Tech Q & A

A: I always feel it is better to control your technology than to let it control you. I preach to my clients to plan for technology upgrades on their terms. This is much more preferable than to suddenly be forced into an unprepared upgrade because of an unexpected failure. And failures do not always mean that something has crashed. It can also mean that a piece of technology became outdated and it no longer works as it did before. With this in mind, my recommendation is not to wait until your current computer fails you, but to start planning and budgeting now. Not only is it better for your budget, but you also get to prepare for the downtime and transition of data from the old computer to the new.

First off, there are a few exceptions where you may want to stick with Windows XP. Mostly, these cases would be in business environments, but if you really think you need to stick with Windows XP, please contact me and we can discuss your details. I think for most individuals and many small businesses, the best option is to purchase a new computer. The question of which computer to purchase is well beyond the scope of this article but let me leave you with two thoughts.

First, in today’s day and age, do not assume you must purchase another Windows-based computer. More and more people everyday are purchasing Macintosh computers and are by and large very happy with them. Certainly the fact that Macintosh computers do not get viruses is a huge benefit, but users are also very appreciate of their ease of use and compatibility with the data they used on their Windows machines. One fact that many people do not realize is that modern Mac computers can actually run Windows operating systems as well. This makes a Mac the only type of the computer in the world that can run all Mac and Windows software. It is very much like purchasing two computers in one.

Second, if you do decide to purchase a Windows computer do not purchase one with Windows Vista (or do not install Windows Vista on a Mac). Most new computers sold today now come with Windows 7 but a few inexpensive models still remain pre-loaded with Vista. Just double-check before you commit to the purchase that you are in fact getting Windows 7 and not Windows Vista.

Again, the bottom line to to start planning now. You do not need to run out and buy a new computer today, but do be prepared to move away from Windows XP before you are forced into making a decision.

If you have a technology question, please let me know and it will be featured in a future newsletter!

A: The iPad has generated a lot of buzz among consumers and business people alike. While tremendous numbers of iPads have been sold already, many people are waiting for the 3G model to arrive, due April 30th. The difference between the Wi-Fi only model and the 3G model is that the 3G model will add cellular data connectivity to the AT&T network. Many people have been asking if they should wait and purchase a 3G model or if they would be fine with a Wi-Fi only model. The answer, of course, depends on how one intends to use the iPad.

Firstly, note that Apple’s official designations for the iPad models are “Wi-Fi” and “Wi-Fi + 3G”. They do this in order to ensure that people realize that the 3G model also has Wi-Fi. I believe this is wise, as already we’ve had many people ask if the 3G model has Wi-Fi. However, the common practice is to simply call that model “3G”.

Second, the 3G model’s subscription plan is month-to-month and does not require a contract. This means that a user who has a 3G model does not necessarily need to pay every month for data service if they do not plan to use it.

The major determining factor on which model to buy is whether or not the user believes they will be using the iPad in areas where there is no Wi-Fi available. For users who will mostly use the iPad in their home or office, the Wi-Fi only model is likely just fine. Even users who will take the iPad around town will likely be fine with the Wi-Fi only model if they know they will be using the iPad in areas with public Wi-Fi coverage.

On the other hand, users who will require Internet access in any location will likely want the 3G model. Users who plan to take the iPad to places like trade shows or on-site to client locations where Wi-Fi is not guaranteed would benefit from having connectivity to AT&T’s network for Internet.

But as with most things, there are exceptions to the rules. For example, many apps on the iPad do not require Internet access. If the user plans to use the iPad for non-Internet related activities while away from home, they may not need the 3G model. And in contrast, a user who mostly uses Wi-Fi but thinks they may need 3G connectivity periodically may benefit from the 3G model. Remember, because the iPad’s data plan is month-to-month and does not require a contract, a user only needs to pay for months in which they will use the 3G service. For example, a user may only need 3G service while on vacation once or twice a year. They would only need to pay for one or two months worth of 3G service out of the year and simply use Wi-Fi the rest of the year.

