News & Tips

Should I get a Vista computer or a Windows 7 computer? Or should I upgrade my Vista to Windows 7?

First lets talk about what most people complain about and why. Most of my residential customers use the computer for 4 main purposes .

1 Checking e-mail, 2 Surfing the web, 3 Tracking finances & 4 Writing letters in MS Office i.e. Word.

It's no secret that Vista got a ton of bad press when it first came out but those initial problems have been fixed with the release of Service Pack 2 and most people who hate Vista have never even used it or have it confused with Office 2007. When my customers tell me they can't stand Vista and it should burn in hell, I always ask them why. Here's the answer...I hate the new toolbar, they moved everything around. News flash, that's not Vista, that's Office. Or maybe, I upgraded to Vista, now my system crashes. Try upgrading your ram from 500 megs to 2 gigs and install service pack 2, don't forget to get rid of Norton and and that 10 year old 20 gig hard drive. I could go on and on.

The fact is, Vista, if on the correct system runs great and is loaded with features like Windows Mail for one. If you have been using Outlook Express for your e-mail or perhaps Windows Mail, be aware that Windows 7 no longer comes with a mail program. One of the ways Microsoft got Windows to run faster and boot up more quickly was to strip it down. Now that doesn't mean if you buy Windows 7 your completely out of luck for e-mail. If you want an e-mail program that's just like Outlook Express just download Mozilla Thunderbird as a replacement. It's free, fast and very good. If you use Outlook then you won't have a problem just make sure the service packs for Office are up to date.

Windows 7 is a great operating system and so is Vista they both offer lots of shiny eye candy and both do exactly the same thing, offer lots of features most people will never use or really even know about i.e. Windows 7 home networking for one.

It doesn't really matter which you choose as long as you have enough computer to run it either way if you plan to upgrade, your probably going to need a technician to install it because in most cases it's just outside the comfort zone of most users.

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Customers are always asking me what is the best anti-virus and why. It's really sad to see that so many of them have been bamboozled into buying Symantec Norton Antivirus or McAfee Antivirus by local computer stores. I, like most technicians hate these programs with a passion for they come with a laundry list of problems that I see, and have to deal with on a daily basis. Here is a small list so you can judge for yourself.

• Can't scan outside of Windows, DOS mode as we used to call it. Both programs
• ccapp.exe crash on shutdown  thanks Norton
• 75% drop in system resources thanks to both programs
• Neither program can remove a virus currently in memory.
• If you can uninstall the bloated programs your in luck, if not you need their removal utility found on their websites. Good luck getting it once it kills your internet connection.
• Neither of their Internet Security packages are the least bit user friendly. With a host of pop-ups and access questions that only a technician could know. Make a mistake and there goes your internet connection. again
• Last but not least, they make you actually pay for this garbage.

Now, some of you will argue these programs are the best thing going since sliced bread and that's fine. This is just my opinion based on the several thousand computers that I've worked on. If you feel they work well on your system by all means keep using them. Unlike retail outlets I don't get kick backs for pushing software, I just push what works plain and simple.

So what can you do to protect yourself? Make sure your Microsoft updates are turned on and up to date. Make sure you have antivirus, if you don't some of the best anti-virus software is free just look in the column to the right. Make sure it's installed and up to date.

Here is a great program that's free and will remove just about all spyware, and if you decide to pay the $25 dollars it will run in the background and help keep them out of the system for good. make sure you run anti virus with it. like Avast.

Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware 1.46

Version: 1.45 File Size: 5.87 MB
                Operating Systems: Microsoft ® Windows XP, Vista, and Windows 7 (32 & 64-bit versions).

Remember, never load more then one anti virus or anti spyware program on your computer. It may seem like your doubling your protection but in the end the programs can cancel each other out and you may end up with little to no protection at all. These programs have databases that look like viruses and spyware to other programs and could be removed by mistake.

Don't buy, get the best software for FREE!

• Avast Antivirus, I believe to be one of the 2 best antivirus' to date. Free for home users.

 

• Microsoft Security Essentials, Rated 8 out of 10 as one of the best anti virus and anti spyware. It works really great I even run it on my system.
  ( Great option, as long as you have a valid copy of Windows that is.:-)

 

• HiJackThis, This program will show you every starting application on your system from everywhere. And let you kill them. For advanced users only.

 

• Spamfighter for Outlook /Outlook Express, Windows Mail and more. Free yourself of the dreaded spam mail. For FREE!!

 

• Best backup Solution. MOZY on-line backup the is the service I use and can honestly say it's worth every penny, about 15 cents a day. Do it now and you won't be sorry later. Click on the banner below to get started.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

last updated 5/12/2010