Differences between 32 and 64 bit edition Windows Vista, 7 and 8 operating systems for ordinary users

When I saw this difference first time on my newly bought laptop almost three years ago I did not know the difference between these two configurations as I really enjoyed my new computer very much and nothing else matters. Soon the learning of this came and slowly I understood much better.
First of all 32-bit Windows Operating System is able to recognise and work with approximately 3GB of RAM and sometimes even less. It means that no matter how much you put RAM into your computer your Windows OS it will be able to read just these 3GB. If you put 4, 6 or 8GB the situation will be always the same. To make your RAM readable you must install 64-bit OS. I remember when I put into a computer's client with 32-bit OS 4GB of RAM and to my disappointment only 3.2 GB had been recognised. What a shame to learn about it after fact. It was hard learning lesson. 
Secondly, more and more software developers released more and more hungry for computer resources applications and to work without any significant issue you need bigger and bigger amount of RAM. 64-bit operating systems and application can do these jobs really smoothly. To be able to work with 64-bit applications you need 64-bit operating system. If you try to do this with your 32-bit OS edition sooner or later on the screen will appear a message about the installation mistake.
The last main consequence between 32 and 64-bit Windows editions is the fact that if a processor and RAM of a computer are not strong enough you have no chance to install any 64-bit editions. The hardware of a computer can show many mistakes during the installation process and you can spend a long time trying to figure out why your 64-bit OS cannot be installed in any possible configuration.
When you buy a new laptop or desktop nowadays most of these computers have 64-bit OS inside. Remember that this issue applies to machines released mainly 2 or 3 years ago.

For how long I can use my ageing computer?

During more than year of practical experience with client computers I had a few cases when the only radical solution to help clients and their computers was re-installations of their operating systems. It was happening in cases when the computer was really slow and the whole usage of a machine was really painful and problematic experience. After adding an extra RAM memory and re-installation the OS computers significantly speeded up and everybody was happy.
Unfortunately, in 3 out of 20 cases this operation was only partially successful and not because computers stopped working completely but because after a few months of relatively good performance problems came back or something else happened which disabled the computer completely from any performance. At the beginning I was really disappointed with these cases and wanted to repeat the same operation for a while but after a few weeks of thinking about it I realised that an each computer has its lifetime and it is really not worth revitalise something what can stop working in next day from an unknown reason.
From a gathered experience I know that it is worth to talk to a client about the options for future computer usage as most of computers today are relatively not expensive and the cost of repairing a problematic machine can be much higher than a value of a new computer which after a relatively short tuning process will work for about 2-3 years without any bigger issues. This decision must be made what is much worth -  repairing a ageing computer which has not warranty or investing in a new computer which is more up to day and a warranty from manufacturer. 
What would you do?

How important a computer backup could be for a individual client?

Last three days I was dealing with an old computer of a long-term client which has a quite impressive collection of music inside his computer and after running a few previous backups we decided that his computer will be replaced by something newer and faster. To find a newer computer was not a bigger issue but much bigger challenge was to backup a data from his old machine and transfer this data to a new environment. Music files were everywhere and in sometimes incompatible formats which did not give any chance to play them in one music player. From the surface it looks like a relatively short job but unfortunately the old hard drive refused to work for longer and the only source of data was imperfect backups created by Acronis. It took a few hours to make a certain order with this mess and therefore I love this job.

A little and nice recommendation from your client

Computer rescued by Marek of ITBox Posted by Marian Leatherby on February 23, 2013 at 9:01 in Trades & Other Services Recommended / Wanted Send Message View Discussions I'm happy to recommend Marek if your computer breaks down. Mine suddenly had 3 things wrong with it. Marek came that very day, spent an hour sorting it out and improving it, and the charge was very reasonable. He suggested a new back-up system, and later installed it via remote control from his own computer! Also, there was no hint of snootiness when I used ignorant non-technical language. A perfect service I would say.

