A couple of people this week have requested advice on special offers with excellent pricing, including Costco, Dicksmith and a white box retailer/manfacturer.

This week a number of people have been presented with what look like excellent offers from various retailers. It really does pay to shop around because one person was about to purchase a computer from a small retailer/manufacturer who made the price appear excellent, but was using a slower processor. On checking I was able to advise the client that they could purchase a computer with very similar specifications with a brand name for around $150 less as well as save additional money on other items being quoted.

Another person had what they felt was an excellent offer from Costco. A similar computer was available with similar specifications for slightly less from another retailer but the real concern again was the processor. The speed of the processor was quite low but that would not have been obvious to the regular consumer. The unit was a brand new all-in-one desktop with touch screen and yet the performance was similar to that of a three year old computer.

The third was a special offer from Dicksmith which caught my attention. It was a half price ASUS tablet with keyboard unit running Windows 8. At $349 it was very tempting because I'm in the market for a more mobile device which can run Windows 8. However, rather than an impulse buy, I decided to check the processor performance and was staggered how slow the processor was. The speed was a third to a half of my ageing notebook computer and barely double the speed of my four and half year old netbook I no longer use since it is so slow. The price was very tempting at $349, but ultimately the speed of the unit was going to be a concern.

At the moment I'm seeing a lot of low powered devices (in terms of processor performance) being marketed to consumers and many consumer will end up purchasing computers with performance they would have expected from computer 3-5 years ago. Most of the lower cost Windows 8, low power, very portable devices come with quite low performance. As long as you are aware the performance of the device there is no issue. But if you are expecting to purchase a portable computer to replace your ageing desktop, you may just find the desktop is still a faster computer and chances are, that isn't what you expected.

Be careful with retailers. Their only desire appears to be to make a sale. Only you can look after your interests and make sure you get a portable device which meets your needs. Make sure you check out benchmarks for the processor of the device you're looking at before purchasing.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: Save some money by moving to a lower cost domain name registrar.

The following MyAnswers solution 2393 is now available:

I just transferred my domain name from one registry provider to a cheaper one. Do I need to change any other settings on my website or is there nothing else to do?

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

MyAnswers: How to get a better price than Wotif, Expedia and other online booking services.

The following MyAnswers solution 2392 is now available:

Booked accommodation and saved $47.50 over Wotif's prices, including obtained a discounted night that wasn't available on Wotif. The prices also beat Expedia. I share how I often get better prices than the online services.

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

I read a while ago Samsung was going to region lock one or more devices. If you're thinking about getting a Samsung device this may be reason not to.

The following article alerts people that Samsung are region-locking the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. To me this is one big incentive not to touch the device.

Sammy region-locks the latest version of its popular poke-with-a-stylus mobe... Read More

The problem is you never know in the next couple of years when you might travel to another region and you don’t want to end up carrying around a device that is locked in some way.

I don’t think many people are happy with region-locking of DVDs, but we got used to that from the dark ages. To start region locking devices to me is a concern. You never know if the device you have will or won’t work if you travel. I’ve also heard that Microsoft has region-locked their latest OEM version of Microsoft Office. How that will affect travellers I don’t know, but I wouldn’t be taking chances with region locked software or hardware if I could avoid it.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: Migrating your data from an Apple iPhone 3GS to an iPhone 4.

The following MyAnswers solution 2391 is now available:

How I migrated all my data and settings from and Apple iPhone 3GS to an Apple iPhone 4 including an upgrade to iOS 7.

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

Apple iPad 5 and iPad mini 2 expected to be released on the 15th of October.

If you or someone you know are thinking about a new Apple iPad, perhaps now is a good time to procrastinate. The new iPad 5 and iPad mini 2 is expected to be announced on the 15th of October and that could mean availability before the end of October.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Experience with Apple's new iOS 7 operating system

I have to admit I'm not a fan of updating for updating sake, and the technology providers seem to only change things for what appears to be making more sales. But let's face it, whilst we are all adverse to change, we all like experiencing new things. Life can get pretty boring doing the same old thing. So perhaps it isn't all just about sales, but also keeping customers satisfied by providing something new.

