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Windows 8 Start Menu Guide

Posted by South City Computer

Created by Top Gold, Copywrited, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/With Microsoft’s release of Windows 8 there have been a lot of questions and complaints concerning the most bold new feature, the Start Menu. The Start Menu which replaces the desktop at the start of your computer is considered “innovative” and “incredible” but also is giving users a hard time. We here at South City Computer made a guide for those who are struggling with this new feature, so to help you navigate it better.

 

Start Button:

Microsoft although wanting to switch up the way your computer starts still they did not entirely throw out the desktop which users are accustomed to.  By hitting the Start Button you are transported directly to the Desktop. The Start Button is the picture above but on a key located to the left of the spacebar. The Start Button, if hit while on the Desktop will transport you back to the Start Menu.

The Start Button is the first part of the keyboard shortcut to a lot of the new Windows 8 features, and by holding it down along with hitting another key can access some of the new features. Here are some useful Windows 8 keyboard shortcuts:

  • (Start+D)= Go to desktop
  • (Start+Tab )=Multitasking Menu
  • (Start+Q)= Search Apps
  • (Start+F)= Search Files
  • (Start+I)= Settings
  • (Start+Prnt Scrn)= Screen shot

Start Menu:

The biggest change in the new OS is the addition of the Start Menu which has a sleek design geared toward touch-screen, and mobile devices. While the Start Menu certainly looks good it can be confusing to navigate and understand with the Live Tiles especially.

Live Tiles:

The Live Tiles are essentially applications that are “pinned” to your Start Menu and run even when not in use. They tend not to take up to much room and are apps like: Facebook, Twitter, etc. The Live apps are on the Start Menu and usually have moving pictures or something along those lines going around the box. For example, the Netflix app will have recommended movies or shows fading in and out. Live apps differ from their desktop counterpart which can bring up a lot of confusion; the Live app version of Skype (a program that can be used to video call and instant message) can be opened from the Start Menu and functions differently from the desktop version of Skype.

“Pinning” Programs to the Start Menu:

While Live Tiles can be downloaded from the Windows Store they are not the only thing that can be on the Start Menu. While on the desktop by right-clicking a program you can “pin” it to the start menu, in doing this when you are on the Start Menu you can click the program you pinned and instead of it opening as a live tile Windows opens the program on the desktop.

Multitasking with Windows 8:

Although the all new Live Tiles can be difficult, they offer a very useful way to multi-task. When having multiple apps open, by dragging your mouse to the top left corner of your screen then dragging it down the left side of the screen or hitting Start+Tab, either way a menu showing all open apps should appear. From being able to see all open apps you can “snap” an app to the side of the screen of your choice, you can do this either by right-clicking and selecting “Snap Left” or “Snap Right” or you can click the app and drag it your preferred side. For example say the Desktop and a free photo editing app downloaded from the Windows Store are both open from the left menu I snap the desktop to the left side and the photo editor to the right side now from here you can find a picture from either your Facebook page or in your Pictures folder via the Desktop. When finding the picture you wanted, you can then select the picture from the photo editor and begin editing now being able to see both the new and the old picture. While editing a photo is just one example there are plenty of other ways to multi-task, like researching and writing a paper on one screen or even watching a movie while video calling a friend.

Windows 8 is still pretty new even for being over a year old, although it may be frustrating we here at South City Computer hope this helped with some the new features. If you have any computer problems or questions call our number: 314-400-7918

Local Computer Repair Shops vs. Big Buisness Computer Repair

Posted by South City Computer

Usually for customers bigger businesses means better, for example big business clothing stores may be more cost effective than local clothing stores. This idea of “bigger is better” may be true in various retail stores but in the field of computers it is actually quite the opposite. With some big businesses that offer computer repair services, like Best Buy, why shop local?

Price:

Even with the idea of bigger meaning cheaper in all actuality most local computer repair shops pricing is more cost effective than a lot of big businesses. How? Well big businesses although usually already having enough money are always alright with making more. While here at South City Computer we strive to keep the prices reasonable and affordable.

Customer Service:

Generally at big businesses they advertise their customer service yet haven’t we all gotten stuck on hold for much longer than we ever wanted to be? At local computer repair shops, matters of business are much more timely and more accommodating about your busy schedule. In accommodating to your schedule we repair your computer and fix your computer problems in a timely manner typically quicker than most big businesses. Also at most local computer repair shops rarely if ever would you encounter a machine instead of a real person to talk to.

Skill:

At big businesses there are many employees who may not actually be very skilled nor really want to fix your computer but instead sell you another one. While here at South City Computer we have dedicated support technicians who are willing to dedicate a lot of time and effort into making sure that your problem is fixed.

If you ever have computer problems or questions feel free to call South City Computer:  314-400-7918

Data Loss Can Cause Major Issues

Posted by South City Computer

Did you know that data loss has become increasingly more common since 2008? The Open Security Foundation has recorded the increase of data loss incidents since 2008, claiming that it has become a major problem for some businesses.

