The friends and family must haves.

There are a few apps I want to throw out there that are almost must have for your friends and family users. Most are Vista and Windows 7 but some can apply to the still using XP users.

With the exception of all XP users; this download adds the new features for Vista users and adds the missing features for Windows 7 users. Two main features that most home users will use most from these services are Live Photo Gallery and Mail. Most of the users I recommend this software to enjoy the Live Photo Gallery for the tagging and the new facial recognition process of organizing and enhancing their photos. While not perfect it gives Windows users a great free tool to manage photos in a fashion similar to iPhoto. The option to sign into your SkyDrive, Flicker, Facebook, YouTube, and others including the option to add a few select others such as Picasa Web etc. (Click the picture for the link to download.)

The second part to Live Essentials requires a Hotmail or Live mail account to access Windows Live SkyDrive. With SkyDrive you get 25 GB of online secure storage that you can use to upload Photos, use as a backup drive for computer files, or share files across multiple computers you may use. In addition to getting free online storage; with the Live account you have access to Office Online to edit Documents, Spreadsheets, Presentations, and One Note for Notes. None of these require the application installed on the computer but does require an active internet connection to change edit. (Click the picture for the link to signup.)

The next application I would like to share is Trillian Instant Messenger. We all know our family members use IM or Facebook to communicate every now and again. Trillian has a great interface, tons of options, and connects to almost every chat client you can throw at it. To include: Facebook, AIM, Yahoo!, GTalk, MySpace, IRC, Skype, and so on. Not only can it chat; it also sends you notifications on arriving emails for the attached accounts. For social sites such as Facebook you can view wall posts from friends and comment right inside the application without opening your browser. Double click and it brings you right to the page in you web browser. (Click the picture to download Trillian.)

The last application I want to include is TeamViewer. This is the best remote desktop application I have personally used over the years. It is free and has a Business solution for Premium users. Almost four days out of the week I tend to receive a call to work on a friends or family members computer. The first thing I tell them is to load this program. Once installed you receive a unique set of numbers that represent the computer it is installed on. It also provides a alphanumeric password that changes daily automatically. Or for the more worried user you can click and change it with one click if you like. It has the essentials needed to do almost anything such as; remote control, presentation, chat, file transfer, video and audio, and the option to record the session etc. A must have application if you ever need to work on your friends computer or just want to access your home computer from the office, smartphone, or laptop (thumb drive app, iPhone, and Android apps available). Click picture to download TeamViewer.)

Wise Registry Cleaner. Each plays a key role in keeping a computer running great. Though user error can never stop most problems that accumulate viruses, spam, and such. I can personally say after years of use practices and working in the I.T. industry these are the apps I recommend. All free and not to heavy in the resource area. A few quick details on their uses. Microsoft Security Essentials will scan you computer for virus and malware. ccleaner scans the hard drive and registry for temp file, unused data, ect. Basically rids all the things left unused. SpyBot S&D checks for spyware; usually downloaded from the internet and sends back data from your computer. Lastly Wise Registry Cleaner will rid the registry of unused components that can begin to degrade Windows. Hope this list will help users enjoy their computer use and aide in productivity.

Tech Blogs or Rants and Raves! [IMO]

The majority of post running out there in the wild have been more rants or opinions that are displayed to be facts in the title. Once you start reading on there seems to be a lack of any proof or supporting data. No one really has been putting out real note worthy posts any more. Half of the time you spot a headline and think to yourself here is some more BS. Like "why a company is doing this". Then you get a crap load of someones opinion. If it is your opinion state it clearly as an opinion. It is getting to the point where post are nothing more than an experiance of sifting through every friends new game acheivement in Facebook. Look I value peoples opinion. But if your post is all about what you think about a product or service then make it say so in your title. If you have hard proof then lay it out there as such. SEO means squat if you are putting out a good title and subpar writing behind it. I don't claim to be an Lit major but I'm sure in Literature 101 they teach value of content or how appeal to your audiance. Digg has become flooded with these post. I used to enjoy findind news and opinions there. The Engadget and god forbid Gizmodo have fallen heavy in this realm. And they pay these people for their content. When I see certain writers under the header I don't even bother to read any further. There just needs to be more to tech news than SEO. For those who may not understand that term it is search engine optimization. It's to try and get you a high ranking in search sites. I feel as if our tech writers are following a path such as FOX news. You watch it and think "wow really that is news". That's all I got today. Enjoy.

