Reduce the number of programs running at startup
If your PC is taking too long to boot, it’s probably because you have
far too many programs running at startup. Reducing this is easy, it will
make your PC launch noticeably faster and lighter upon first load. To
change the items running at startup, go to Run using the hotkey Windows
key + R, and type "msconfig." A small window will appear (see the
screenshot below), select the Startup tab. From here you will be able to
turn off many startup programs, which can shave several seconds (or
minutes) off your boot time. (Note Windows 8 has moved this
functionality to the Task Manager). Try to make sure you research what
you are turning off as some processes might be needed by third party
programs or drivers you have installed.
Nokia’s much-ballyhooed tablet device will reside in the market
alongside Microsoft’s Surface tablets. The Lumia 2520 looks like an
enlarged version of its phone siblings and runs Windows RT 8.1. It
features a 10.1-inch 1080p display with high brightness and low
reflectance, which Nokia says will make it easier to use in direct
sunlight.
It’s equipped with a 6.7-megapixel rear-facing camera and a
2-megapixel wide-angle front-facing camera, as well as a 2.2GHz
quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, which is a bit of a
departure from the Surface 2’s Tegra 4 chip. Nokia says that sticking
with Qualcomm’s mobile chip should help improve startup times, as the
tablet could take advantage of the processor’s fast-charging abilities.
The 2520’s 8000mAh battery pack can charge up to 50 percent after just
half an hour, though it requires an entirely separate port—and power
adapter—to do so. This connection exists in addition to the USB 3.0 port
(the same that Samsung uses on its latest, the Note 3) and a Mini HDMI-out on the side.
You can also buy a keyboard case, seemingly fashioned after the
Surface’s, that has a “bouncy” Chiclet-style keyboard, an extra battery
pack for an extra five hours of juice, and two USB ports. The case folds
over like a Trapper Keeper and protects the Lumia 2520 from dust and
scratches.
The Lumia 2520 will sport a keyboard cover not unlike that of Microsoft’s Surface.
Nokia hopes that integrated, out-of-the-box Office
functionality—something that Apple and Google tablets don’t offer—will
draw users to the 2520. But with both versions of Microsoft’s Surface tablets not selling well, and considering the fact that the tablet feels heavier than Apple’s iPad without
the keyboard case, it’s not clear which part of the tablet market Nokia
is gunning for here: the mobile consumer segment, or the professional
productivity niche the Surface has managed to carve out.
Apps are coming, too
Today’s announcement finally puts Nokia and Windows Phone directly in
the ring with the big competitors, Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS.
And the company isn’t going into battle alone—Nokia also announced that
more app makers have come on board the Windows Phone 8 platform. You’ll
see popular apps such as Flipboard, Instagram, and Vine in the coming
weeks, in addition to a few handwriting applications. “We want to keep
bringing great applications to Windows Phone,” Majid said in our closed
session. “There’s a little bit of a perception problem with the
applications [Windows Phone 8 has now].” Some worthy
applications—especially Instagram—may be in the pipeline, but whether
consumers will be willing to leave the comfortable embrace of the
platforms they know best will be another thing entirely.
The Lumia 1520 and Lumia 2520 will be available for purchase later
this year. The 1520 will cost $749 before carrier subsidies. The 2520
will sell for $499 before subsidies, while the power keyboard accessory
will cost $149.
Lets do some Housekeeping with Ccleaner - Lets get started
1:Open CCleaner.
2: Lets Start off by cleaning your temp files, History Cookies Index.dat files etc. (By default the brush is already selected)
3:Uncheck the items that you'd do not want to clean out from your browser(s) and any suggested applications.
Under Internet explorer check temporary internet files, cookies, and
last download location. Most users don't really need this stuff. It is up to you if you want to clear the cache of
history and bookmarks Index.dat files. Leave Windows Explorer,
System, and Advanced at the default settings.
4: Run CCleaner and it will start deleting files
5:Click "RunCleaner" once again until you get 0 bytes remove
Now that you have removed all the unwanted files you can move onto cleaning the registry
The Registry Cleaner
Use the Registry Cleaner after uninstalling programs, as the
uninstalled programs will often leave behind incorrect registry entries.
The registry cleaner is recommended for slightly more advanced users. 1:Click the Registry tab on the left hand side of the program window.
