Tag Archives: Windows

Time to get a Password Manager – 1Password tested!

HowTo, Software, , , , , , ,

1PasswordLogoWe’ve used 1Password for quite some time (around 5 years, if not longer) so thought a post here to talk of its merits was justified.

If you’ve not heard of a password manager before, in short it’s an application that helps you generate strong and random passwords and makes it easy for you to save them and use them for any web site or service you may use. They hold your details in an encrypted database that not even the developers have access to. If you get locked out you have lost your passwords, which is why many services offer an emergency access code that they recommend you print and keep in a safe and secure location.

Many password managers integrate well with many popular operating systems (Windows, Mac, and even Linux) and all the popular web browsers, and phones. The idea being that you can access your secure passwords wherever you are and even when you don’t have internet access.

1Password syncs with your Cloud Account using the 1Password Families subscription which allows 5 members of your family to use the service across platforms.

We all know that one person who has the same password for every account they use. When you think about it, that’s one password that a hacker needs to guess and voila, they have access to your email where they then can see all the accounts you may use and gain access to as well. Once they’re in they can probably make orders with your Amazon account, and other web shops where you have your card details saved.

Not wanting to scare you here, but the same time give you an insight of what so many people do…

You can take a trial of the service by following this link https://start.1password.com/sign-up/family?l=en

We’re in no way affiliated with 1Password and not being paid for this post. We just love the software and recommend it for your password manager too!

HOW TO: Improve the performance of your older laptop!

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laptop

Just because your laptop is a few years old doesn’t necessarily mean you have to go and buy a new one, especially not if the hardware specification is fairly reasonable. If it can still run the latest operating system, for example, and you’re not interested in playing games on it, then read on.

The quickest and easiest way to give your laptop a speed boost is by upgrading the memory (RAM). In almost all laptops, manufacurers make it very simple for you to do this yourself in a matter of minutes, using only a screwdriver to remove an access panel.

The market leader in this (and we’re not affilliated) is Crucial. If you click onto their website you can run a tool which detects which laptop you have – be it Apple or Windows based – and tell you what memory you can fit. They tend to be the cheapest most of the time too. The tool will return results telling you how much additional memory your laptop can muster. If the version of Windows is 32 bit, upgrading your laptop to more than 4GB of memory will not make any difference as the computer won’t be able to “see” the additional memory.

The next step is looking at the hard disk. The cheapest laptops and even more expensive laptops by default still have spinning hard disks. Depending on the speed at which the disk spins at, will determine how fast the read and write speeds are.

Newer technology has since surpassed traditional spinning disk drives, and prices have come down massively. This technology is what you find in your mobile phone and tablet, and what enables most devices like that to be “instant on”, and is called Solid State Disk (SSD) as there are no moving parts. A lot of the time, this is why when you go back to your traditional laptop, you find yourself waiting much longer for things to load. It is a little bit more intrusive to replace and swap out your hard disk. You need to clone, or reinstall, your Operating System and copy the files back. There are guides for this, but we recommend you contact someone to look at this for you. The price of an SSD is somewhere in the region of £80-100 but prices are falling all the time.

Feel free to contact us if you would like assistance with replacing memory or your hard disk to give life to an older computer.

How To Easily transfer ALL your files from Windows XP to Windows 8.1

HowTo, IT, , , , , , ,

1-PCmover2This took us some digging to work out how to get working as Microsoft have failed somewhat to explain that Microsoft Easy Transfer Wizard does NOT work to transfer files from Windows XP to 8.1.

It seems that Microsoft have partnered with Laplink to provide a version of PCMover Express for FREE which allows you to quite simply transfer all your files and documents from your PC running XP, to your PC running Windows 8.1.

Microsoft had hit a large backlash from users when they realized it had left them without any way of transferring files easily between computers when upgrading.

The tool works well and we have recently used it to migrate data for a client. It uses a Wizard to run.

We used the software to migrate data directly over our network with success.

Note: Will run only if source PC is Windows XP and destination PC is Windows 7, 8, or 8.1. The free data transfer will not migrate your apps  although the Professional app (paid for) will transfer compatible apps).

 

 

Cloud Backup – Profiling Backblaze

IT, Macintosh, , , , ,

Backblaze LogoAs we have discussed previously, the importance of backing up your work and backing up your computers is growing increasingly as more and more of our work is computerized.

Many people already have local backup in the form of Windows Backup or Time Machine if on Mac, which is great, but also relies heavily on physical hardware and for that to be connected for the backup to run.

Being Mac fans ourselves, we run a local Time Machine backup. We also wanted to have an offsite backup, always on and ensuring that all our files were backed up.

We won’t go into too much detail about the different types of backup, different backup schedules and so on as that can all get a little bit too complex for one post but after much research of backup solutions we have found Backblaze to be reliable and work well. We have tested it on our Macs with the free trial, and satisfied, are now very happy with what it provides.

Backblaze is both Windows and Mac compatible, offers continuous backup, encrypts your data on the fly and allows you to restore data wherever you are!

For more information check out the site and get a free trial now: www.backblaze.com

Note: we’re not affiliated, we just really like the service!

Windows XP SP3 and Office 2003 Support Ends April 8, 2014

Security, Software, , , , , , , ,

XP Background
XP Background

If you haven’t already heard the news Microsoft is ceasing to support Windows XP and Office 2003 after April 8th 2014 – essentially both will go End of Life (EOL) after this date.

In brief what this means is that Microsoft will no longer be providing new security updates, non-security hotfixes, free or paid assisted support options or online technical content updates.

Essentially, although your PC will continue to run, it’d be wide open and vulnerable to attacks. Your current Antivirus software will only be able to assist so much before hackers find loopholes in the operating system to get through.

Frantik are currently providing deals on new PCs. We can provide a high spec AMD system running Windows 7, with 8GB RAM and 1TB hard disk for £450, or for £475 we’ll even copy the data from your old system. Microsoft Office will be extra cost.

If you’re interested in upgrading and wish to remain secure please call us now on 01462 888147.