Quite a few questions on DropBox lately. DropBox is a ‘Cloud’ based solution to synchronise data files between a PC, laptop, mobile phone and tablet. It works with nearly any device and is very fast and reliable. One of the things I use it for is to store electronic tickets like those for an airline and movie. By saving say a movie ticket in DropBox, when I arrive at the Theatre, I just present my phone to be scanned for entry. Very neat. If you would like a DropBox account, use this link: http://db.tt/j1HEFP4x If you need a hand to setup, please contact me.
A number of jobs recently on pre-cabling new homes with suitable ‘structured’ cabling. We would like Wireless to handle all our communications needs, but in reality, nothing is more reliable and faster than physical copper or fibre optic cable. And this is best installed in a house with no gib rock on the walls! Here is more info: http://aspiring.com.au/av
A number of PC’s and laptops have been presented to me recently with no free disk space. With no space, the machine really can’t work properly. There are a number of solutions to this problem, talk to me about freeing up some space or replacing the hard drive with a bigger one. We have a special duplication tool to do this easily.
Windows 8: Have helped a few customers get up to speed on this new operating system. I can do this on a one-to-one basis, also I am planning on running some classroom courses on this in the new year.
Favourite Applications. As you may know, I happen to use an iPhone to ‘run my business’. I find it indispensable. But it’s not all work, I do get to play with it a bit too. One of my favourite applications is Foxtel – the ability to see what is on Foxtel and program it to record whatever I want, where ever I am. I regularly run training for ‘newbie’s’ on the iPhone at http://www.hkcc.nsw.edu.au Keep an eye out for these courses if you want to learn more about your iPhone.
iPhone Tip: Most iPhones (and iTouches, Mac’s etc) support iMessage, an Apple developed improvement on SMS messaging. When you send a Text to another iPhone, the message background should be Blue (not Green) If this isn’t the case for you, go to Settings / Messages and turn on iMessage. You can then enjoy much better picture transfers, icons, delivery messages, and effectively free messaging.
Know keyboard shortcuts. Keyboard shortcuts are often faster and more convenient than using a mouse for common tasks. Some of the most commonly used shortcuts (+ means ‘in combination with’; not the + ‘addition’ key) are:
CTRL + D Delete
CTRL + P Print
CTRL + C Copy
CTRL + V Paste
CTRL + X Cut
CTRL + + makes text larger
CTRL + – makes text smaller
F7 Spell Check
F12 Save Document As
Windows Key (to the left of the spacebar) is an awesome key if you have Windows Vista or 7. Hit this and start typing to find any e-mail, document or computer setting.
For a full list of keyboard shortcuts for Outlook, click here.
Holidays: Mine are to start on Dec 8th this year and will run until Jan 10th. I will be overseas, but not out of touch. If you have any questions or issues during this time, please e-mail me, or if more urgent, please Text me. (Do not call) I will have my laptop so will do what I can remotely, anything else I will pass to my local colleague – so you are covered! In the meantime, have a Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year, or more politically correctly, ‘Happy Holidays”