2:Check off the items want to clean.(leave at default if you are not sure)
3:Click the "Scan for issues" button at the bottom of the program.
(Give the program a few moments to run and look for all potential problems with the registry.)
4: Click the "Fix Selected issues" button.
5: Create a backup copy of the registry file.(I have never encountered a problem with ccleaner, its probably one of the safest registry cleaners out there. Just create a back up for your peace of mind.)
6: Click the "Fix All Selected Issues" when a dialog box displays.
7: Now continue to repeat the process from point 3 again until you get a message that reads "No issues found"( Fixing one issue may create other issues so just repeat until you get the 'no issues found' )
8: You are now done and close your Ccleaner window.
Tools
Have a look at how to remove /disable unwanted start up items from your PC with Ccleaner. Tools - Startup Tab
Microsoft is doubling the storage capacity of inboxes for those using
Exchange Online and Office 365. The rollout from 25GB to 50GB is already
under way and should be completed sometime in November according to a
post on the Office 365 blog.
Customers using Exchange Online Plan 1, Office 365 Small Business,
Midsize Business, Enterprise E1, Government G1 and Education A1 are
among those that will see the mailbox capacity boost.
Those on one of Microsoft’s premium service plans (Exchange Online Plan
2, Office 365 Enterprise E3 and E4, Government G3 and G4, Education A3
and A4) already enjoy unlimited e-mail storage through their personal
archive but now the default primary mailbox size is increasing to 50GB.
It is worth pointing out there will be no extra charge for the
additional storage and the transition will happen seamlessly behind the
scenes.
Elsewhere, shared mailboxes and Resources mailboxes are both increasing
to 10GB (more than double) and Kiosk user mailboxes are doubling in
capacity from 1GB to 2GB. The size of Site mailboxes remains unchanged,
Microsoft said.
The changes come just days after Microsoft tripled the file storage
capacity on SkyDrive Pro. Office 365 and SharePoint customers previously
were afforded just 7GB of storage but that’s now been boosted to 25GB.
Overall, the new storage limits push Microsoft ahead of Google Drive’s
storage capacity that’s shared across Drive and Gmail. One has to wonder
if the search giant will take notice and boost user capacity in
response
Afrihost ADSL clients may experience errors with Web Browsing, YouTube access, Sending & Receiving Email and other services due to a DNS error on MTN network.
Here is a solution until the issues are solved
If your router has Afrihosts DNS servers in it or its set on 'Obtain
DNS automatically' , Log into your router and change it to Googles DNS
Primary DNS: 8.8.8.8 Secondary DNS: 8.8.4.4
If your router is set on obtain automatically your can use an alternative method but will have to do this on each individual computer.
Go to your network adaptor (wireless or LAN local area connection) settings right click select properties.Select Internet protocol version 4 (TCP/IP v.4) >>> Click 'Properties'
Then select the radio button 'Use the following DNS server adresses:' put in Googles Primary & Secondary DNS settings mentioned above. Click okay and now you should have browsing and email access again
How to fix an error opening word and excel files that have been downloaded or sent to you as attachments in Microsoft Office 2013
Below: Error message
The message that has nothing to do with the actual problem, and the problem is actually a Microsoft feature, as often is:
- Office now has a "protected-mode" feature, which prevents
office apps from doing certain things under certain conditions.
- One of them is to stop excel / word from opening attachments coming from outlook.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Word Options. or Excel depending on what you having a problem with.
Below: Click Trust Center, and then click Trust Center Settings.
Below: Click the "Protected View" in the left menu and untick all 3 check boxes on the right.
'
Save and voila, suddenly word / excel can open all your files and has absolutely no problems with your gigs of free memory.
Thanks to the brilliant minds who conceived such an awkward feature with
awkward error messages and ultra-deep menu options to clear - and of
course no simple help. LOL
These ISOs (image files) are now available for those who currently have Microsoft Windows 7
with Genuine Activation Keys. These are the legitimate downloads,
full ISO image to burn to a good quality blank DVD using any good image
burning program such as ImgBurn or outher image mounting software.
These ISO images have the Service Pack 1 integrated into the
installation setup, so therefore there is no need to separately install
SP1 after the initial install of Windows 7.
