Windows 7 was officially released yesterday on the 22 October! Unfortunately it seems that us Aussies are once again at a bit of a disadvantage when it comes to Windows pricing when compared to pricing of this software overseas. See this link for more details on that > Why is Windows 7 so expensive in Australia?
But the great news here is that for any student currently enrolled in a Tertiary institution such as a University or TAFE, you may be able to get an upgrade version of Windows 7 Home Premium for – wait for it – $49.95.
To take advantage of this – obviously awesome deal, you do have to purchase through the online Microsoft Store and you must have an eligible email which contains edu.au. Now while I am the first to yell out the benefits of using a Mac, I understand that there is a place in the market for Windows 7. In fact I have even been using it (while not extensively) since it came out as a beta release and to be completely honest this is a very worthwhile upgrade. If you are still using XP, what on earth are you waiting for get out there and get yourself windows 7.
So if you have a PC or even currently use a Mac and occasionally use Windows with boot camp I really feel it is worth the $’s to head over to the website and put your order in. The added bonus here if you are a student is that you can also get a copy of Office 2007 Home and Student for $79 when you get Windows 7. Together this adds up to less that a retail priced copy of Home Premium…this really is a no-brainer!
As we all know it is important for us to keep our computers in good clean condition, not only for aesthetic reasons but also to maintain good functionality of your equipment and possibly most important of all for health reasons. When it comes to keeping electrical and computer equipment clean it is important to follow a few basic rules.
Cleaning Agents
When it comes to cleaning your computer, you want something that can both clean the computer screen to remove fingerprints and dust without leaving streaks, and you also want something that get all that built up grime off that thing you type on all day, the keyboard. These are the only things you need:
Rubbing Alcohol
Water
Microfiber (or lint free) cloth
Squirter bottle
Towel
Preparation
The mixture of the alcohol and water makes up the cleaning agent – this mixture is important as the alcohol helps to readily dry the liquid mix which is great for computer screens and the alcohol has good anti-bacterial properties.
You will need to mix these two liquids in your squirty bottle in a ratio of 1:1, that is equal parts of each, so for every 100 mls of rubbing alcohol you would add 100 mls of water.
Cleaning your Computer
The first thing to do here is to ensure that all of your equipment has been turned off and preferably disconnected from the power. Once you have done this it is important to remember that the cleaning solution should never be directly squirted onto any of your equipment as this can work its way into the electrical systems and in turn leave you with a faulty machine.
You will want to spray an adequate amount of liquid onto your lint free cloth to moisten it, you can then wipe over all external surfaces of your computer equipment. This mixture will remove greasy fingerprints and also that dirty grime that tends to build up on your keyboard. You may find that to adequately clean stubborn stains that a little extra elbow grease is required.
Laptops
Laptops here do require a little bit of different attention to a standard desktop PC. Given that the screens on a laptop are on a hinge it is important to take care when cleaning them. This is where the towel comes into play, you will need to lay the towel on a flat surface. Open up your laptop and place the computer on the towel with the back of the screen laying flat and support the computer by holding the main body. This is important because if you attempt to clean the screen while it is in it’s normal position you have the change of doing damage to the hinge.
Once it is laid down you are free to wipe over the screen as you would with any other flat surface, and apply the same technique to clean the other flat surfaces on your laptop.
Final Note:
There are computer cleaning sprays available to purhchase, if you choose to use one of these then there is nothing wrong with that. However I feel that the solution described above is probably a much more cost effective way rather than purchasing the commercial cleaning agents. Further to this if you are really serious about keyboard cleanliness for hygiene reasons, a good way to get out all the dirt, dust and crumbs that build up under the keys is to purchase a can of compressed air. This is pressurised air and can be squirted in and around the keys to blow all of that grime away.
Rumours are coming in thick and fast about all sorts of new and refreshed Apple products. It would seem that they may just carry some weight as well. With many rumours about the release of a new iMac to be coming our way seemingly any moment now, it would seem appropriate that a facelift on the iMac would come with new peripherals – wouldn’t it?
AppleInsider mentions in this post on their website a few very notable points which certainly lead to a new release of an iMac, there’s news of supply lines for the current model being restricted. Now in the past when this has been the case with other products such as the iPhone, iPods & Laptops it has almost certainly meant that there’s a new model on the way. To complement this it has been just over two years now since Apple first released the aluminium iMac in it’s current shape, all of these things say to me that it may just be time for an update.
What really catches my eye though is the thought that there may also be new peripherals such as an updated Mighty Mouse and Keyboard to go along with it. Personally I love the aluminum keyboard that was released with the original aluminium iMac. I find it easy and quick to type on, while also being nice and quiet, however I am considerably more excited about the possibility of a new mighty mouse.
Endgadget posted an article the other day about how Apple applied for new patents on the Keyboard and Mighty Mouse, these details were released on the American FCC’s website just long enough for keen eyes to grab some screen shots with pictures and all. I really do find the current Mighty Mouse a great mouse to use, and I think that it complements OS X very well. The ability to use and customise so many different buttons on the mouse in such a user friendly way is something that I seen on many other mice out there to-date. My one and only complaint about the current mouse however is that of the scroll ball. When it works it is genius, but give it some time and some frequent use and this thing gets so gunked up it renders it almost unusable.
The patents that were released seem to hint towards the new mouse containing some sort of multi-touch technology, if this is something that can replace the scroll ball while still maintaining the great user experience then I say bring it on! Given that one of our mighty mouse has a scroll ball that needs cleaning every second day I say that it is definitely time for a new model to come out.
If you are a windows user – then please read on – this is something that you need to be aware of! The Malicious Software Removal tool (MRT) is a little piece of software heaven for windows users that is not talked about very much. We are all aware that Windows computers are the most vulnerable systems to attack from viruses and malware. Now while everyone does their best to avoid these pesky bits of software that are out there this doesn’t mean that you still won’t fall victim to one every now and then.
I’m sure that by now you have all had the moment where you’re anti virus program spits out at you that you have a virus or some sort of infection on you’re system, now letting the anti-virus deal with it is all well and good, but adding this malicious software removal tool could save you a lot of pain.
My suggestion would be to let you’re anti-virus do it’s job and attempt to delete the infection, but after this is done add in another step. Due to the fact that virus authors are becoming more and more switched on to ways to exploit your system it makes it harder and harder to actually get a virus off your system.
The next step that I’m speaking of is to run the Malicious Software Removal Tool. Now for all Windows users this is actually something that is sitting right there on your computer, in fact Microsoft updates this on the 2nd Tuesday of every month (the same way it does with software updates). To find this program, go to your start menu. There is a ‘run’ selection, press on this. In the window that pops up search for ‘MRT’. This will launch a program, one this has loaded it will prompt you with a few selections – these are ‘quick scan’, ‘full scan’ and ‘custom scan’. For the purpose of locating and removing malicious software you will want to do a full scan. Note that this may take several hours depending on the size and speed of you’re computer.
This will locate and hopefully remove any malicious software that is on you’re computer, and may in fact save you from the need to do a complete system re-store. Now what if you can’t find this on you’re system, well the MRT is available from Microsoft’s website for download, follow the few quick prompts. This is a fairly small download and is under 9Mb in size so there really isn’t any excuse for not using it.
Well I hope that this helps out in determining if you’re anti-virus really is doing its job, while giving you a little extra piece of mind in knowing that you’re system is safe!