Another exception are users who need Internet access anywhere but already have or plan to purchase a separate “mobile hotspot” such as a MiFi device. These devices connect to a particular wireless carrier (like Verizon, Sprint, or AT&T) and broadcast their connection over a Wi-Fi connection. These devices are very useful if you will be traveling with a group of users who all have Wi-Fi capable devices since a single device can cover many Wi-Fi devices such as laptops and iPads.

The 3G models are all $130 more expensive than their counterpart Wi-Fi only models. Honestly, if you think there is any chance that you will benefit from Internet access while on the road with the iPad, then the 3G model is probably worth purchasing. Assuming you do not have a MiFi device, the relatively small difference in price is probably worth the assurance that you will be able to connect from nearly anywhere with your iPad if you need to. However, if you are confident that the iPad will only be used in Wi-Fi areas, then save the money and get the Wi-Fi only model.

If you have a technology question, please let me know and it will be featured in a future newsletter!

A: The answer depends on several factors. You must first determine who is going to use this computer, how it will be used, and what software you may need to run on it. Once you have those factors in mind, then the following should help you decide.

If you are a more technical user, or a “power user”, and this will be your main computer or laptop, the iPad may not fit your needs at this time. However, even if you are a power user and this will be an additional computer, for example, one that you will have with you just to be able to do light-duty tasks, then the iPad may be worth checking out.

If you are needing a computer for general purpose use, such as browsing the web, checking e-mail, and working with digital media, the iPad could very well be the computer for you. If you can sit tight for another month or so to try out the iPad, it might be worth the wait.

If you are in the market for a very small and light laptop (i.e. a “netbook”), then definitely wait to try out the iPad. The iPad promises to be a lot easier to use than a netbook and has many technical advantages worth considering such as longer battery life.

If the computer you are considering purchasing will need to run a particular software program that only runs on Windows or Mac, then the iPad probably won’t be a good fit at this time. However, carefully consider the necessity of the particular software program to see if there is a way to get around using it. Don’t let old technology unnecessarily hold you back from progressing forward. There may be no way around it in your situation, but it is definitely worth considering moving on from older software if possible.

If this will be a computer primarily for use by a child or for use by various family members in a home, then the iPad could very well be a perfect fit. The iPad will be the first true “coffee table” computer. In other words, a computer that is almost always within reach, as magazines on a coffee table would be. Instead of spending a lot of money on one desktop or laptop, you could spend the same amount on two or three iPads that can work anywhere in the home. Now you would have more computers available to meet the ever-increasing demands of computer usage in a family household. As described above, the iPad will be very good for general purpose and light-duty computing, as is the typical usage of most families, especially if there is already one “main” computer already in the house.

Hopefully, this gives you a good idea on whether the iPad may be right for you. Because this product has not yet been released, there are a lot of questions that are waiting to be answered. We will know more after April 3rd, when the iPod is made available to the public!

If you have a technology question, please let me know and it will be featured in a future newsletter!

– Submitted by Christy Gan, Lee’s Services
A: It is funny how many misconceptions there are regarding web browser maintenance. To hear some people talk, it would seem that “cookies” are the source of all the world’s computer problems. Probably because clearing all this browser stuff is often a step suggested to people over telephone support. Because it has become part of the lore of do-it-yourself computer maintenance, I often get this question. The answer may completely surprise you.

Honestly, you should never need to clear the web browser’s history, cache, or cookies if you aren’t experiencing any problems with your browser. For example, I use the Safari web browser on my Mac and I do a ton of web browsing. I have my browser set to keep a year’s worth of history because I often want to go back and search my history to find some article I read months ago. I don’t think I’ve ever cleared the cache, cookies, or history of my browser since I’ve had my laptop, which is going on 3 years now. As long as I’m not having any problems, there really is no reason to clear out that stuff.

However, I have seen strange browser problems be resolved by clearing out the browser’s files. Often, this is a necessary troubleshooting step when cleaning out viruses on Windows PCs. And unfortunately, Internet Explorer on Windows is susceptible to a plethora of issues that also require clearing out those files to resolve the issues.