Windows 7 SP1 ISO Download Links Including English and Foreign Language Versions:
Windows 7 calculator looks just like Vista's
version, but explore the Mode menu and you'll see powerful new
Statistics and Programmer views. And if you're clueless about bitwise
manipulation, then try the Options menu instead. This offers many
different unit conversions (length, weight, volume and more), date
calculations (how many days between two dates?), and spreadsheet-type
templates to help you calculate vehicle mileage, mortgage rates and
more.
I know this is not PC related, it is however very common question I get from many of my customers, so i thought i would post a little article on it.
Okay lets just start with rebooting the device With the BlackBerry device POWERED ON,
remove the battery for a 20 secs , and then reinsert the battery to
reboot.
After using your Blackberry for a while you may experience freezing or lagging/slow response on any BlackBerry,
the most important practice you can adopt is to be sure to CLOSE
applications when you are finished using them.
If you just hit
the red "end call" key to go back to the home screen the application
actually stays open and running in the background. If you do this
repeatedly don't close the applications properly, you will have lots of apps open and consequently your memory
will get used up pretty quickly.
The lack of memory is the biggest reason your BlackBerry
slows to a crawl or locks up. Get into the habit of actually
using the menu key to close the applicationsthis will at least slow
down this memory-clogging process. You still may have to do a battery
pull or use the "Quickpull" app once in a while when things get slow.
To
check what applications are running on your device in the background,
press the Menu key,
then choose Switch Applications. You will see the
icons of each application there. Select the icon of the application you want to close open it then click the blackberry menu button scroll to the bottom of the menu and select 'Close'
So now, check your applications
running in the background. There are commonly four or five applications
that will always be running (Messages, Call Logs/Phone, BlackBerry
Messenger, Homescreen, and the Browser;
There are other third party
applications such as, Whatsapp, BlackBerry Alerts which will also run
in the background which you cannot close if you want them to operate).
Make certain that the browser is NOT on an active webpage. Close any other applications that
do not need to be running (the camera or a game you were playing or
Google Maps etc).
Next, Blackberry devices by default create event logs you can delete the event logs by doing the following:
Holding the "ALT" button and pressing "L G L G" one after another, then press the menu button and scroll down to 'clear log' and select it, then select 'delete'.
Clearing the memory log, we can free up 1-2 meg or so of memory space depending on amount of apps. If you do not want your blackberry to create event logs you can select 'options' and untick the boxes or an even easier option is to press the menu button again and select 'Hide all Types'.
Just over a month after making available a mobile version of its Office suite for iPhone users, Microsoft is doing the same with an Android version of Office Mobile.
Just like it did with the iPhone version, Microsoft is tying the Android version of Office Mobile to Office 365.
Users who want to use the mobile versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint
on their Android phones will need to have an Office 365 subscription,
such as Office 365 Home Premium, Office 365 ProPlus or these other SKUs
to get them.
Office Mobile for Android phones (known officially as "Office Mobile for Office 365 Subscribers") was launched initially in the U.S. yesterday, ( July 31 2013) and can be downloaded from the Google Play Store for free. The plan is to make it available in 33 languages and 117 markets "over the next several weeks."
The Office Mobile for iPhone and Android suites are both like the
Office Mobile suite that Microsoft preloads on Windows Phone, meaning
they are optimized for the editing, viewing and creation of Word and
Excel documents. (Microsoft already has offered OneNote for Android phones since February 2012.)
Unlike Office Mobile for iPhone, Office Mobile for Android phones does
not include an option to purchase an Office 365 subscription from within
the app, however. Office Mobile for Android phones only has a “sign in”
option.
Office 365 subscribers are authorized install Office Mobile on up to
five iPhones and/or Android phones. (Office Mobile on Windows Phones
don't count against that total.) Office 365 University subscribers can
install Office Mobile on up to two non-Windows Phones.
Microsoft is still widely believed to be developing versions of its core Office apps that would be customized to work on iPads and Android tablets.
As with the iPhone and Android phone versions, these Office tablet apps
would likely be tethered to an Office 365 subscription, tipsters have
hinted.
YOU know that file you deleted from your computer before your significant other had a chance to find it?
What if we told you that file never really disappeared?
That's right, just because you move a file to the trash doesn't mean it has actually been deleted.
And
even once you empty the trash, the space inhabited by the file isn't
actually emptied. When you hit "delete" that file doesn't disappear. It
is simply marked as empty.
Michael from YouTube channel VSauce
explains that "the file's home becomes available real estate but the
file itself hasn't actually moved out. Only the pointers have gone
away."