The first feeling you get is much of the fresh design isn't felt to be needed, but hey, it's Apple's choice so let's go with it. The interface does feel cleaner and crisper. I did prefer the old calculator layout to the new design. Now I'm forced to go into landscape mode to use the memory options. Not sure if I like the select scroll when setting an event in the calendar either. The scrolling wheels felt they made more sense. I found it difficult to work out which entry I was trying to select, but I'll get used to it.

The following are some of the iOS 7 issues I've had. Nothing major really, just largely different.

Photos
After upgrading the camera roll showed no images. Went out of the camera roll and in again and the images appeared. It may also have simply taken time.

Safari
Displaying the options at the bottom wasn't obvious. Press right on the bottom edge and the options appear. Similar for the top options.

Safari search field
Initially couldn't find the search. Press on the address area at the top and search appears.

How to close an app
Double pressing the home button shows recent apps. Holding down the app and the x no longer apps. Now double press the home button to display running apps. Then slide up the preview screen for the app. This actually makes closing an app faster.

Deleting a single email
Previously you'd swipe right for the Delete button to appear. Now you swipe left for the Trash option to appear.

Photos
Previously when I'd open photos they'd appear full screen. Now there is additional information above and below. To display the photo to take up the full screen press on the image.

Maps
One of the problems with Apple maps is when you zoom in the street names don't get bigger and it is often to hard for me to read the street name. Double tapping with three fingers zooms the screen to make things larger. Double tap three fingers and drag to make even larger. That now works for me.

Email
I noticed unsent items in outbox. The problem was after the restore passwords aren't restored. (I did a migration from and older 3GS iphone to the 4 before the upgrade). Using the built-in send email facility for forwarding articles appeared to work but left the emails in the outbox. There was no indication a password was required. When I sent a new email I was prompted for the SMTP password. That email was sent but the others stayed in the outbox. I had to resend each email individually.

Lock screen
Sometimes I find the lock screen doesn't unlock when I slide it across. I then notice the lock screen hasn't moved entirely off the screen. When I nudge it a bit more the home screen then displays.

Nothing in the list above is major and you'll quickly adjust to the new operating system. I do like how Safari displays the list of open pages; much easier to close pages. Sliding up from the bottom to show regularly used features is handy as well. I often use flight mode when using an app with ads so I know none of my mobile data is being used. Many little annoyances because of changes that don't add to my life but consume a little more time, but nothing I won't get used to.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

The IV Sale program is now available on JustLocal free of charge.

Recently I used the IV Sale program to assist a person who wanted to collate and document their art collection and make the list of art available on the internet for others to see. In the past I've used a version of the IV Sale software to promote my own excess items. I decided to fix a few bugs and release the IV Sale program for others to use. The program is totally free and enables you to collate your list of items (complete with pictures) and then to make the list available on the internet.

A hidden gem in Google's Drive program enables you to use a Google Drive folder as a website. This feature has been utilised by the IV Sale program. You simply enter your items in the IV Sale program, view the web page, and your web page displaying your list of items is automatically updated to the internet.

Now you can keep your list of excess items conveniently located on your computer, update the list when desired and your items will be visible to others with no extra work on your part. How handy is that.

Visit www.IVSale.com.au and download the IV Sale program. You can also find the IV Sale program on JustLocal (www.JustLocal.com.au).

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Online Connections has now deregistered from GST.

After quite a while of flip-flopping, I've decided to deregister Online Connections from GST. Effective from the 17th of September I will no longer be charging GST.

When GST was introduced the effect was to take my hourly rate and then add 10%. For large businesses this made no difference as they could claim back the GST, but for smaller businesses who weren't registered for GST, and for home users who could not claim the GST back, this simply meant quite a significant price increase with no real benefit.

One thing recently stood out in my mind which ate at me. One person said they wouldn't deregister from GST. They get to claim back GST on their expenses and the customer pays the GST so it doesn't matter. It is the 'customer pays GST so it doesn't matter' that bothered me. I once worked for a chartered accounting firm and as expected from accountants, they'd look for every way to minimise their expenses, but if a client had to pay for something, cost was no issue. The cost was not borne by the chartered accounting firm, but was passed onto the client so there was little incentive to reduce client costs. I've seen the same behaviour across a number of organisations which call themselves professionals such as real estate agents and doctors and I don't personally think it is right.