[IMO] What Google is Contributing:

I was an early adopter of Google and their products as soon as they came on board. So this post may seem one sided. That is why IMO begins its title.

We are all seeing Google vs Apple vs .... But what the general population is failing to look at is what Google is trying to build. Their ecosystem is starting to really come together in ways that people and businesses alike can do almost anything an operating system has to offer on the web. That is their goal. By adding a mobile platform that can adopt all of these technologies in a similar fashion you now have the ability to actually have a convenience of being away from your computer and be almost as productive. It goes to show that Google is trying to build a web friendly environment that can adopt all of the favorite things you like about the web and most of what you like about you personal computer.

To start with lets look at Google's search engine. Google was started as a web experience improvement company. They saw a way to improve search and search habits. They brought more meaningful advertising to companies by search habits so your search shows a more relevant company selling a product similar to the topic you are looking for. Instead of someone paying a premium price to always be at the top of the list with no relevance to what you may be searching for. They also have the most "keep it simple stupid" approach in their search home page.

Now lets look at Gmail. The approach here was to offer you more control over your email. Sure business had its corporate email and Office suite while we had our personal Yahoo! and Hotmail. So how could you adopt the best of both worlds. Google introduces Gmail. with tasks, calendar, and email all tied into a web mail client. They have expanded Gmail with many options. Labels(otherwise known as folders), filters, the best spam filtering, chat built in with Google Talk, and many other option under labs. It is the email client that has made the Yahoo! and Hotmail of their time to adapt to more of what people were looking for in a email client. A business option with a personal look.

Lets look at Maps now. Nothing new as there was MapQuest already on the scene when it came out. We were used to looking at Maps and getting directions but what we did not have was the ability to search for a name of a place or a product a place may sell and then see a map of the locations to find the closest one to us. This app has not changed a whole lot since its release but more and more options are now starting to exist in their layers and new labs features. What really gave this app a refresh was street view. They went across nations in vans to give you a in-depth close look at what to expect when you get to a location and what you are hunting for. Their mobile version is actually more robust than the web as of date.

Videos: Well when they first started in the video market they failed. Not miserably but could not compete with the college fan based rival YouTube. So they buy the competition. IMO it was a good move. Now we have a better option of searching for videos right out of the search box. YouTube has evolved into a video service that is a house hold name and a service that is now moving into our living rooms. The option to see user based content right on the big screen is now a reality and not a myth. So what came of the acquisition is a far better search option in finding a video right in your homepage of your browser. They did not invent the wheel but again created a better web experience.

News: Here again nothing new. They just made searching a news site and linking the content less of a task by combining the top news feeds into one location. Much like people use their personal RSS feeds. You have options to search for topics of your choice if you do not like the default layout. Again using their search algorithms you can find content specific headlines to your taste. If you need a more personal feel then you do your own homework and use their Google Reader app. RSS feeds are pulled and categorized to your specific needs in the content from websites that you visit most. So you get the content that you are looking for directly. It is almost like printing your own newspaper with the info you are most interested in.

For your office productivity needs Google offers Google Docs. Here you have a suite of apps that cater to you documentation, spreadsheet, forms, and presentation needs. Though there is a learning curve on the format side there are very similar functions in which users are used to using when creating these files. All of which give you sharing built right in to the app. Something that was tied mainly to the corporate world. The added plus to this app is the fact that your documents are available to you at any time and any where. Some have completely moved to using Google Docs over your standard purchasable applications for these added functionalities and the simple fact that it is at no cost to the end user. Though putting certain docs in the cloud has a lot of users worried about security. So the comment "user discretion is advised" need be applied here. Still Google claims its security is its main goal and we all have to be open minded and consider the risks of personal and professional docs in the open cloud. With Google Apps on the corporate side this is a little more security assured but all in all it is a very safe gamble to use this service if your contents are not a security risk for you.

