The Computer Assistant writes for the Yorkshire Reporter October 2015

The Computer Assistant

As published in the Yorkshire Reporter October 2015 

Welcome to this month’s instalment of news, reviews, tips and tricks. May I start by saying a big thank you for the emails regarding last month’s article. I also hope that those who visited the shop in search of "assistance" were satisfied with services rendered!

Windows 10 Tips

The jury is still out regarding Windows 10 so this month, as promised, we'll look at a few tips to help you along. We'll also take a peep into IOS 9, the latest Apple update. 

Congratulations to those of you who ventured into the unknown and completed the Windows 10 upgrade. With blood pressure levels back to normal and all photos and files where they should be, the “exploration” begins! At this point however, it is worth mentioning activation. Many foolhardy users with a “not so genuine copy” of Windows thought they could upgrade to Windows 10 hoping that somehow old "Bill" had included them on his Christmas list! If however, after upgrading using your very genuine product number, you came up with an activation error, the issue should resolve after restarting.

For most users, the first question after installation is, “can I do everything I used to do, without hassle?” Here are a few common tasks and solutions to problems our customers have encountered. Rusty Chrome has been struggling lately, especially with video streaming and can become slow, unresponsive and boggy. Simply turning off Chrome Extensions or reinstalling Chrome itself does help.

Favourites in Edge: Edge is a massive improvement on internet Explorer (hard to make anything worse than IE!) but if your favourites have evaporated, go to settings (top right) and import your favourites from Chrome and IE. Very cool and easy when compared to other browsers.

Email issues: The default email app in Windows 10 doesn’t yet support subfolders as in Windows 8. We recommend the ever reliable Windows Live Mail or good old Outlook.

Connectivity: Wi-Fi cutting off and not automatically reconnecting? A quick reboot should resolve this. We also suggest disabling Wi-Fi sharing. Settings link: The link to settings, some strange reason does not work or opens the Store app instead. Good news! a quick fix is available as a downloadable, guns blazing, trouble-shooter, which one can safely use to resolve the problem. Mice on strike: Despite being tempted with the best cheddar, many a mouse downed tools after the upgrade. This has been very common with certain laptopbrands and desktops. There are a number of solutions available which usually entail a driver update.

Apple IOS 9 In Brief

Apple lovers have been treated to a scrumptious update and here are a few highlights: Super Powers - the ability to view details of power consumption and battery use. Video Zoom - actually zoom in on subjects while viewing your videos. Siri Gets a Makeover - and gets much more intelligent with great new search capabilities. Muti-tasking for Ipads - read your mail and watch a movie at the same time (?). As well as major updates to many core apps like Pictures, Notes, News, Maps, Apple Pay, Carplay, Health, Mail and iCloud Drive, the update only require a mere 1.3 GB of space compared to the prohibitive 4.58 GB needed for its lofty predecessor!

In response to many of the emails received, for questions and answers, think of us as your own personal IT department, on-call whenever you need us. Please visit TCAHelp for prompt answers to all your questions. 
We are well established IT support and maintenance providers and well recognised for sales, repairs and maintenance of PC's, Macs, Laptops, IPad, tablets and Game Consoles.
Please email replies, comments and responses to reviews@thecomputerassistant.com
Visit us in store at 96 Kirkgate, Leeds. LS2 7DJ or Phone 01132446460. Find us online at www.thecomputerassistant.com

Sports Direct Leeds Staff Discount Scheme

Staff members of the city centre store now have access to our Staff Discount Scheme and enjoy the full benefits of a 20% discount on all of our repair services.Sports Direct is the UK’s leading sports retailer by revenue and operating profit, with approximately 400 stores across the UK.

The Group provides an unrivalled range of products, offering exceptional quality and unbeatable value, from a wide variety of third-party and Group-owned brands, both in-store and online.

Sports Direct operates in 19 countries in Europe, including Belgium, Austria, Slovenia and France.