What is Data Loss?

Data Loss is when data that someone has stored, whether it be a person or a business, when data gets destroyed or fails without the person or business having a backup storage of the data and without being able to restore the data. Data loss can primarily be catastrophic to businesses that store a lot of data especially if that information is critical to their business.

Data Loss Affects Businesses

One of the more publicly known data loss incidents was TJX’s (the retailer owning such stores like Marshalls and T.J Maxx) loss of 94 million people’s information including credit card and customer identity. TJX lost an estimated $256mil+ along with hackers successfully gaining access to 45 million customers’ information.

Another well know data loss was Sony, in late April of 2011 the PlayStation Network (PSN) was hacked. Hackers obtained personal information including Credit Cards. Post-Breach Sony closed down both PlayStation Network and Sony Online Entertainment. The Poneman institute (research center with focus on data protection and data privacy) estimated that Sony may have to pay up to and/or beyond $2 billion.

How to deal with Data Loss:

  • Data Recovery- In a data recovery shops can attempt to recover lost data but without a previously arranged data backup plan, often data recovery will involve reinstalling of applications, files, etc.
  • Data Backup Plan- Here at South City Computer we can set up a data backup plan, that will support your choice data.

If your data is ever lost or you would like to set up a data backup plan please call us or leave us a message on our website .

Sources:

  • http://www.csmonitor.com/Business/2011/0504/Data-theft-Top-5-most-expensive-data-breaches/1.-tie-Sony-to-be-determined
  • http://www.computerweekly.com/feature/Top-seven-data-loss-issues

How to Avoid Yahoo Malware and Other Types of Malware

Posted by South City Computer

Image for google warning about malware.In the beginning of 2014 Yahoo’s ads contained malicious software (malware) which infected an estimated 2 million users computers. It was estimated that almost 27,000 computers using Yahoo were infected an hour. The computers that were infected through Yahoo, were using up a massive chunk of the computers resources as bit coin slaves, where without the users knowledge the computers were mining bit coins thus harboring a lot of the computers capability. Although malware today is very common especially through email and the Internet; there are still ways to defend your computer.

What is malware?

Malware is a term that is short for “malicious software” which is meant to harm your computer. Malware includes: spyware, trojan horses, and computer viruses. malware can be downloaded or installed unintentionally or unknowingly by the user through the Internet or via email.

What does malware do?

Malware infects the computer and can lead to the attacker accessing content on the computer, leaving the user susceptible to Identity Theft and other financial and personal information being seen. With malware undetected the computer can have certain operations disrupted along with being used to store unidentified data. Certain malware like spyware can be used to spy on the user’s action for marketing.

How to defend from malware:

  • Keep your computer up to date.  Make sure your computer is automatically updating itself.  Make sure  check for updates is set to run when you have the computer turned on, not at 3am like the default setting.
  • Make sure you have antivirus/anti-malware installed.  Microsoft provides free of charge antivirus and malware built in if you download and activate it.  The issue with commercial subscriptions is that you forget to pay and they expire, putting you at risk.
  • Be careful of spam emails. Emails that seems sketchy or are otherwise unexpected may contain malware. View header of email, also clicking to check who the sender of the email is can help you decide whether to open it or not.
  • Heed computer warnings. Often if entering a dangerous website your computer may already be letting you know. Computers may also display a message saying that certain files may be harmful to your computer if opened.
  • Bring computer to local computer shop. Bringing your computer to South City Computer or another local computer repair shop to be scanned for malware. You could schedule a Tech Desk visit in order to have your computer scanned while you wait.  Call or Send us a message through our website.

Malware is becoming very common now which now there are many anti-virus and anti-malware softwares available for download. Also bringing your computer into South City Computer or another local computer repair shop to be scanned for malware can see if you already have malware and can be removed.

Call:  314-400-7918

Sources: http://www.businessinsider.com/yahoo-malware-turned-european-computers-into-bitcoin-slaves-2014-1

 

Competent Friendly and Welcoming

Posted by South City Computer

I went to South City Computer on the off-chance that they’d have a rather obscure cable for adapting an old piece of hardware to a new laptop with different (newer) connections. They did not, but they found one for me locally and even emailed the business to have them set it aside for me. I was not charged for this service and even got to pass my time there playing with the pet cat! Everyone there (including the cat) is competent/friendly/welcoming. Support this local business, or risk doing business in some cold, catless, big-box institution! I’ll definitely use these guys in the future.

Fixed the same day and at a huge savings!

Posted by South City Computer

After several people advised me that I probably needed a new computer, and after pricing a new laptop, I decided to try South City Computer repair. Much to my delight, my computer was fixed the same day! and at a huge savings!. Their prices are fair. They also were kind enough to wait after the store closing for me to pick up my computer. I would highly recommend South City Computer. The staff is friendly and courteous, and another nice perk for animal lovers is that the office is dog and cat friendly. Thank you South City Computer!