Blogger was added to give the public a free platform to post their views, ideas, or anything else. It is a no brainer approach for you to share your content with the world. You can design a page to your likings and put out information on your views of anything you want. It can be used as your voice to the world. Not a new concept and probably not the best but guess what it is all built around your Google experience. Its a platform for you to put your thoughts and views out there for the public to see. Mine is based on technology since that is the field I am most prominent in. Here I can write about anything I want and anyone interested can see my views on a specific topic. Not only is it a chance to put my views out there but by using Google adsense I can actually gain some income from it if the blog becomes popular. So Blogger is what you want to make it. Personal to the sense that you are putting your thoughts out there for the public to see.

A newer project put out by Google is Google Voice. They purchased Grand Central so users could have their own personal voice mail service. Still growing in popularity as it was closed to invite only Google Voice not only gives you the option of voice mail but also gives you a free text messaging platform. With the acquisition of Gizmo5 we may see more features to this app but only time will tell. Here you get to pick a phone number or you have the option to import your own number and use it as your personal PBX. With options to block numbers, group your contacts for specific options and greetings, and text your contacts on any service provider for free. The most advance feature I believe is the transcription of your voice mail into text. It is not perfect but it gives you the options to see the content of a voice mail and see if it has merit for listening.

Google's latest creation Google Buzz. I know I skipped out Google Talk but as we all know it is a instant messaging client. So instead of going over Talk here I am going to voice my opinion on Buzz. What Buzz offers is a platform similar to what we have grown to use. The only difference is going to be this one is part of your ever growing Google ecosystem. Today we use the Twitters, Facebooks, and countless other social media apps to share what is going on to others on a day to day bases in almost a real time fashion. With Buzz this finally opens the door to get your Google profile as much recognition as these other options. People have rarely used their Google profile for this reason until now. Your Google profile gives the public and private people a peek into you own Google ecosystem. By adding a social platform for your profile you can now show others what you have been working on all in one location and give them up to date information that is going on in your life and specify if you want to share this to the public or just your private contacts. It is the gateway to getting you own Google domain out there finally. With the option to have all you eggs in one basket. That is how I see it being useful.

The last Google products I am going to discuss is Google Chrome, Chrome OS, and Android. The reason for this being the last portion is this actually sums up what the ecosystem is about. Google's Chrome browser has started turning heads. It is fast and is starting to gain on Firefox. I have been a very avid Firefox user since its debut. I must say that I am very hungry to see how Chrome can take over my Firefox use. I have lately made Chrome my default browser to compare my experiences with each. The most intuitive feature that has caught my attention is the separate processes per tab. One of the hugest advances I have seen that has help keep my system from being bogged down. Firefox has grown to be a very memory hungry browsing experience for me. The fact that web pages are providing this hungry content means that browsers have to find a way to keep this experience enjoyable without over killing the computer. Though my computer is only a couple years old it has the highest specs of that time. Hand built by me I know this. So Chrome, the much awaited Chrome OS for the netbook world, and Android are the tools that are making this ecosystem a manageable reality. Google is pulling together all of these services and giving us the tools to use them in a so called Google environment. Some may say monopoly. I say it is not a monopoly for the fact that there is competition out there for each and every product Google offers. They just give you the option to keep your content in one convenient place. They do not force you to use their services nor do they block you from using other services. It is what (and I use this term loosely ) open source is all about. You the consumer unless you purchase their branded phone pay nothing to Google.

So the whole contribution of Google products Search, Gmail, Maps, News, Reader, Docs, Blogger, Voice, Buzz, Talk, Chrome, Android, and Chrome OS etc when used appropriately give you a central location to do just about anything. All of these features have functions even on a mobile platform. Google has built a option to take what ever you do on a personal computer and given you options to do something equivalent anywhere at almost anytime. The most dependable factor is connectivity. To even top that factor Google is working on making connectivity a smaller factor in the whole equation. Free WiFi in areas and their new 1Gig per household project are paving the road to a better web experience. Is that not how they started out in the beginning.