But again, the bottom line is that there really is no good reason to do a periodic cleanup of those browser files. The only time it should be necessary is if you are experiencing a problem with your browser and in those situations, it is often best to have your computer serviced by an qualified technology professional. But in the same breath, it really won’t hurt anything to clear out those files (other than losing your history) if you really feel like it.

If you have a technology question, please let me know and it will be featured in a future newsletter!

– Submitted by Tony Cecena, Cecena’s Jewelry
A: It used to be relatively simple to compare computer processors. One could look at the clock speed of a processor (Mhz or Ghz) and that would be a good indicator of the relative performance of that processor. Of course, this wasn’t a perfect method, but it was a good way to approximate. Within the last few years, however, processor manufacturers have stopped focusing on clock speed and have started introducing and marketing other technologies in processors. One of the more commonly touted technologies are processors with multiple cores. Unfortunately, most people have no idea what a multiple-core processor is. So let me enlighten you.

First a little background. Many years ago, computer manufacturers developed technology to allow computers to have multiple processors. A computer with more than one processor could be more powerful. For some applications, multiple processor computers showed significant performance improvements. Unfortunately, multiple processor computers were generally a lot more expensive and required specialized motherboards and software that was specifically written to take advantage of extra processors.

Fast forward a few years and processor manufacturers develop technology that allow a processor to have multiple “cores”, which in very simple terms is a single processor that behaves in many ways as if it is multiple processors. For many reasons multiple core processors are a great improvement over single-core processors and multiple processors. However, all the average person needs to know is that most processors made today have multiple cores and the specifics are not all that important. The only important fact to determine is relative performance. Competent sales people and technology professionals should be able to explain the relative performance of various processors when asked. If not, perhaps you should move on.

One thing to keep in mind is that just because a processor has multiple cores does not mean it is a factor of that multiple faster than a single core processor. For example, a dual-core processor is not necessarily twice as fast as a single-core processor, nor is a quad-core processor four times as fast. One reason is that software needs to be written so as to be optimized for multiple-core processors to take full advantage of them. Most software developers will not do this as it requires a lot more work. However, it should become easier in the future as software development tools will allow programmers to automatically take advantage of multiple-core technologies. One example of this is Apple’s Mac OS X 10.6 operating system, known as Snow Leopard. Snow Leopard has programming technology in it that allows software developers to automatically take full advantage of the processor technology in the computer without needing to specifically optimize their software to that processor. So no matter if the computer’s processor is single, dual, or quad core, their software will be able to run at full performance on all of them.

If you have a technology question, please let me know and it will be featured in a future newsletter!

A: Just to be clear, this question isn’t asking how long a laptop battery should hold a charge, but rather how long a battery should be useful. This is an extremely common question anymore. It seems people are holding on to their laptops longer and longer, which is not surprising given that most computers produced over the last 5 years or so are powerful enough for most common tasks. This is true for desktops as well, but since laptops are mobile devices they need batteries to function, which makes keeping a laptop a little more challenging.

Most laptop batteries will have a lifespan of about 2 – 3 years (the exception being the latest Apple MacBook/MacBook Pro batteries which claim a lifespan of about 5 years). However, the lifespan of a battery can be greatly affected by the way the owner of the laptop uses their batteries. Abusive use of a laptop battery can be detrimental of course, and I covered that in a previous article. But heavy laptop users may simply “use up” the charge cycles of a battery much more quickly than average users. Users who use their laptops on battery for many hours a day may only get 1 – 2 years of use before the battery loses a significant proportion of their ability to hold a charge. Users who don’t use their laptops all that often or who leave them plugged in a significant amount of time may get 3-4 years of useful life from the battery.

Sometimes, a battery may be defective and lose charge capacity too quickly. Unfortunately most manufactures don’t warrant their batteries past 1 year, even with extended warranties. Check the policies of a laptop manufacturer BEFORE making the purchase if this is important to you.

Finally, if you do need a new battery, I don’t suggest shopping for third party batteries. You may be able to save some money from a third-party battery manufacturer, but in my experience, the odds of problems and the hassle of service isn’t worth it. Most brand-name batteries are in the $100 to $140 range. For that you get the peace of mind knowing that the battery is the exact right model for your laptop and that if there is a problem you should be able to get service very easily.