My approach is simple. I try to do the best I can by my clients. If I can reduce a cost for a client I will. Businesses registered for GST will be no worse off because I'll have simply reduce my rate by the GST amount. Those business not registered for GST and home users will now benefit from the reduced rate. The only real loser in the situation is myself as I can no longer claim back the GST portion of expenses. I can live with the increased cost.

Please bear with me as I update the parts of my online presence and in-house systems to reflect the removal of GST. All consulting activities and JustLocal will have reduced prices. The Australian dictionary products are low priced products and the prices won't change. This does mean an effective increase for those who could claim GST, but that should not overly effect many people.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Set as Home Page option added to the Search Australia page.

Yesterday one user of Search Australia said another person had removed Search Australia as their home page. Search Australia was very useful to them because they found it very easy to locate catch-up TV. For catch-up TV, all they needed to do was to enter TV 7, TV 9, TV 10, or TV SBS into Search Australia and they'd go direct to the catch-up TV page for the respective TV station.

I decided rather than write out instructions and send them to the person, to make it easier for everyone I'd add a 'Set as Home Page' link to the Search Australia page. Now all a person has to do is to click on the link, select the option to set the home page, click OK and Search Australia is set as their home page. This only works for Internet Explorer, but since I recommend Internet Explorer as the default browser for clients, this is usually sufficient. If you have another browser, unfortunately you'll have to manually set Search Australia as your home page in the browser settings.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: Undelivered Mail Returned to Sender - blocked using spamcop

The following MyAnswers solution 2390 is now available:

An email I sent to a new client bounced with a subject of 'Undelivered Mail Return to Sender' message. The body of the email provided the message: "<user's email address>: host vscan.hotkey.net.au[202.138.0.45] said: 554 5.7.1    Service unavailable; Client host [69.93.66.94] blocked using bl.spamcop.net; Blocked - see    http ://www.spamcop.net/bl.shtml?69.93.66.94 (in reply to RCPT TO command). I explain what I do to get around this situation when this happens.

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

Oovie movie/Hoyts Kiosk $3.50 movie rental. Is it cheaper than paying $6 to watch a movie online?

I always find it interesting what leads us to re-evaluate our purchasing decisions. I recently returned a movie 16 minutes late to the Hoyts Kiosk and was subsequently charged another day. Totally my fault and those are the rules. But up until now, even though I'm an IT person and have set up a computer to watch catch-up TV on the larger television screen, except for a trial of Quickflix, I've not taken to watching movies via the internet.

However returning the movie started me to re-evaluate the real cost of hiring a movie from a Oovie/Hoyts Kiosk and the same would apply to renting a movie from a movie rental store. The question the becomes which is cheaper. Is paying $3.50 for a movie from a physical location cheaper than renting the same movie via the internet?

Of course the answers varies depends on your individual situation. If you are within walking distance of a rental store, or there every day for other purposes, then there is no additional cost in picking up and returning the movie. In my case however sometimes renting the movie requires two trips specifically for the movie, and sometimes one trip since the first trip may include shopping. The following are my costs.

Hoyts Kiosk rental fee: $3.50
Petrol: 5.9 km each way. Thus full return trip twice for pick up and return is  23.6 km.

Using the Petrol Cost Calculator the cost for petrol alone is $3.93 assuming petrol is price around $1.50 per litre.

The total directly identifiable cost for renting a movie from the Hoyts Kiosk is thus $7.43.

Whilst a car has fixed costs you can't avoid, there are variable costs such as the replacement cost of the car. There is only so many kilometres a car can drive before it needs to be replaced. Fixed costs such as rego, insurance are payable each year independent of how far the car is driven. Take the cost of the car (including finance), add the cost of items which wear such as tyres, and then divide by the number of kilometres you expect the car to last for and you'll find there is roughly an additional 20-30 cents per kilometre cost. If we include this cost the hidden cost of rental would be at least another $5.

The other cost is of course your time. For me this amounts to around 20 minutes each return trip.

Forgetting about the time aspect and additional car costs, you can see renting a $3.50 movie doesn't just cost $3.50. At a minimum for the cost of the movie and petrol it costs at least $7.43.

I decide to rent a movie via the internet for $6. The movie consumes around 1 GB of data. I have a 50 GB peak allowance (another 50 GB off peak) and I don't use that allowance which means for me the is no additional data costs. Thus the cost is just $6. But if I did apportion the data cost it would add around $1.