I say thank you to Google because not only have you made leaps and bounds you have made many more companies do the same to keep up with times. There is your contributing factor. Competition.

Finally Office is catching up to the real world

With more and more need to share information among users and businesses we have been forced to seek solutions that require a separate app or a long about way to accomplish the task. Sharepoint came along and help ease some of the pain but there was still a piece missing. Microsoft may have mended a solution in the upcoming Office 2010. Time will still tell how well they develop this suite but they are definitely headed the right direction this time.

Integrating share and Skydrive seems to be one of the best features I have seen an Office suite offer yet. I know there are many other options and new features that has been improved upon but this is actually breaking ground for a Microsoft Office product. I don't know how many times I have been at a family affair and asked if I could borrow a family members PC to get a doc out that someone asked me for. It is still in the works but I can soon edit that doc right online with a Word Web App and send it on its way. Lets face it carting around the notebook everywhere gets old. Editing a doc on the cell is still in infancy. The web is the best choice for out of the office work.

Even though I have used Google Docs and countless other solutions before now it is finally time Microsoft has come of age and is delivering. I have to say that 2009/2010 is the age Microsoft has finally listened to the customer and developed decent products that has worth to its customers. If they stay on point and don't get lazy they may improve their image some and gain some stock in the mean time.

Why all the hype Positive and Negative on the latest Windows OS's

All across the web we see Pros and Cons to Microsoft's latest Windows 7. Every blog, tech site, and news feeds have put out their input on the product. It has become such a heavy topic that it has drawn controversy from every corner. When the reality of the whole thing is; Microsoft has done the best their staff and developers can to produce a product within the business model they put together in delivering an OS around the every three year mark.

The many MS haters and Apple haters out there are going to criticize the OS and produce one sided opinions all day long. The end result will have very little to play on Microsoft's bottom line. Take a look at a couple of things Microsoft has to consider when they create a new OS. They know that no Mac user is going to fully convert to Microsoft. So they either conscious or subconscious (don't work for them so no facts) produce a UI that Mac lovers will purchase and run with bootcamp or completely virtual. You will not get that from Apple nor should you expect that. Microsoft is software centric. If the previous OS fails then they need to listen more closely to the community and fix what failed. While keeping in mind they're not going to please billions of users individually. If that were the case then they would lay the OS out like a Linux distro and you pick your favs. They attempt to at least put out a few versions with different options and price range but they keep to the core market they are approaching with each. They did that while improving compatibility in Windows 7. Microsoft is business first and consumer second. Their product has to fit the business model first and then adapt to the consumer. It has lacked to do this properly with Vista. That is why they had to go back to the drawing board and re-engineer Windows 7. I don't know of many businesses other than small businesses that ever upgraded to Vista.

The opinion that Vista was the worst OS: Well I upgraded when Vista came out and personally I would not completely put it on the worst side. Is it fast? Depends how much hardware you have! Is it slow? Depends on your tolerance! For those who say that Windows 7 is the greatest well guess what. It is only an improvement on the kernel from Vista. Sure some better code, performance tweaks, and UI changes have set it aside and to the norm people believe that it is a complete overhaul. So why should Microsoft not market it as such. Vista was a huge risk that Microsoft needed to take to make a serious change in their OS. I give them props for making that shift. We did at least get a more improved kernel. Vista was not the greatest but it functioned and provided some needed security that lacked from previous OS's. It is not like you have to upgrade from Windows XP or Vista to Windows 7.