Xbox One Owners Tricked into Ruining their Xbox’s

Posted by South City Computer

If you think your Xbox One might be backwards compatible with an Xbox360 or if you’ve seen any posts online about how to play Xbox 360 games on your Xbox One then you’d better think again.

Did you know that hundreds of Xbox One owners have turned their Xbox One’s into a brick by trying a hack that advertised making their Xbox One compatible with Xbox360 games? The unfortunate truth is that the Xbox One will never be compatible due to the different architectures of the computer itself. The Xbox One is built to be connected to the network and to stream games. It does not have the horsepower to play the Xbox 360 games natively. But that hasn’t stopped some people from trying this hack. We highly recommend you do NOT do this as it will ruin your gaming console. But I thought I’d share it with you so you don’t try this at home.

Again, this is for demonstration purposes and is NOT SOMETHING YOU SHOULD DO!!! THIS WILL BRICK YOUR XBOX ONE!!!

  1. Go to the system menu
  2. Press LB,RT,LT,RT in order quickly
  3. Select the developer console
  4. Check the “enable devkit” box
  5. Change the sandbox ID to “freezone.reboot”
  6. Select “Reset Home Console”

After a user completes these steps the gaming console goes into an infinite loop rebooting itself. There is no way to fix it.

Xbox team member Larry Hryb took to Twitter in an attempt to stop the prank from spreading further: “To be clear there is no way to make your Xbox One backwards compatible & performing steps to attempt this could make your console inoperable”.

5 Tech Scams That Will Ruin Your Holiday

Posted by South City Computer

It’s the most wonderful time of the year.  The holidays are a time for celebration and cheer and unfortunatly some folks in the holiday spirit will let their guard down and become victims to holiday tech scams and hidden holiday virus and malware. Don’t let any of these 5 tech scams ruin your holiday season.

Fake Holiday E-Greeting Cards

Many people like to share holiday wishes and greetings over email. E-Cards are an inexpensive alternative to traditional greeting cards. These emails usually urge a computer user to click a link to receive their electronic greeting card from a friend. However watch-out, this link could be to a malicious website meant to phish your personal information or to get you to download a virus or other malicious software onto your computer. If you think you may have been duped into clicking a fake e-card links it is probably time to get your computer checked for virus and malware at South City Computer or a local computer repair store.

Charity Donation Scams

The season of giving is upon us, and many people will be making generous donations to causes and charities in hopes to make the holiday a little brighter for those who are less fortunate. However, watch out for fake charity emails going around the Internet and Facebook trying to silicate donations to phony veterans’ charities, children’s causes and relief funds. Make sure to look into a charity before making a donation to be sure it is a legitimate 501c3 organization and not just a scam to take your generosity for granted.

Gift Card Scams

Finding the right gift for some people can be a real challenge. Gift cards are the perfect gift option for those on your list who are hard to shop for. However, watch-out for fake gift card offers on social media websites like Facebook and Twitter that are actually scams to phish consumer information and/or credit card details. A recent Facebook scam offered a free $1000 Best Buy gift card to the first 20,000 people who sign up on an identity phishing website.

Holiday Themed Screensavers and Games

Holiday themed computer games and screensavers are a fun way to decorate your computer for the holiday. But many of these screensavers and games are actually computer viruses or malware meant to infect havoc on your computer. Be very cautious when downloading and installing holiday games and screensavers, try to only use software put out by reputable software makers. If you think you may have downloaded and installed a fake screensaver or holiday game program onto your computer, bring it into South City Computer for a virus/malware scan and removal.

Holiday Deals Too Good to be True

Many people will scour the Internet for websites where they can save a few bucks when buying gifts online. However watchout for holiday deals that are probably too good to be true on craigslist and phony e-commerce stores that are only meant to phish personal information and credit card data from unsuspecting consumers that believe they are purchasing gifts. Every holiday season the BBB hears from irritated holiday shoppers who paid for a supposedly great deal online, but received nothing in return. Try not to purchase from websites that do not use trusted 3rd party checkout payment processing such as Paypal, Amazon, Google Checkout, or Stripe.

Nobody wants to be a victim of online scams and using a little caution this holiday season just might keep you from getting scammed and becoming a “Scrooge”. If you think you may have been victim to one of these scams bring your computer into South City Computer or a local computer store for a virus/malware checkup, and please have a happy and safe holiday season this year!

We could not be happier

Posted by South City Computer

The folks at Ivanhoe Computer did a great job recovering some photos from an old computer we had. We were sure they were lost. They recovered the photos and loaded them onto our remote hard drive. We could not be happier with our first experience with them!

Fullfilled every expectation

Posted by South City Computer

I had a wonderful experience from South City Computer. They fulfilled every expectation of the service I expected and at very reasonable rate. Will recommend this company to anyone

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