It really is hard to accept that a $3.50 movie ends up costing more than watching a $6 movie via the internet. The problem is how we compare immediate payment versus factoring in all the costs. We see the immediate cost of $3.50 is cheaper than $6 but don't generally consider the hidden costs.

Once you can accept the hidden costs and factor in all the costs, it works out that the total cost of hiring a $6 movie online is cheaper than the total cost of $3.50 for renting a movie from a Hoyts Kiosk.

Once you've set up your computer and online account, the time involved in hiring online is a fraction of the time involved in picking up and returning a physical DVD to a Hoyts Kiosk.

Often we don't do things we should until we get a bump. In this case the bump for me was the extra day fee. It was a bump I needed to have.

When you review the total cost of products and services you use also factor into account the hidden costs. Whether it is renting a movie, loaning a book from the public library, buying a printer for your computer, taking into account all the costs can lead to better decisions that can save you money over a period of time.

If you require assistance with your computer to connect to your TV to watch catch-up TV or online movies you're welcome to contact me.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

iPad mini retina Australian release date.

I find quite a few people end up buying a new Apple device just before a new model is released. The reason is those who are selling the devices generally know the new device is just around the corner but don't let you know. A sale is a sale to them. If they tell you about the new device they'll probably lose the sale and there goes their commission.

Where possible I try to forecast when the new models will be released based on media information. No special contacts here.

The Apple iPhone 5S and 5C have now been released. The next devices we may see released are the Apple TV and iPad refreshes. I don't follow the Apple Mac Pro series but read recently there may be a refresh later in the year. When iPads were first released the new model was released in February, much to the angst of those purchasing for Christmas as Carrie Bickmore from The Project found out. Now it appears that schedule has been changed to the end of October.

If you're thinking about a new iPad then now is a time to consider waiting. I expect the iPad mini retina and slimmer iPad 9.7" models will be released towards the end of October.

I hope that helps some who may otherwise be disappointed with the new purchase with a new model just around the corner.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: Pendo Pad 7" tablet from Coles and Target

The following MyAnswers solution 2389 is now available:

Experience with the Pendo Pad 7" tablet from Coles and Target purchase for $69.

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

Apple iPhone 5S and 5C Australian prices a disappointment.

Apple's release of their new iPhones was very predictable and is exactly what was expected. Whilst there was some hype about an iPhone 6, I suspect this may have been deliberate PR. In any case, in a post a few weeks ago I predicted only the 5S and 5C would be released. What was unexpected to me was the price manipulation and the dropping of the Apple iPhone 5. Didn't see that coming.

Normally the lead Apple iPhone (16GB) has typically sold for around the $800 mark in Australia. The 16GB iPhone 5 sold for $799. However the new lead phone has now jumped in price to $869. This is an interesting method to increase profit and is regularly done by companies. Increase the price and those who continue to buy the product increase profit more than those who stop using the product. Microsoft is doing the same with their licensing fees. Once a company has you hooked they can increase prices.

Apple quite to my surprise was very aggressive with their iPad price when they released it. Apple was always known for their premium price and the iPad, a fairly unique product, came out at excellent prices well below the Mac Air range. Microsoft on the other hand priced their tablets above the typical notebook price and the perceived value in their products wasn't there. The market voted with their wallet and we saw the massive write-off by Microsoft.

To see Apple release the 5S with a jump in price is a real shame.

The next surprise was the 5C which was being promoted as the low cost model to compete in the lower cost segment. All Apple seem to have done is drop the price a little to $739 so there appears to be a large enough price gap between the 5S and the 5C. As a status symbol the 5C is going to be a hard sell. Who wants to be embarrassed for buying the cheaper model. What you couldn't afford the 5S! That's the problem when people buy for status over the functionality they really desire.

The unlocked version of the Apple 5S is $649 in the States. Convert for the current exchange rate, add GST and the price should be around $764. Yep about right for an easy sell at $799, but for Australians we're being slugged nearly $100 more.

