I am sorry if I get this wrong but this is my first attempt at doing one of these things so I apologise in advance.
A Few Things for Those Using Windows.
I am going to keep this one simple so I am just going to tell you Windows users out there about some free software that I hope you will find useful. Some of the applications can be used with other operating systems and if the are I will mark them with an "L" for Linux and "M" for Apple.
If I have serviced any of your computers then doubtless I will have put at least some of these on your machine but these links will point you to the most up to date versions so may still be worth a look. PS. All these mentioned are free.
Ccleaner
Originally called "Crap Cleaner", this little tool does a splendid job at removing all the rubbish that accumulates on your computer. If you run the cleaner once a week then it only takes a few seconds but it can help speed up your machine as well getting you more disk space. It also has a Registry Checker (always make a backup when the programme prompts you to) which will also help speed up your machine. There is also a utility for removing unwanted programmes.
Ccleaner
One of the biggest reasons for Windows slowing down is a fragmentted hard drive. This applications tries better than most to get you system back into some kind of order. Use it once a week and it shouldn't take long (I usually run it twice). If you haven't defragged for a while it could quite a while and then you should do it three or four times. If you install and new software I recommend you use Defraggler immediately after the install.
Defraggler
These come from the same company, Piriform, which also has a couple of other useful tools such as "Recuva" which can retrieve deleted files or even get them back off (sometimes) a dodgy or corrupted hard drive. Use with care.
Open Office
A fully featured office suite that can easily take the place of Microsoft Office for domestic and business use. It has a word processor, spreadsheet, database and drawing applications. Will read nearly every form of document going including those from Microsoft and Microsoft Works (try that in MS Office). You can also save documents in various formats or with a click of an icon save them as PDF files. This is a real money saver.
Open Office (L, M)
Firefox
This may not be the fastest Internet Browser but it has the biggest selection of add-ons, themes and custom tweaks which make it the most fun. The add-ons I would suggest are Adblock plus, video downloadhelper (yes thats is one word) and cooliris. The first one is obvious what it does the other two I will let you find out. While you are at it, look at Thunderbird which is an email browser. Email browsers may be a bit old hat nowdays as most people log onto their webmail but these can be quite restrictive especially when composing mail or adding detail about a contact, and it now works with hotmail.
Firefox & Thunderbird (L, M)
Zattoo
This is a nice application for watching "live" TV, it has the main 5 UK channels and quite a few others. It needs a fairly strong broadband connection and those with usage limits should also beware (same goes for TV catch-up sites) but is useful if you are away from home or the kids are monopolising the TV with their XBox, Wii, or Playstation. You have to register but this is easy and painless, just remember to "untick" the box about them sending emails - ugh - junkmail.
Zattoo (M)
Cripes, nearly forgot this. The free anti-virus programme, need I say more. It is up to version 9 now so if you are running AVG8 it is time to upgrade as it is quicker and uses less resources. Some Internet providers do give you a full security package but I find that most have their downsides which could be from really slowing your machine to a very fussy firewall. As with all things, common sense is the best security, don't open emails from unknown senders, avoid websites that could be harmful, etc. etc. etc.
AVG Free
While we are on the spread of nasty virus', Mac and Linux users should not be oblivious to the threat. You may not contract the bug but you could pass it on so if nothing else you should install an email scanner (clamav is good). If you don't then some emails may be rejected by the sender as they haven't been tagged as scanned so are considered a threat.
That's enough for now, hopefully I will have another go at this with information on disk burning and multimedia. Until Then. Byeee
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