer.com or just google it and you should see it at the top of the list. Its very easy to find. Its a very useful program and i've tested it myself.

Teamviewer and what it is.

noreply@blogger.com (SirAndyMan) — Fri, 28 May 2010 00:29:00 +0000

What is Teamviewer? Teamviewer is a computer software package for remote control, desktop sharing, and file transfer between computers.