What's also with the dropping of the iPhone 5? Shouldn't that have been their third option rather than the 4S. It is after all one year old technology. I suspect the problem for Apple is the iPhone 5 was probably too close to the 5S when loaded with iOS 7 and thus selling the 5C would make almost no sense. All of this feels far too much like trying to manipulate customers perception rather than focusing on bringing to market products customers want to buy. What I'd would have expected to see is the 5S at $799, the 5 at $679-$699 and the 5C in the $499-$549 price area, perhaps also keeping the 4S and dropping the price to perhaps $399, it is after all, quite an old phone in the fast moving mobile market.

What we now see is the iPhone 4 has gone (was $429), the iPhone 5 (was $799) has gone, the 5S is more expensive at $869 and the 5C is really not a good low cost option at $739. It all feels to me like Apple have moved the overall pricing up across the board and thinks no one will notice.

Overall I think Apple have done themselves a disservice. They appear to be using the marketing tactic to extract larger margins from their customer base rather than being cutting edge on the products and pricing. A premium of $100 for being in Australia doesn't really cut it when many of their products can be shipped direct from China.

Those who love Apple will happily pay the premium. Those who are sitting on the fence will most likely seriously consider Samsung or perhaps a more cost effective mobile.  I know one person who is over Apple's cumbersome iTunes approach and looking seriously at a Samsung Galaxy S4 and another at a refurbished Apple iPhone 4. Premium prices in what is now a mature market and far from the excitement past, is not going to help Apple compete against Samsung. As I read that back I thought, funny isn't it. Apple has to compete against Samsung. It used to be Samsung had to compete against Apple. How things change.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: How to remove delta-homes.com search page from Internet Explorer.

The following MyAnswers solution 2388 is now available:

After removing malware from a client's computer the one last remnant of unwanted software was the default page (delta-homes.com) shown when Internet Explorer opened. The page is a search engine which could be doing anything in terms of privacy and even loading malware into the computer. It was thus important to remove this page.

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

MyAnswers: DVD drive no longer visible in Windows XP computer.

The following MyAnswers solution 2387 is now available:

Under Windows XP the DVD drive is no longer visible in My Computer and File Manager. Testing of the DVD showed it still worked so the problem was a software related problem.

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

Alert: BaDoink porn site advertised by CNET site pretending to be an Apple app.

This morning I checked a news article on CNET using my mobile phone. I'm using Feedly as a newsreader. I clicked on the link to the article and up popped the porn ad I shared previously. I then went back and clicked on the link for the article and a different porn ad appeared which I thought was interesting on technical merits.

What I thought was particularly interesting is the quality of the page and how well it mimics the Apple app store layout. It really is a very good copy.

This could easily be a scam which I think could trick many Apple users. All that would be required is an install button, make it free and people would click on the link providing their Apple ID and password. Provide a legitimate looking porn site as a web app and the user would be none the wiser.

This is very scary stuff as it shows how easy people can be tricked. That's a really worry.

It is standard for some sites to flick people across to the Apple App store and because people are very familiar with this behaviour they can easily be tricked.

If you get flicked across to an app from a website perhaps it is time to stop trusting that action. You may not actually be at the Apple App store at all. I recommend that people don't trust links in emails and to open their browser and then enter the site address. It would now appear this is the approach you should use with Apple and Android apps as well. Best not to trust links that pass you across to the App store automatically anymore.

Kelvin Eldridge
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Toshiba announced 8" Windows 8.1 Encore tablet at IFA in Berlin.

I’ve been looking forward to the new smaller 8” tablets which will come out later this year. Intel have released their faster Atom processor and Microsoft has released Windows 8.1 to manufacturers. This is now a good combination, although it has taken some time to get there.

All-new Encore Tablet With an 8-inch Multi-touch Display and Intel Atom Processor Delivers Fast, Full-screen Web Browsing, Best-in-class Skype Experience, Xbox Second-screen Capabilities and Much More... Read More

Toshiba won’t be the only company releasing 8” tablets this year. The Encore however does have relatively good specs from what I’ve read. Acer did bring the first 8” Windows tablet to market but the reviews of the screen quality weren’t good. Also the Acer didn’t include the new Atom processor or Windows 8.1. I’ve read Acer will be re-releasing the product with updated features.