If you have any questions about any technology topic, call or contact The Tech Spot today!

A: Microsoft released their latest operating system, Windows 7, on October 22nd. So now that anyone can purchase a copy of Windows 7 the question is can and should they do so?

First off, I advise anyone who uses their computer for day-to-day work to wait on upgrading for at least a few months, regardless of your situation. While Windows 7 has gotten good reviews pre-launch, remember so did Windows Vista. Let the early adopters weed out any serious problems or incompatibilities and let Microsoft and other vendors roll out the first wave of updates before considering upgrading. If you have spare machines or virtual machine software, then feel free to experiment with Windows 7 at any time.

I started writing this article intending to go over a few scenarios covering both Windows XP and Windows Vista users. However, as I started detailing the article, I quickly realized that it was getting way too complicated and unwieldy for an average user. I came to the conclusion that I could give a very simple answer that should cover the vast majority of users.

Basically, if you are like most users, I simply advise that you don’t upgrade to Windows 7. Not for the reason that Windows 7 is bad, but simply because for most users, the risk/reward equation is just not favorable. First, if you are using Windows XP, likely your computer is a little too old to fully take advantage of Windows 7. And even if your computer can handle Windows 7, the process of upgrading from Windows XP is technically challenging. If you are using Windows Vista, the upgrade process should be easier (to repeat – “should” be easier) , but if you aren’t having any real troubles with Vista at this time, you really aren’t going to gain any earth-shattering new features that make the potential risk of troubles worth it.

Here are links to a few articles detailing the potential pitfalls and challenges to upgrading to Windows 7:

http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20090722/for-some-move-to-windows-7-will-be-tough/
http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20090729/hasta-la-vista-the-many-versions-of-windows-7/
http://mossblog.allthingsd.com/files/2009/08/windows-upgrade-chart.png
http://mossblog.allthingsd.com/20090804/deciphering-windows-7-upgrades-the-official-chart/

Certainly, many technically savvy users will disagree with my recommendation. But again, I’m not targeting this article towards technical users. Bottom line, if you want Windows 7, then your best bet is to simply purchase a new PC. Of course, don’t forget that new computer can be a Macintosh!

If you have any questions about Windows 7, call or contact The Tech Spot today!

– Submitted by Misty Farmer
A: The iPhone 3G and 3GS are very similar devices. There are just a handful of substantial differences, one being that the older 3G phone is $100 less. Additionally, Apple released the 3.0 iPhone software upgrade at the same time as releasing the 3GS. This means a number of new features are available to the current iPhone owners who upgrade, which makes it somewhat confusing to distinguish which new features are available to both phones or just the 3GS. Luckily, I can quickly explain the differences and help you make a decision of which phone to purchase or to upgrade from your 3G phone.

First, feel free to visit http://www.apple.com/iphone/compare-iphones/, as this site has a nice chart showing the differences. While you are at it, this page http://www.apple.com/iphone/softwareupdate/ also shows the new features of the 3.1 and 3.0 iPhone updates.

To quickly sum up, these are the features that the iPhone 3GS has over the 3G phone:
1) The ability to record and edit video
2) A 3 megapixel camera with auto-focus (the 3G only has 2 megapixels and no auto-focus)
3) The 3GS is a lot faster – I’ve asked users who’ve owned both the 3G and 3GS and they say it is a significant difference
4) A compass feature
5) The 3GS has 16 and 32 GB models, where the 3G now only has an 8 GB model
6) The Voice Control feature

My opinion is that if you’re going to purchase a new phone today, purchase the 3GS. For only $100 more you get 8 GB of additional storage and all the features I listed above, including the improved performance. Remember, the prices advertised for the iPhones are for new or renewing contracts. If you want to buy a 3GS before you qualify for upgrade pricing you’ll spend at a minimum $399. If you purchase the 3GS, for the extra $100 you’ll never wish you had bought the 3GS when you had the chance.

