Skip to content

Rick

Mission Accomplished


Ubuntu Desktop As I wrote about on Friday, this was a busy work weekend for me. I think three of the computers I worked on offer an interesting comparison in operating systems.

One laptop was a brand new HP with 2 GB of RAM and Windows Vista, but the owner wanted me to install Windows XP and take off Windows Vista. He uses it primarily for traveling and downloading his digital photos while traveling and just didn’t like the lack of speed with Vista. The install of Windows XP went smoothly, but finding some of the XP drivers for it took quite a bit of looking around. All is running well now, and the with 2GB of RAM and a dual-core processor, the little laptop is very fast. Bootup time is under 70 seconds.

The next laptop was another Vista machine with 1 GB of RAM that a client bought for her mom who is a first time computer user and is 83 years old I believe. She will take the laptop with her to Connecticut next week. I took off all the pre-installed junk and installed AVG anti-virus and configured a Gmail account to work with Windows Mail (Vista’s version of Outlook Express). Because her mom has some sight problems, I bumped up the text size and DPI setting to make it easier to work with for her. Also, I disabled all of Vista’s fancy eye candy and effects. Despite all these tweaks, the computer still

Need for technology proportionate to family proximity

Two of the past four weekends I have left every piece of technology behind (except for my camera) and taken my family into the mountains. My cell phone, my laptop, my XBox, my projector, and even the portable DVD players stayed behind.

The drive to where we were camping was less than three hours and we kept the kids busy the old fashioned way. We stopped at overlooks, rest stops, gas stations and told stories. The kids got car sick between yelling “_________’s touching me!”

Once we were at camping the kids kept busy fishing, swimming, playing games, chasing miniature wild life, and eating junk.

Busy weekend

My work week isn’t over. I have five computers/hard drives that I’m working on this weekend. My most exciting task is to setup an older XP HP machine with Ubuntu Linux. My customer had a huge XP problem and couldn’t use her restore CD’s to get it going. After some discussion of her options, costs, and time involved, she decided to give Ubuntu a try. This customer is retired, but is writing a book, uses a digital camera, is an AOL user, and emails a bunch. However, she loves here computer and has been using one for many years and has no qualms about trying something new.

Are we moving too fast??

Wow, I am getting more pleased every day with our site. Sometimes you can find up to five new posts on our site in one day! Coming from a staff of two, that isn’t too bad. But are you catching it all?

The newest info is always at the top of our page, and then it moves down through the site as we post new information. If you have missed a few days, click the numeral “2” at the bottom of the page, and then “3” and “4”, etc to catch up on the latest happenings.

Reading the comments on our site is always interesting and sometimes entertaining as well. We strongly encourage ALL our visitors to leave comments, suggestions, and even criticisms on the site. It’s easy to do, just click “Add Comment”, and comment away!

Watch for check boxes when installing all software

When it comes to installing new software programs I have two rules that should get you through the process and keep you out of trouble.

1. When in doubt, click on the affirmative (Next, OK, Finish, I Agree, etc).

2. ALWAYS WATCH FOR CHECK BOXES!

The second rule is becoming more important as search engines and other sites that provide ad-sponsored services promote themselves by partnering up with other software companies. While installing a program like JAVA or Adobe Reader, you may be asked whether you want to install other programs such as Google Desktop or Adobe Photoshop Album Starter Edition. Simply unchecking these boxes will cut your install time significantly and save from other undesired hassles.

Here is an example:

Rick’s Answers his email Videocast – 001

Today, I tried something new and did a videocast of me answering your email. Today, I answered emails from: Terry, Bresada, Stephanie, Stephen, Robyn, and Dan.

Leave a comment below and let me know how you liked this method of answering your questions.

Stop buying floppy disks

 
flash drive

I have seen a number of people lately who have insisted on backing up on USB flash drives and floppy disks.

Having two backups is always a good idea, but the era of  the floppy has come and gone.

What’s wrong with floppies?

1. They scratch

2. They bend

3. Even a small particle of dust can hurt them

4. Almost any magnet can corrupt them – such as setting them too close to a computer speaker

5. Any accidental spill of any liquid will ruin them

None of these things are generally true about USB flash drives or  CD-ROMS.

I have one flash drive that I intentionally let go through the wash on a regular basis. I have had it for three years and I still use it often.

So, if you want to make multiple backups of something, use

Backup – Again

I will keep bringing this topic up again and again until every visitor to HelpMeRick.com makes a regular habit of backing up their valuable data. Already this week I have received three calls from computer users who lost valuable data due to a computer crash. In addition to the calls, I received another four or five emails from computer users in the same situation.

I know backup is monotonous, but it is also vital to protecting your digital information. For more than ten years I have written and soap boxed about backup and provided many tips on how to best approach this misunderstood and often forgotten computer skill. Establishing a backup routine is not difficult and once it is up and running is painless to maintain.

Fun with Cameroon Pet Scams

I really love English Bulldogs. Recently I became aware of a common pet scam that is based on every other over seas Internet scam. Someone from Cameroon posts a desired breed up for a ridiculously low price. He/she asks for money plus shipping. You never get the dog. Here is my recent correspondence with one such scammer. I have resorted… Read More »Fun with Cameroon Pet Scams

Updated gimmick feature list 2007

My list of gimmick features continues to grow. Gimmick features are features that companies add to technology to sell a product but don’t do what they claim to do in the way you expect them to do it.

One of of the first gimmick features I began discussing years ago were gimmick buttons on a scanner. These are buttons that say “email” or “scan and save”, etc. All these buttons do is activate the software the same as if you clicked on the icon. It is usually more work to reach over and hit the buttons than it is to double-click on the appropriate scanner icon.