What are pointers, you ask? Pointers are a kind of data
that point to places in your computer's memory where the file you are
referencing can be found.
Deleting a file is the equivalent of
turning to the contents page of a book and marking a chapter as empty,
even though the actual chapter still exists.
Which is why you need to "overwrite" the file. Overwriting the file
is the equivalent of turning it into Frankenstein's monster. You keep
adding new data to it until it becomes unrecognisable.
However,
overwriting doesn't always work. Some people have overwritten files more
than 35 times and even then hackers and cyber criminals have been able
to piece the information back together.
So the next option is
shredding - physically taking apart your computer piece by piece and
maybe putting it through some high powered magnet for good measure.
But much like shredded pieces of paper can actually be put back together, so too can shredded computer parts.
The
video explains that cyber criminals have been able to find classified
files from the US government in digital dumping grounds in Ghana.
So
basically, nothing is permanently gone. And the best way to keep your
data safe is to keep the hard drives of your old computers before
ditching, donating or selling it, because you never know where your data
can end up.
And then take a hammer to it making sure you destroy the platters. Watch the video above for a more detailed explanation.
Computer Security is extremely important for all computer users. Here is how to protect your computer against hackers and viruses. Now
days everyone fears hackers and all your computers, weather it be PCs, Laptops, or servers have to be secured and protected against attacks like Spyware,trojan horses,phishing,viruses,malware and hackers.
Protect your Computers.
1 > Install Anti-Virus Software.
Make sure that your Computer has a resident and up-to-date AV running.
2 > Up to date Operating system.
Keep Your Operating system up to date with latest patches.
3> Java Security Issues
If you have to use Java, make sure you are using the latest Java (at time of this post Java version(s):
7.0, 7u21), not old versions of Java or running applet code that is not signed from a trusted Certificate Authority. More info on Java from Oracle.
4 > Install Anti-Spyware Software.
Use Anti-Spyware it protect from spyware,malware and trojan horses.
Make sure the windows firewall is enabled or Install a personal firewall and keep it up to date.In internet world there are many free firewall software out there. Free Software Tools
6 > Scan Computer fortnightly.
Scan your Computer Hard Disk Weekly it will make better performance of Computer.
7 > Don’t Open Spam E-mail.
Don’t Open unknown E-mail or spam mail.
8 > Use Strong Passwords.
Use Strong password not use your birthdate,nickname or mobile number.
use alphabets,numbers and special symbols in your password.
Like GhU*&45H and also make it long.
9 > Secure Your Wi-Fi.
Secure your Wi-Fi connection with strong password. If your router supports WPA / WPA2-PSK rather use that as it has better encryption then WEP. The problem with WEP is not the bit length of the key but rather the simplistic math used to create it. WPA, WPA2 have better techniques and thus better security
10 > Don’t Use Dictionary words in your Passwords.
Windows 8, like Android and iOS, features an apps notifications
function, alerting you when you receive new messages, calendar events
and email. Unfortunately, Microsoft offered users scant options for
silencing those notifications. You could either shut them off for a few
short ours, or turn them off entirely. Thankfully, Microsoft has
rectified this omission, adding a new Quiet Hours function in Windows
8.1 that lets users schedule when notifications should be active and
when they shouldn’t.
search for 'notifications' from start screen select it then select '
notification settings'
When enabled, Quiet Hours ensures your notifications don’t make any
noise or cause the screen to light up when your Windows 8.1 device is in
sleep mode. Your notifications will automatically be restored whenever
you start using your device or Quiet Hours are over.
Mybroadband’s June 2013 broadband survey results showed thatAfrihost was the top rated ADSL Internet Service Provider (ISP) in South Africa, followed by Axxess and FNB Connect. The survey was successfully completed by 4,329 South African broadband users, which included over 2,800 ADSL subscribers.
The surveyed ADSL subscribers rated their ISP on price, network quality, billing, support and overall satisfaction.
This survey tested ADSL users’ satisfaction with their ADSL ISP and
their perception of the service, rather than the actual performance of
the service. The results therefore show how happy users are with their
ADSL ISP.
This survey used a token system where only users who formed part of a
random sample could do the survey. This ensured more accurate results.
The survey results show that Afrihost was rated as the top ISP, followed by Axxess, and FNB Connect.