Marek

Slimcleaner - soon my favourite piece of software

Every time I approached an unknown computer after five or ten minutes I search for an opportunity to download a software to clean start-up area of the computer and make some changes to give any machine a little chance to impress its disappointed owner. Up to now my choice is still CCleaner, which does a wonderful job for any computer operating system but after last weekend I started seriously think about its successor - SlimCleaner. This software can do what CCleaner does plus something extra which can be very attractive for every person concerned about the speed, convenience and smooth work of the computer. An example of something extra is to setting up home pages for every internet browser present on the system. Personally, I think this feature spare a user some efforts and can be very practical. This application is free, small in size and very useful. Please try...

This is the link for safe download:

http://www.slimcleaner.com/features.php


Virtual Router Software



This is nothing new for IT geeks and people who works with computers, especially with laptops for last 10 years, and we know that we can change any wireless laptop into wireless router which other people can use it for internet connection. This solution is not widely recommended as it does not provide wireless security for users but sometimes you can approach situations when for relatively short time your laptop would be a perfect router.
Starting from Windows XP, through Vista, Seven and Eight sharing your internet connection was possible in your laptop but to do this you would have to leave the surface of your operating system and go deeper into advanced settings of your operating system to start it. If you never done and heard about it before this option was almost invisible.
This situation changed recently as more and more software developers started releasing software to give you this option with a two clicks from your computer desktop. Sounds very easy and practice confirms this with no doubts. I would like to introduce a software called Virtual Router 1.0.

With this link you can safely download and install this sofware to your laptop and change into a wireless router in a very convenient way for as long as you wish.
http://download.cnet.com/Virtual-Router/3000-18508_4-11673866.html

ITBOXCS - THE BLOG: BUYING A NEW COMPUTER – BUT WHICH ONE?

ITBOXCS - THE BLOG: BUYING A NEW COMPUTER – BUT WHICH ONE?: If you a long term user a computer and you would like to try something new, more modern and up to day you need to make a ...

BUYING A NEW COMPUTER – BUT WHICH ONE?


If you a long term user a computer and you would like to try something new, more modern and up to day you need to make a decision what machine would be more suitable for your needs and with what equipment you would feel the most comfortable. Some people love laptops and tablets for their mobility and convenience of talking them wherever they go and some others prefer their desktops for their power and opportunity of upgrade whenever they want and wish.

So generally you need to answer three simple questions:

1)   Do I prefer mobility of laptops or do I value more the stability and power of desktops?

An opportunity to travel with your computer wherever you go with working around your house and not to be attached to one particular place in your home is very tempting and it is difficult to resist. Laptops and tablets are getting faster and powerful today but there are also bad points which you need to be aware such as: getting overheated, easiness to be destroyed or stolen and limited options to be upgraded – CPU, motherboard and graphic processor.

2)   What are my needs of computers – general usage such as word processing and surfing on the Internet or more specialist usage for music, gaming, video and designing?

Majority of computer users have absolutely basic needs and it is easy to buy a cheap and reliable machine, which would serve average user for minimum 4-6 years. Surfing the Internet, writing emails and letters, listening music and watching movies needs relatively small power of a machine. An average user does not need i7 Intel processor, the latest graphic card or SSD hard drive, which is reserved for more, sophisticated and specialized users.

3)   What is my budget and what price would be the most comfortable and affordable?

The average computer price for laptops or desktops circulates around £300-£400 and you should stick to it if you do not want to overpay. After this threshold, prices of computers are growing and you can expect something better than average. It is totally up to you how much you would like to spend for gaming, video and music editing. And at the end please remember whatever you buy remember to get an external USB hard drive as this is the most problematic and the most expensive area of your computer equipment.

If you know answers for these three questions you can start searching for the computer you would suite your needs. The most recommended way is doing your search on the Internet where all manufacturers put their offers. The choice is incredibly rich and almost unlimited. 

