5 Best Computer Repairs in Bayside, NY

Slow Computer? Find out Why! We are becoming more and more dependent on our computers every day. We use them for everything from work, to shopping, to playing games. No matter what the task is we expect our computer to execute it as quickly as possible, but that isn't always the case. Computers get slow over time and require a certain level of maintenance to perform efficiently. When your computer starts to slow down it doesn't mean you have to run out and spend a ton of money buying a new one! Here is a list of the usual suspects when it comes to computer slow down: Hardware Sometimes our computers don't have enough memory or are just getting older and need some new parts to help speed it up. Adding memory, getting a new hard drive or replacing an old processor are just a few things that can be done to give your computer that necessary speed boost you are looking for. Software Whenever we install new programs they might have a setting to "load on Windows startup", this means that that program will turn on whenever you turn on your computer. Now think about that for a second... if a program is loading while Windows is starting up, that's going to slow it down a bit. Now think about how many programs on your computer are set to load when Windows starts up! Junk files If your computer has been, or is starting to run slow there is a few different reasons why. We are constantly using our computers for all kinds of things like downloading files, installing programs, surfing the web, etc. All of these things leave traces of information on our hard drives that just sit there and take up space. The more junk that is stored on your hard drive, the more work it has to do to function. Making sure that you clear out any junk such as your temporary folder, cookies and downloads folder will make your computer run much more efficiently. Registry Windows has a system called the "Registry" that is basically where all the information about every installed program is stored. Whenever you install a program on your computer it creates a new section for that program in the registry. Unfortunately when you uninstall programs sometimes traces get left behind in the registry and sometimes other places. These traces are just more junk files that are cluttering up your system and slowing it down! Viruses, Spyware, Malware & Bloatware Viruses are very sneaky and can infect your computer in many different ways. You can catch a virus simply by clicking on a link or by visiting a website. There are many different kinds of viruses but they all affect how your computer runs and need to be taken care of immediately. Now spyware, malware and bloatware might not by as serious as viruses, but they are still bad! Sometimes if you aren't paying attention during the process of installing programs on your computer you will unknowingly install spyware, malware, or bloatware. If you have any toolbars installed on your computer such as "Google Toolbar", "Yahoo Toolbar", "Bing Toolbar", etc. these are examples of spyware/bloatware. These programs use up your system resources and cause significant slow down to your computer. Malware stands for "Malicious Software" and, as it's name implies, it is not good to let run rampant on your machine. JAG-Ware can get your Computer back up to Speed! JAG-Ware Computer Services specializes in Computer Performance Enhancement. Whether your computer needs new hardware or has a bad virus, JAG-Ware can fix it. If your computer is running slow don't wait another minute! Pick up the phone and call the best computer repair and maintenance specialist in Queens: JAG-Ware Computer Services @ 917-453-5776 Get your computer taken care of by a professional!

By JAG-Ware Computer Services

Your Child Is Away At College. How Will You Keep In Touch?

Back in the day when I attended college, keeping in touch with my parents was simple. I had a phone in my dorm room that I called them on or they called me on. We tried not to stay on the phone all that long since we were charged by message units which was related to both distance and time on the phone. I went to college in Manhattan and my parents lived in Massapequa which is on Long Island. There was also the occasional letter. Those students whose parents lived out of town had a different issue that some of us chronologically gifted people may know as long distance charges. Some dorms did not have phones in their rooms but there was a payphone in the hall. That created a different issue of trying to keep the call short since you may not have had much change, collect call charges could be expensive and there may have been a line to use the phone. Today things are totally different. Almost all college students have cell phones and there is Skype and iChat for video conferences. The cell phone provider you use at home may not have a strong signal where your child is at school. As a parent, it may be worthwhile for you to change cellphone providers or it may be more beneficial for your college student to get a cell phone plan of their own with a provider that has good cell phone reception at their school. There is also video chatting. Skype and iChat are the two big ones here. WeÃ¢€™ll keep our discussion to Skype as this works on both PC and Macs. iChat is a proprietary program that only works on Apple products. With Skype you can talk to anyone, anytime, anywhere, any length for free provided you are speaking with someone who is also using Skype. The only charge would be for internet connection fees if any. This is just like at home. One other possibility to think about is Magic Jack. For a $70.00 initial investment and a $30.00 annual subscription you can make unlimited calls to the USA and Canada from anywhere in the world where there is an internet connection. You will or should be having discussions with your college child about the new experiences they will be having. You also will need to also discuss how you will be communicating with him or her while they are away. Will their college friends be using the same cell phone provider? Will you and your child have the same cell phone provider? If an emergency was to arise how will you get in touch? Regardless of what plan you choose, your student should also bring an Ethernet cord with them. If your student lives in a dorm where there is an Ethernet connection you and them will be glad particularly if the Ethernet connection is the only way for them to connect to the internet. If you have additional questions about keeping in touch with your college child I can be reached at (917) 572-3468 or email me at mike@computerconciergeny.com My Facebook page http://on.fb.me/MikesCCNY provides information on the current goings on in the technology field. There are tips to better use your computer and smartphone. For timely information, please visit and "Like" my page.