To conclude; Microsoft is by no means a perfect solution. There is no perfect solution when it comes to computers. There never will be. There are only options and niche. If you love Apple then you sacrifice some gaming and office solutions. If you love Microsoft then you sacrifice simplicity, media to a point, and elegant design. If you love Linux then you are going in your own path the same way the three big names did in the beginning. So hype! Yeah that is why these three guys did their own basement work to begin with. They wanted it their way. To be known for what they think the OS should be. Like it or love it you at least have an option to have your OS of choice and they are almost to a point running along the same hardware. So I get the fanboyism. Though the post may look fanboy on the Microsoft side, I use variants of all three OS's everyday and IMO they are what they are and should stop being compared. They are OS's sure but each serve a different purpose.

Tablets and why we need better products

Tablet PCs have yet to hit the market properly. A device that can be put in the category of "before its time" should be hitting prime time right now. This is no longer a niche market. It is 2009 and multitouch has shown pure adaptation in the computer field. Lets look at some benefits already out that could push the tablet form factor a little bit. E-readers have really started to explode on the market. What may be a simple device to read a book has shown place in today's tech savvy lifestyle. So if you are more opt to read on a device rather then pick up a paper or book why should we not be apt to write on a said device. Sure a keyboard is a great input device. That is why most tablets are hybrids. Look at cellphones. We are already adapting to the touch screen technology on our phones why not our computers. With the price of notebooks dropping like flies splurging on a ink-able touch screen should not be a hard hit on the pocket anymore. Manufactures need to step up and start using this technology more than they have in the past years.

There has been some great tablet products that just did not take off. Most due to price and performance compared to the notebook. Tablets have a market. A large market too if done right. College students can really benefit from tablets. And lets face it what has been a bigger Marketing campaign adults or students lately. Netbooks hit a boom for a while because of price and the economy. What happened as a result is price wars on the average sized notebooks to compete. So how can you put the notebook back on the market. Simple start giving more options on hardware other than just performance and looks. If manufacturers start putting ink ability built right in to the average notebook then I can almost guarantee it will catch on. Take for instance the notebook I have currently. Plain ole Acer Aspire 5610Z. Nothing special. But what if the monitor had ink or multitouch. The screen does not necessarily have to rotate as a tablet but I could just pull out the pen and edit right on the monitor. They do not have to be pure rotate and fold tablets. More so just the tablet technology built right in. Its time folks for this to be a common option.

Sure Microsoft and Apple have been in the spot lite lately on new tablet technologies and some new twists to tablet use. That is all well and good but as we can see may not be for everyone. All I am asking is lets really make the notebook more of a personal device by giving me an option to put my real signature on my emails, hand write a personal letter, circle a snippet on the web, or make a doodle. I'm sure some may say why not just go and buy a tablet out right. To that I say why can't I go and get the notebook I want and have that as an option package. Why can this not be an option package on the majority rather than a separate category all together that limits me on the types of notebooks I have to choose from. Components for notebooks have really come of age. Speed has become almost second nature in development of newer devices. So the tablets of yesterday and their limitations should be out of the question. Processors and memory have made great leaps since. So to the manufactures "there is no excuse on why this could not be an option let alone a standard just as bluetooth and wifi."

Microsoft's answer to virus protection (Microsoft Security Essential)

"Hey its about time my software provider addresses its most vulnerable weakness!" You know most people don't care if Microsoft will put out a perfect virus protection solution. In fact we all know there is no such thing. Security suites are always a reaction to an action. Though Microsoft after all these years have finally addressed this fact and gave the users a solution that helps put owning a Microsoft product a little safer. Still not a perfect solution but it does the the job and holds its own ranking in the top five with the current free solutions. I really have to give Microsoft an attaboy on this one. I don't see anything revolutionary about this product but I finally see Microsoft doing one thing right. For years and years users have been frustrated with Microsoft on this issue. They even did a great job as a set it and forget solution. Most of the built-in recommended settings will do the trick. It also gives the more comprehensive user with options such as excluding file types, processes, and file locations. Though if your are real serious about security and still want the best from a free solution then Avira AntiVir is the solution for you. But if you just want a piece of mind virus solution I would far recommend this free solution to anyone I know. Kudos Microsoft for listening to your supporters and giving them something that should have been there a long time ago.