PC’s and Mac’s – hardware MOT


When you buy your new computer everything runs inside almost perfectly and you do not need to worry about any serious issue which you will face in future such as hard drive crashes, slower and slower computer performance and data loses. Your computer as every piece of technology created by human being, in this case, a manufacturer such as DELL, HP or Lenovo, for longer and reliable performance needs to pass certain kind of physical cleaning and adjustments.
Computers like cars, gas boilers and other home equipment, which you are using on daily bases, are getting older quite quickly and they work in different problematic conditions. Computers are electronic creations and for its optimal performance need certain optimal conditions which would be good to provide for long and non-problematic service. Their bigger enemies are heat, dust and water. Let’s talk about them:
                                               
HEAT
Computers are electronic machines and they produce quite a lot of heat, which needs to be released from internal body of the box outside. The biggest heat producer is a computer processor called CPU and therefore there is a cooling fan on it. A few minutes of work without working cooling fan would fry your computer forever. The optimum working temperature for your computer is between 30 and 50 degrees of Celsius and this should be your maintenance aim for better cooling system. The physical sign that temperature is too high is automatic switching off your machine without any warning. Prolonging situation like this can completely burn internals of your computer and the only thing what you can do after final crash is to throw your machine to a rubbish bin.

DUST
  Computer internal fans, minimum one for laptops, works in the same way as your vacuum cleaner, absorbing cold and dusty air from outside and releasing hot steam of air from a processor outside. Dust has a tendency to stay inside attached to a ventilation crate and cumulates blocking an air stream.  After 2-3 years of everyday work inside your computer there is probably a layer of dust, which must be removed for safety and a better cooling purpose. Especially laptops are very vulnerable to dust and you must pay special attention to these machines .The physical sign for a cleaning need from dust is a loudly working cooling fan, no hot air steam outside.

WATER
If your computer had any sudden contact with any kind of liquid it must be switched off immediately and opened for drying purpose minimum 48 hours without any questions. Do not try to switch off your laptop to check if it is still working. This unfortunate trial might be the last time you will see your computer working at all. Especially laptops must be unplugged from electric power and the battery must be removed, as it is still a power source. There is one cheap way of removing water from computer – a bag of rice to which you put your computer for a few days. Rice grains have a very good feature – absorbing water.

If you are not familiar with dealing with these problems search for professional help and support.

 

Overheated laptops and desktops


Overheating laptops

If you are a laptop user you probably notice that usually after two or three years of regular everyday work your machine becomes hotter, noisier and performs much slower than it was at the beginning of their mechanical life. Many people to avoid longer frustration consider buying a new laptop but you could spend much less to improve your laptop performance by cleaning a cooling fan of your laptop.
A very weak point of every laptop is its cooling system and there is not much to do to change this situation. A cooling system of each laptop is just a little or bigger fan working at the bottom of the machine absorbing and releasing air by ventilation entrance on the side. As time runs this fan becomes dirtier and must work much harder to cool a laptop to keep optimum temperature for its normal performance.
To significantly improve this situation with overheating of a laptop the fan and ventilation entrance must be cleaned and freed from dust. The only issue is that getting to a laptop’s fan is a bit complicated task and it is not recommended to anybody who never done or see it before.
In the root of this issue lays a very important fact that the cooling and ventilation fan becomes a very dirty place, full of dust and hair, which we can find in every house and working place. The cooling fan of a laptop works as a hoover and absorb every little parts, which flies in air. The more dusty places are laptops working the higher possibility that this place becomes very dirty. Not only fans become dirtier but also the ventilation entrance of any laptop is blocked buy dust.

     Please look at these pictures as examples of your hidden issues


              

How can you correctly estimate that your laptop qualify for fan cleaning? There are a few symptoms, which can tell you when the right time is:

§  After 10-15 minutes of work your laptop automatically switch off and you need to wait a few minutes to switch it back for repeating action
§  A body of a laptop becomes hotter and hotter after hour of work and you can successfully warm your hands during winter time
§  A laptop produces constant noise from inside which you can get used to but remember your laptop suppose to work very silently
§  A general performance of a laptop becomes slower and slower and there is no application or processes running at all

If you recognise any of these symptoms with your laptop it means that is time to search for professional help and support. After cleaning all this issues will disappear and your laptop will be ready for much longer service for you.