If you already have a 3G iPhone, is it worth the $199 or $299 to upgrade to a 3GS if you are eligible to do so? This question is a lot harder to answer, as it completely depends on the user. For example, someone who needs a 32GB iPhone would find it worthwhile, as the 3G iPhone only offered an 8 and 16 GB model. But for someone who is happy with their 3G iPhone and isn’t really in need of the features of the 3GS, then it probably isn’t worth upgrading at this time. Use the info I’ve presented along with what Apple provides and make the best decision for your situation.

If you have any further questions regarding the iPhones or any other technology topic, please feel free to post them at The Tech Spot’s social networking site, http://thetechspot.ning.com

A: As the popularity of the iPhone continues to grow at a phenomenal rate, many people have taken an interest in the iPhone’s sibling, the iPod Touch. While the iPod Touch can do nearly everything the iPhone can (besides phone calls of course), many people are not quite sure how the iPod Touch works or what fees are associated with it.

Unlike the iPhone, there is no monthly service fee for the iPod Touch. Since it is not a phone, there is no service to be billed for. The iPod Touch has Wi-Fi connectivity so it can get on the Internet, but just like a laptop there is no fee associated with using Wi-Fi (unless you are somewhere that charges you for Wi-FI usage, but that’s a different story).

Because there are no monthly service fees associated with the iPod Touch, these devices are becoming popular with parents that have kids who are asking for an iPhone. With an iPod Touch, their kids can take advantage of the many apps and games available for these devices but without the worry of running up large phone bills.

However, just like the iPhone, if you choose to purchase an app or music from the iTunes Store then of course you must pay for it (except for free apps, obviously). For music and most apps you just pay one time and you own it outright. However, there are now some apps that also require a monthly subscription fee. At this time those apps are few and far between, but it is something to keep an eye out for, especially if you are allowing your child to use or own an iPod Touch.

So it is possible to use an iPod Touch and not pay anything beyond the original purchase price. This would be true you don’t purchase any music or apps or only download free apps. Personally, most of the apps I currently use with my iPod Touch and iPhone are free. But it is also possible to buy a lot of music and apps and pay a lot of fees. It is just up to you how it is used.

Feel free to check out the iPod Touch at The Tech Spot and if you have any questions you’d like me to answer, post them at The Tech Spot’s social networking site, http://thetechspot.ning.com

A: Junk mail is probably the most annoying problem that plauges all of us who use e-mail. There is unfortunately no magic bullet to stop it all. Most of us need to follow a few basic rules and perhaps additional software to help keep junk mail under control.

The first thing to check is whether or not your e-mail provider filters mail at their server. Most E-mail servers now have some sort of anti-spam filtering available. However, not all of them are on by default, or they may filter junk mail at a very low level. So make sure you are using the filtering available at your server at the highest level you feel comfortable with. Each e-mail server is different, so you’ll need to check with your e-mail provider for more details. For some people with light e-mail loads, server filtering may be sufficient to keep junk mail at a minimum.

Some people recommend that you try to keep your e-mail address “safe” by not giving it out very much in order to keep it off spammers lists. But this is easier said than done, and once your address is on a list, you’re pretty much always going to be on spammers lists. This is especially true the longer you’ve had your e-mail address. So while it can’t hurt to be careful where you use your e-mail address and to whom you give it to, ultimately this strategy can’t by itself stop the flow of spam.

Ultimately, for those of us who use our e-mail address a lot or have had it for a long time, we may need to resort to using anti-spam software on our computers. While anti-spam filtering on your server may be effective, it can only do so much for users who receive a lot of spam. For example, while my own e-mail server does catch a lot of spam, a lot still does get through. I filter the remaining spam using software on my laptop.

Some e-mail programs have built-in anti-spam technology. For example, Microsoft Outlook for Windows and Apple Mail for Macintosh users both have junk mail filtering technology. Again, this software may be enough for some users, but for those that need more filtering, 3rd party software may be useful. Very simply, for Windows users, I recommend SpamBully. For Macintosh users, I recommend SpamSieve.

If you have any questions you would like answered, feel free to submit them at The Tech Spot’s social networking site. Your question may be reprinted here next month!