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Tips to Speed Up Your Slow Computer

by Yehuda Cagen 10. December 2010 08:53

 

Does your local computer run slowly?

Are you tired of waiting for applications to load?

Save yourself time and 100’s of dollars in IT consultant fees by simply following a few steps. Houston IT Consulting expert, Cheryl Smith, shares three basic steps you can do to speed up your computer:

1.     Disk Cleanup

2.     Defragment of drives

3.     Run Malwarebytes Anti-Malware by
downloading from http://www.malwarebytes.org/

 

Operating Systems:

Windows XP

> Start Button

> Control Panel

> Performance and Maintenance

> Free up space on your hard disk (Disk Cleanup)

> Rearrange items on your hard disk to make programs run faster (Defragment)

 

Vista

> Start Button

> Control Panel

> System & Maintenance

> Administrative Tools

> Free up Disk Space

> Defragment Hard Drive

 

Windows 7

> All Programs

> Accessories Folder

> System Tools

> Disk Cleanup – select drive and ok

> Start – type Disk Defragment in search window

> Disk Defragment will appear in results

 

We hope you have found this information helpful. If you would like to learn more about this subject, please feel free to contact us:

        Questions about this article?

        Suggest a topic

        Learn more about our Houston computer services 

 

Shopping for a computer? Here's what to look for

by Yehuda Cagen 24. November 2010 08:35

 

 

Are you shopping for a new computer this Holiday Season, but not sure what to look for?

 

Have you spent too much time perusing ads or websites?  

 

Understanding the specifications of the computer can be confusing, and sometimes even a little misguiding.

 

Houston IT Consulting expert, Cheryl Smith, gives you a few pointers on what to look for when shopping for a new computer:

 

1.     AMD and Intel Processor’s are the most popular and you really can’t go wrong with either one.

2.     2GB of RAM Memory is most often offered, but 3 or 4 would be better for most users.

3.     500GB hard drive is enough for the average user and is usually included. Anything less probably isn’t going to satisfy you.

 

If you are a computer “gamer” or media buff, these specifications might not be sufficient. Faster processor, more memory, upgraded video card, and most likely 1Terabyte hard drive will be necessary.

 

Computers with remote pc support can be a worthwhile investment, but knowing what is included in the plans needs to be clear. How long does the technical support last? How do you contact your computer services consultants?

 

You may also want to keep an eye out for how many USB ports are included. These days, we use these ports for our printers, scanners, cameras and portable, and memory drives.

 

Lastly, be sure to know exactly what is included in the computer purchase prior to handing over your money. Is there a monitor, keyboard, mouse, printer, etc. included? What is the warranty?

 

We hope you have found this information helpful. If you would like to learn more about this subject, please feel free to contact us:

·        Questions about this article?

·        Suggest a topic

·        Learn more about our Houston computer services 

 

 

Can't find what you need on Google? More online search options

by Yehuda Cagen 17. November 2010 09:05

 

Searching for something and just can't find it on Google?

Is your favorite search engine not providing you with the right results?

Computer services expert Cheryl Smith shares a few alternative online search engine options:

·         Google Scholar – Search scholarly literature across many disciplines and sources

·         PinkMonkey - Online Study Guides/booknotes/literature Summaries

·         Dogpile - combines Google, Yahoo, About, MIVA, and more.

·         Yahoo – Popular search engine, 2nd to Google.

·         Bing - Microsoft’s search engine

·         Go.com – family oriented search engine and fun ideas source by Disney

·         Excite -Customize your personal search engine-create your own search page

If business takes you out of town, Kayak is a comprehensive travel search engine. Other popular travel sites include Travelocity, Orbitz, Hotwire, and Priceline.

We hope you have found this information helpful. If you would like to learn more about this subject, please feel free to contact us:

·        Questions about this article?

·        Suggest a topic

·        Learn more about our Houston computer services 

 

 

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General

Creating Effective PowerPoint Presentations

by Yehuda Cagen 7. August 2010 19:01

 

 

Have you ever sat through a boring PowerPoint Presentation? Did you find yourself nodding off? Did the presenter reads directly off the slides, word…for…word?

 

Certainly, you’ve never been the presenter of such PowerPoints….or have you?

 

Before we uncover some of the tricks and features of PowerPoint, IT consulting expert Cheryl Smith shares  a few guidelines to keep your PowerPoint professional but still interesting and eye appealing to your audience.

 

A Few Suggestions for Professional, Yet Engaging PowerPoint Presentations

 

Creating Slides ~ Appearance matters

·         Use easy to read fonts, stay away from script and cursive fonts

·         Keep design basic non-distracting

·         Use legible font size, smaller fonts are harder to read

 

Consistency ~ Organized and professional

·         Design theme

·         Color Schemes

·         Over all design-keep same one throughout entirety

 

Backgrounds ~ Watch for Contrast

·         Black text with white background – very effective

·         Bright colors are distracting

·         Light colors strain the eyes

·         Consider printing – color backgrounds use more ink

 

Take Home Message ~ Highlight or accent message

·         One point per slide

·         Limited custom animations – only on main message preferred

·         Use WordArt to bring home the message

 

Straight and Simple ~ Remember audiences can only read or listen, they can not do both!

·         Use Keywords ONLY!

·         No sentences or paragraphs

·         Do NOT read from the slides

 

Images should be used ~ A picture is worth a thousand words!

·         Include images, but limit them to one per slide

·         Keep image relevant to subject of presentation

·         Be careful resizing images, images can be pixilated

 

Keep your audience in mind when creating the presentation, and rehearse over and over until you know the content - without having to look at the slides. Make eye contact with the audience and interact with them.

 

If you feel you need to add more information to the slide, give them a handout to take home instead. Do not worry about covering everything within the presentation. Most people like a handout to take with them for future reference.

           

After all, all the computer services and software in the world won’t help you if you don’t know how to use it.

 

We hope you have found this information helpful. If you would like to learn more about this subject, please feel free to contact us:

 

·          Questions about this article?

·          Suggest a topic

·          Learn more about our Houston IT Consulting

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