The Group has an extensive brand portfolio, comprising 28 internationally recognised sport, fashion and lifestyle brands including Dunlop, Slazenger, Everlast, Lonsdale and Karrimor.

The Computer Assistant writes for the Yorkshire Reporter

Windows 10 introduces a number of new and improved features in an effort to catch up with other application providers and take back its position as a pioneer developer. First on the list is the controversial Start Menu. Many users disliked Windows 8 purely because the changes to the start menu were too radical, unfriendly and unfamiliar. Windows 10 offers the best of the old and the new. Users now have a simple list on the left hand side of the menu and tiles on the right. The menu can be resized and the tiles configured according to one’s preference.

Windows10 Task View

The Taskbar has also been updated so that active apps and windows are simply underlined instead of highlighted and the icons have been given a new look. The best taskbar feature we found is the Task View feature. Open applications and windows could always be accessed using Alt-Tab on the keyboard but not many users were aware of this. To make things easier users can now view all open windows with a single click. Furthermore, the task view reveals the ability to simultaneously use multiple desktops. Quite handy for multiple screen users but more importantly it facilitates much better multi-tasking.

Say Hi to Cortana! Microsoft brings voice commands and search 

assistance from it mobile phones to Windows 10. Users are now able carry out an array of tasks based on the apps installed on the device. If Cortana can’t carry out your wishes it will search the internet on your behalf. Windows 10 introduces users to Microsoft Edge, a faster, slimmer and sleeker internet browser designed to match its rivals Chrome and Firefox. Its keynote feature is the ability to write directly on webpages for sharing, bookmarking and note taking. Together with Cortana the overall browsing experience has been improved. If however you can’t live without Explorer it’s always there in your apps list!

Another key feature of Windows 10 is the ability to work on and across several devices. The app Continuum, which is already built in, allows the same document to be used and updated on your laptop, tablet and PC with very little or no delay in synchronisation. You will also be able to, play games and stream video from your games console to your laptop or PC. Furthermore, in its attempt to play catch up with stores from Apple and Android, Microsoft has integrated the Windows Store into Windows 10 where users can obtain their music, games, TV shows and films. 

Windows 10 provides a plethora of developments and built in applications that are guaranteed to keep users occupied for months to come. If you’re thinking of upgrading to Windows 10 the choice is entirely yours. There are plenty of new features to experience and enjoy. Any initial bugs and glitches will, like any new software, be eventually resolved with updates, patches and fixes so if you don’t want to wait, go for it. In our article next month we will delve deeper into more Windows 10 features and share our experiences in resolving some of the common issues we see every day. Till then it’s Adios from The Computer Assistant.

We are well established IT Support and Maintenance providers and well recognised for the sales, repairs and maintenance of PC’s, Macs, Laptops, IPads, Tablets and Game Consoles. We take great pride in our reputation for prompt completion, fair pricing and technical capability. If you own any number of computing devices at home or at work we can solve any of your repair problems. Or if you are experiencing problems updating your laptop or PC to Windows 10 from earlier versions just pop in to the shop or give us a call.

Here's what 3D Touch can do on the iPhone 6S

The new cameras on the iPhone 6S are nice, but the biggest technical innovation Apple crammed into the thing is the screen. Actually, it's just underneath the screen: the sensors that enable 3D Touch.

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Microsoft begins worldwide release of Office 2016

Microsoft Corp said it began the worldwide roll-out of Office 2016, the latest addition to its cloud-based subscription service Office 365, on Tuesday.

How to Play Android Games on a PC

Maybe you want to prop up your terrible Clash of Clans team by running an alternate account on your laptop. Maybe your addiction to Candy Crush Saga has grown to the point that your poor phone’s battery life just can’t hack the kind of binges you need nowadays to get your fix.

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YouTube Kids adds Chromecast support

Back in February Google formally announced YouTube Kids, a special version of YouTube designed to isolate kid-friendly music, shows, and more. In addition to catering the library towards kids, the UI was also built to be simple and intuitive.

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