I’ve not been totally happy with Windows 8 tablets for a range of reasons. First I simply dismiss Windows RT tablets since if you’re going to buy a tablet that is not fully compatible with Windows you might as well consider all the options including iPads and Android tablets. Microsoft’s Surface Pro doesn’t include GPS which I think is a basic requirement for a mobile device. The Surface Pro is a tablet with a fan and five hours of battery life with a high price tag just doesn’t feel like a winner. Current tablets using the Atom processor concern me with regards to performance. Whilst the Encore is still an Atom processor the performance has doubled. I expect it will still be sluggish, but hopefully it will be acceptable.

My only concern with the Encore tablet that I’ve identified is the 32GB of installed memory. I’d prefer 64GB and the ability to add another 32/64GB using the microSD slot. Having said that, there may be ways to work around the limited storage.

I like that there is a micro HDMI connector, and as I mentioned, the GPS sensor. What I do wonder about is the battery life since it isn’t mentioned.

It will be good once all the main players have their devices released. Pricing will matter as I’ve noticed some suppliers charge a premium for Australians so hopefully competition will keep that premium in check.  

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 announced at IFA show in Berlin.

I often find lots of sites republishing snippets of press releases but what I'd prefer is direct access to the press release to make up my own mind as to what is important or not important. It took me a while but I found the Samsung press release for the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 which can be found here.

According to another article "Samsung GALAXY Gear will be launched with the GALAXY Note 3 in more than 140 countries around the world starting from September 25."

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: How can I get missing contacts back in my Gmail account.

The following MyAnswers solution 2385 is now available:

I've noticed some of the my contacts have disappeared in Gmail. This happened after I was tricked by scam email and I entered my Gmail username and password. I've changed the password but how can I get the contacts back.

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch Australian release

The Samsung Galaxy Gear smart watch has now been announced in Germany at the IFA show and here is quite a reasonable review and summary by Bridget Carey at CNET.

From the review and other articles, the following are points which I find interesting.

Currently the Galaxy Gear will only word with the Galaxy Note 3 and no other Samsung smartphone. This is expected to change once Android 4.3 is released. The main point is keep to note is whether or not the Galaxy Gear will work with your existing Samsung Galaxy device and chances are it won't.

Battery life I consider to be quite short at around 12 hours. The Galaxy Gear requires a special dock, which you need to carry with you if you need to charge the device.

Price is expected to be around $300USD, which I'd consider to be quite dear and restricts the pool of potential buyers. The price in the press release is $299USD but it should be kept in mind in the States sales tax is added to the price and the tax rate varies between states.

 

One feature I thought was novel was "Find My Device" which enables you to set off an audible tone to find either your watch or your smartphone. That's handy for those times where you find yourself patting yourself down to find a misplaced mobile.

A camera lens is placed on the strap which suits wearing the watch face up on the left arm so as to take photos and images when you bring your left arm across in front of you. Worn face down or on the right arm and you may just be limited to selfies. The camera does appear as a bulge on the wrist strap which begs the question as to whether or not it is more likely to get bumped and damaged.

The band is rubberised which may not appeal to everyone. There is a choice of colours for the band.

The watch does appear to be light and fairly compact. Not a large bulky device.

Release date around the world is September 25th, except for Japan and the US, where the release is expect in October. The past has shown us the release date doesn't necessarily correspond to availability, but only time will tell whether that is the case or not.

The watch does have a built in speaker meaning it can be used as a speaker phone. If you think about it this opens up an interesting situation when driving. In fact if I seem recall the driving laws in Australia were changed to effectively limit the touching of a mobile phone whilst driving or stationary (not parked). The smartwatch opens up a new situation. I'm not sure how the law will handle this device since it isn't actually the mobile phone. I find the background noise with a docked mobile can make it difficult to hear. With the smartwatch being much closer, this may in theory improve the quality of calls. It may also make it much harder for law enforcement offices to detect people checking their text messages and Facebook as people are now longer holding an obvious smartphone, but could simply be checking the time on their watch. I only hope people using the device drive safely.

Whilst I may find it hard to justify the cost of the smartwatch, I do look feel a device which would enable me to hear my mobile ringing in a crowded shopping centre and that would assist. I miss so many calls when I'm out because with the older iPhone 3GS I have, I often can be hear the mobile ringing or feel the vibration  when the phone is on my pocket at the shopping centre. I'm not a fan of wearing a watch, but neither am I particularly happy with missing important calls.

