This post is not outdated and kept for historical purposes only. Please visit this link for updated information on how NOT to buy Microsoft Office. Despite what big box store sales people try to sell you, don’t buy a copy of Microsoft Office. On all new commercial computers today, manufacturers install a trial version of Microsoft Office AND a copy… Read More »Don’t buy Microsoft Office when you buy a new computer
CutePDF has been one of my favorite computer utilities for many years. This small (free) utility lets you create a PDF (portable document format) file from anything that you can print. I use it to save web pages, online shopping receipts, and many other items that I might be tempted to print to paper. Instead, I print it using CutePDF… Read More »How to download and install CutePDF Free – Video Tip
Special guest post by Bri Castellini When I got my first laptop, for my sixteenth birthday three and a half years ago, I needed a word processor. Because I got a MacBook, Microsoft Word didn’t really make a lot of sense (plus, it’s super expensive!), and so my dad HelpMeRick helped (hah) me make the switch to a free, open… Read More »OpenOffice: The good, bad, and the great – A student’s perspective
A customer asked me a question that I get asked quite often on the radio show and when I’m making my daily house or office visits. “Why do you use free products versus the larger commercial pay products for keeping a computer secure?”
My answer can be summed up in word: effectiveness.
Time and time again, the products I recommend prove themselves in the field as being thorough, effective, and unobtrusive programs. Unobtrusive is a big one for me these days as the leaders in security software (Norton, McAfee, etc) bloat their software beyond recognition and slow down even the fastest, newest machines. Norton claims that their newest versions areRead More »Why use free security software?
I missed last year’s annual newsletter subscriber drive, so I need your help once again to make this year’s drive a success. As you can see from the Email Newsletter subscribership number in the orange box in the right column of my site, we are holding steady at just over 2700 subscribers. My goal is to double this number by the… Read More »I need your help, please
Interesting article from a ZDNet author, Christopher Dawson, who also works full-time as a school district computer engineer. Despite locking down Windows computers with security software, tweaking firewalls, and making sure all Windows updates are up to snuff, threats still sneak into their computers. I understand the frustration he exhibits in the article regarding the time and effort spent fighting… Read More »System Engineer fed up with Windows vulnerabilities
The summer has kept me busy and I let a few too many question stack up (remember that you can make a small donation when asking your question to get priority). I answered all the questions you asked the last 2 weeks in these two videos. The first video contains questions from Doris, Henry, Andrew, Jean, John, Rae Ann, Craig,… Read More »Rick Answers his Email Videocast – 053
I thought it might be a good idea to make a complete list of open WiFi hotspots in Grand Junction, CO.
A WiFi Hotspot is a place where anyone can access wireless Internet for free and without setting up an account or through the use of a pay account. I also added a few pay sites as well. I certainly don’t know all the spots in town, so please help me make this list more complete with your additions by leaving a comment below.Read More »Free & Pay WiFi Hot Spots in Grand Junction, CO
Chalmers said that he enjoys doing free computer classes at HP Learning Center.