Multi-core processing is one of those terms that geeks love to use when they tell people about their computers because having multiple cores means wonderful things. Let’s start on what a processor is: A processor is a component that processes instructions from the different programs and makes outputs. That’s obviously a simplified explanation, but that’s what it is and what […]
More Cores is the Key to Multitasking
How I Use Evernote to Keep Track of Stuff
It has become an increasingly busy world, hasn’t it? Seems like there’s never enough time to get to everything I want to do, and remembering everything I want to remember is nearly impossible. Technology has helped, and although I still love the feel of a pencil and paper for certain things, it’s just not feasible to pull off the […]
A Post about POST
A lot happens after you push a power button, even before you see the “splash screen.” Electronic devices—computers, tablets, phones, PDA’s (remember them?), even appliances, go through a Power On Self Test, or POST. In basic terms, it is exactly what it sounds like. As the current is applied to the system board, the most basic components on the board […]
Taking Your Computer Apart–Don’t be Scared
Sometimes you need to get inside your computer to check things out or to get rid of some dust, to keep the airflow clean. Whether it’s a laptop or a desktop, this shouldn’t scare you. Newer desktop computers are being built with easy-release mechanisms to allow you to take at least one side off. It may be at the […]
Court Ruling on Net Neutrality
First, what is “Net Neutrality?” Net neutrality is the concept that all internet traffic should be treated equally. “Treated equally” would indicate that traffic would travel at its rate of speed regardless of non-technical implications. To better understand net neutrality, let me give you an example if what is not net neutrality. You have as an internet service provider XYZ […]
Why Does Microsoft Keep Changing Stuff?
If you know me—at all—you know that I use a lot of different forms of technology, from different providers. This gives me the foundation to be able to tell you authoritatively that it is not just Microsoft that keeps changing stuff. Let’s start by saying that, although a horse and buggy is an adequate way to get around and […]
How to Keep Kids Safe Online
The only completely certain way to keep your kids safe online is to keep your kids offline. Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s get real. The internet is a wonderful tool that can provide access to the universe. It can open doors to education and entertainment. And let’s remember that not all entertainment is a waste […]
How “Free Stuff” on the Web Really Works
Everything has a cost of some type. That’s basic economics. It’s not always a monetary cost; sometimes it’s a price paid in effort, and sometimes it’s an “opportunity cost,” which means that as a result of choosing one thing you can’t take full advantage of another opportunity. An example of that would be in how we choose to spend our […]
How to Contact a Professional
I want you to feel comfortable and confident in dealing with a lot of your computer conditions. But there is a point when you should NOT try to do it yourself. That point is where you don’t feel comfortable, and when there is too much to lose. Most computer problems that people have are NOT hardware related, they’re software […]
What’s That Up In the Sky? (It’s my delivery from Amazon!)
I don’t know that I would ever bet against Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon. He’s had more hits (Amazon Web Services, Prime services, the Kindle line) than misses (Kozmo dot com, askville dot com, LivingSocial), and even if the misses were BIG misses, the hits were BIG, BIG hits. That said, I’m not sure I’m ready to call it in […]