The following table provides an overview of the ADSL ISP survey
results. It should be noted that only ISPs with a high enough number of
ratings are listed.
Fix it Solution Center finds and fixes many common PC and device problems automatically.
It also helps prevent new problems by proactively checking for known issues and
installing updates. Fix it Center helps to consolidate the many steps of diagnosing
and repairing a problem into an automated tool that does the work for you.
The Start screen feels completely alien in Windows 8. Press the
Windows key and you’re whooshed from your desktop to a completely
different environment with a completely different background that’s
separate from your desktop background. If you want to set a custom
background for your Start screen, well, you can’t — you can only choose
from among the handful of weird Start screen backgrounds that Steven
Sinofsky decided to give you.
Windows 8.1 deals with this by providing an option to “Show my
desktop background on Start.” It sounds like a small change, but using
the same background on your Start screen makes it feel much less out of
place. When you go to the Start screen, it will look as if the tiles (or
list of installed apps) are hovering over your desktop rather than
existing in a different environment.
Below: example of desktop background set on start screen
To enable this option: right-click the taskbar, select Properties,
click the Navigation tab, and check the “Show my desktop background on Start” option.
Below: example of desktop background set on start screen
Windows 8.1 includes an option that lets you boot to the desktop so
you don’t have to see that tiled interface anymore. You don’t have to
install third-party software or mess around with complex hacks involving
the Task Scheduler just to boot to the desktop.
To enable this option, right-click the taskbar, select Properties,
click the Navigation tab, and check the “Go to the desktop instead of
Start when I sign in” option.
Telkom
have reached a settlement agreement to resolve a series of complaints
lodged against Telkom from 2005 to 2007 by various companies, including
the Internet Service Providers’ Association (ISPA), Internet Solutions, Multichoice, and Verizon.
The settlement package includes an admission of guilt by Telkom, a
R200-million penalty, a functional separation between Telkom’s retail
and wholesale divisions, a transparent transfer pricing programme, and
wholesale and retail pricing commitments for the next five years
estimated to yield R875m savings to customers.
ADSL subscribers using Mweb accounts started reporting slow speeds to
international sites from around 12:30 on Monday, 24 June 2013.
Users from all over South Africa have reported the same issue on the MyBroadband forums.
A representative from the Internet service provider has told subscribers
that Mweb is busy investigating reports on slow browsing and e-mail
connectivity.
It is not clear at this stage what is causing the problems.
Original forum thread: Mweb uncapped ADSL feedback
Video tutorial to remove file encrypting ransom-ware 'department of justice' . There are other forms of ransom-ware such as MBO which are all part of the Win32/Harasom.A Trojan family.
This infection will also scan your computer for files that end with the
.ddrw ,.pptm ,.dotm ,.xltx ,.text ,.docm ,.djvu ,.potx ,.jpeg ,.pptx
,.sldm ,.xlsm ,.sldx ,.xlsb ,.ppam ,.xlsx ,.ppsm ,.ppsx ,.docx ,.odp
,.eml ,.ods ,.dot ,.php ,.xla ,.pas ,.gif ,.mpg ,.ppt ,.bkf ,.sda ,.mdf
,.ico ,.dwg ,.mbx ,.sfx ,.mdb ,.zip ,.xlt extensions and then encrypt
them.
When the ransomware encrypts a file it will rename it as a HTML
file and then embed the encrypted
file inside of it. If you then attempt
to launch any of these encrypted files, you will be taken to a web
page, which is currently at htxp://mdlblock.in, that prompts you to pay
the ransom in the form of a Money Store, Vanilla Reload, or
Reload it voucher.
What you will need.
You will need to download Hitman Pro, Malwarebytes and Emsisoft Harasom decrypt tool, and in worse case scenario if you can't boot into OS you may have to download and make a rescue disk to boot up off of. You can download eitherKaspersky Rescue disk orAVG Rescue disk. These links can be found on my blog under Free Software Tools.
The XPS viewer folder mentioned is situated in the Appdata folder. If you cannot find the Appdata folder this is probably because the application data folder is hidden by
default. You need to tell your OS so show hidden files and folders.
To do this open Windows Explorer (windows key + E) click on Tools at top then Folder Options. Then
click on the 'View' tab and check the tick box "Show hidden files and folder"
, and then click Word Options. or Excel depending on what you having a problem with.
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