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Windows XP End-Of-Life (April 8th, 2014)

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Windows XP came out when I was in High School.  It was installed on my eMachine I had previously upgraded the RAM from 64MB to a whopping 128MB while it still had been running Windows ME.  (Let’s not derail on Windows ME, I actually had a good experience with the Vista of my High School years)  It’s Celeron 733MHz processor did really well running the new, fancy Operating System.  It was a more refined Windows 2000 Professional which I also really enjoyed.  For the first time I was able to change my IP without having to reboot.  That was a huge deal while taking the CCNA curriculum.

Anyway, Microsoft will be finally ending support for Windows XP on April 8th, 2014.  At this time there will be no further security patching for the Windows XP Operating system.  It will be a very, very long run in a world of annual revisions of Apple OS X and bi-annual revisions of many mainstream Linux distributions.  Also ending support at this time will be Microsoft Office 2003.

If you are still running Windows XP (I still am in a virtualized environment), then now may be the time to look at your hardware, and see if it is upgradable to a newer Microsoft Operating System.  I’m not going to just start pointing you to a Windows Upgrade Assistant to Windows 8, as I think it definitely has it’s issues ESPECIALLY if you dod not have a touch screen.  I think if you want to stay in the Windows environment then Windows 7 is a smart choice at this point.  Or, if your desktop is about as old as Windows XP itself, then it may be time to look at an upgrade.  New hardware is more affordable than you might often think.

Either way, please contact us and let us help you migrate your data today.  Now begins the sunset of Windows XP, which kinda started ~5 years ago anyways.

Source: Windows XP End-Of-Life

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Microsoft H5D LifeCam Cinema

Ever since I got a MacBook Pro I haven’t had to worry about a webcam for Skype or some random need  to capture video quickly.  The built-in iSight camera does a great job for what I needed.  When my Aunt moved into an assisted living facility, I decided it would be neat if we could get her to use Skype to chat with us.  We tested it out for the first time last weekend, and it turned out great.  Click here to see the call in action She enjoyed it, and we plan on doing it in the future.  While preparing these plans I looked around for a nice webcam for my workstation.  I found the H5D which had nice reviews so I picked one up at TigerDirect.  The reason I pulled the trigger on it was the compatibility with both Windows and OS X.  The video on my blog shows it running on my MacBook Pro.  The picture quality was great (720P), and I would recommend this unit to someone wanting a better quality Skype call than a less-expensive webcam would get you.  I also bought a Logitech C250 for $19.99, also at TigerDirect, and while it works fine with her Windows 7 laptop, the video quality is definitely much more grainy than the LifeCam.

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Unlock your files with Unlocker

Mostly likely you have been presented with the lovely Windows error message stating that Access is denied and you cannot delete some file.  Enter Unlocker 1.9 to solve the mysterious locked files holding strong to your computer’s hard drive.  Once installed Unlocker is as simple as right-clicking on that file and running the Unlocker program.  It will free up that file and even help you delete it.  It is a nice little tool to have for those pesky and stubborn files on your Windows-based computer.

Click here to download Unlocker 1.9

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PrtScr | Print Screen Utility

PrtScr is a great Print Screen utility for anyone who needs to be able to capture something on their computer monitor/s. It works great with multi-monitor setups as well.  ZNET Networks uses PrtScr for capturing screens of errors or programs needing attention so they can be sent to the customer.  It is the easiest application to capture the proper portion of the screen needed.  Watch the video for a demo of how it works, and then click below to download it.

Download PrtScr