By Computer Concierge NY LLC

Are You Wasting Money By Purchasing Microsoft Office?

Microsoft recently announced that their new version of Microsoft Office likely to be named Microsoft Office 2013 will be released early next year. As previous, there are likely to be different prices depending on which version purchased. Using the current prices of Microsoft Office 2010 at Staples you can pay as little as $119.99 or as much as $499.99. The price is influenced by whether you are purchasing a CD, the version being purchased and how many machines it is licensed for. Microsoft Office is the best known and the best office suite software. It also is the most expensive. There are free alternatives to Microsoft Office that are compatible with Microsoft Office applications. The three main ones are Google Drive, Libre Office and Open Office. Each has their own features and you would need to determine which is best for you if you choose to go the free route. Google Drive formerly Google Docs is web based and requires you to have a Google account. You can use it when you are not online but there are certain constraints that you need to follow. For one you need to be using the Google Chrome browser. This should not be an issue because many (myself included) view Google Chrome as the best browser out there for accessing the internet. It is great for sharing files whether it is with selected people or with everyone. You can choose whether people can only view the file or edit it as well. You can collaborate in real time with others who have editing privileges as they can change the file contents while you are also working on it. Libre Office first launched in September 2010 is the new kid on the block. When Open Office was purchased by Sun there was concern that Open Office would take a different path and perhaps not be free. This led to Libre Office. While there are many similarities, you can edit files in a Portable Document Format (PDF) in Libre Office but not Open Office or even Microsoft Office. It is not the most user friendly interface to do so but it can be done. Libre Office and Open Office have components for spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, word procession and database. Google Drive does not currently support a data base application among its components. Open Office is in essence the predecessor to Libre Office. As mentioned previous when Oracle purchased Open Office there was concern over the future direction of it. In 2011 Oracle donated Open Office to the Apache Software Foundation. There are many similarities between Open Office and Libre Office as noted above. Open Office is easier to download but you cannot edit PDF files using it. The interfaces for both are similar to Microsoft Office (MS Office). Open Office offers more Templates on its site than Libre Office but Libre Office offers more functionality by offering extensions. Per Wikipedia some notable users of Open Office are SingaporeÃ¢€™s Ministry of Defense, and Banco do Brasil. So do you continue to use Microsoft Office or do you switch and if so which do you use? From a personal standpoint being a power user who also uses Microsoft Office in my line of work as I now am also creating customized Excel spreadsheets I will continue using Microsoft Office. If you are not a power user of Microsoft Office and do not need to use it for work, using a free version is a viable alternative. The free versions offer approximately 75-90% of the features offered by MS Office. The features not offered in the free versions tend to be more advanced. I also find the three programs noted user friendly. The more expensive versions of MS Office include Outlook, Publisher, Access and OneNote. Access is a database program as Base in both Open Office and Libre Office are as well. Draw is an alternative to Publisher again in both Open Office and Libre Office. There are good free alternatives to OneNote and Outlook as well. If you wish to know more about which Office Suite you should use or about saving time and even $$ from Microsoft Excel spreadsheets call me at (917) 572-3468 or email me at mike@computerconciergeny.com

By Computer Concierge NY LLC

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