I expect by the end of the year, perhaps for the Christmas buying period, we may see quite a few smart watch options.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

PS. Here is a link to the press release.

MyAnswers: Is participating in BNI Australia (Business NetworksInternational) worthwhile?

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Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au/myanswers/
(An Online Connections service.)

Microsoft purchases Nokia devices and services business.

Nokia recently made an announcement they are buying Nokia's mobile business which includes the devices and services part of Nokia, or around half of Nokia.

I should state that for a long time I was a long term user of Nokia products and Microsoft products. Nokia lost me when they first brought out mobiles which could connect to computers before smart phones came onto the scene. The first cable I purchased came with no instructions or disk. You were on your own. Not what I would call customer focused. Microsoft also have focused more on themselves than their customers. In fact Microsoft is about to turn their back on over 100 million customers by not providing support to Windows XP. Again not what I'd call endearing.

With Microsoft doing poorly in the consumer market with mobiles and tablets and Nokia not doing any better, it is hard to see how this will assist Microsoft to gain market share. If anything it will further turn off the original equipment manufacturers which for a long time helped Microsoft build their business.

This move shouldn't be totally unexpected. Microsoft have made it clear they are now a devices and services company and Nokia was already selling 85% of Windows based mobile phones.

Only time will tell if two relatively unsuccessful players (when compared to Apple and Google/Android) in the mobile/tablet arena when joined can make a difference or not.

As an IT consultant and developer, the marriage means tighter integration, more restrictions and less open devices. In the past Microsoft was a company providing open systems where people could more easily adapt those systems for the benefit of their business. Now we are moving (if we haven't already) into the era where you just buy a service or device and use it as is. Very little opportunity for a business to gain a market advantage through the use of technology when the devices and services are the same for everyone.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Need assistance understanding Windows 8?

This past couple of weeks I've had calls from people who required assistance with Windows 8. Both users were totally lost with the new interface in Windows 8. One user wanted to return their computer to Officeworks, because after two weeks of struggling felt they were getting nowhere. Both users were experienced Windows users. One even spent time reading Windows 8 for dummies and was still none the wiser.

This shows just how badly Microsoft has done with Windows 8. It really is an appalling design change which makes little to no sense for the user. For Microsoft it probably makes sense, but to alienate current users for whatever their goals are, would not generally make sense as a good business move.

The problem is when you first face Windows 8 and go into the Desktop, it is a barren land and nothing is familiar. When I first opened Windows 8 and then wanted to set up a shortcut to the Calculator I was lost and didn't know what to do. I'm an IT Consultant with over 30 years of computing experience and I was lost. Over the coming weeks I adjusted Windows 8 to make it easier to work for me. Dare I say it, but only after a couple of months had I worked out technical solutions to issues that spoilt my experience.  I came up with concepts that would enable me to train others to quickly come up to speed. A few simple concepts is all it takes for people to become comfortable, but the concepts aren't obvious and need to be learnt. I also developed techniques which I can share with users to make their use of Windows 8 more productive, or should I say, as productive as Windows 7 or even Windows XP.

Microsoft in my opinion have shot themselves in the foot (perhaps even both feet), but that doesn't help users. Users will put off upgrading or buying new computers and that will hurt Microsoft and computer suppliers in a big way. Some will consider moving to an Apple Mac because a friend with a Mac will say how good it is, but the reality is the change to a Mac is just as big a change so this isn't the solution. I shudder to think that some may even be coerced by a Linux diehard to try Linux through their frustration, but I'd suggest that is a path best avoided for most people.

I suspect many people will consider keeping their existing computer for longer and purchasing a tablet to do many of the things they previously did with their computer. As long as the computer doesn't die they'll get a much longer period of usage from their computer and that's a good thing.

Ultimately many people will be faced with buying a new Windows 8 computer to do things tablets or their ageing computer can't do. I'd suggest skipping Windows RT because it really is nothing more than a lock-in device, and contrary to the Windows name, shouldn't be consider a compatible device. Going Mac is one path but then you'll lose compatibility if that is required. So Windows 8 is still the answer for most people for the time being. Accept that you may need some assistance to get over the initial learning curve, but once there, you can move on.

If you need assistance coming to terms with your new Windows 8 computer please feel free to contact me.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.