What to Buy? PC, Laptop, Mac?

Yes, I am a woman and yes, I work on computers for a living. This doesn’t mean that I don’t get confused with all the fancy and flashy gimmicks out there. I mean, it’s just a computer right? I know walking into a Best Buy can either suck you in or repel you. I get sucked in. I want all the big screens and loud surround sound systems and fancy computers. I can get mesmerized by the lights and sounds. So to save myself from myself, I do a lot of research. I know what I want before I go in there. OK, first, Desktop PC, Laptop, or MAC? I am a lover of the desktop. You can get a lot more bang for your buck when comparing a desktop to a laptop. Granted, you can’t carry around a desktop but if you need 1 solid computer, I would always have a desktop. It is cheaper to build a desktop and the parts inside are faster, come with larger hard drives, and a lot more bells and whistles than a laptop. Laptops are great for mobility. There are 2 types, a notebook or a netbook. A notebook is just what you think a laptop should be, bigger screen size, larger hard drives, dvd-rw drives…a miniature desktop. A netbook…is just what that sounds like…mobile internet. They have small screens, not much of a hard drive and generally no dvd/cd reader. It is made for internet access and not for data storage. You can not run a cd or dvd. Now, Macs…Great computer, now integrates well with PC programs and acts more like a PC. What Macs are known for is for their creative side…great for images, music, art…etc. They run efficiently and made differently than PC. Macs are very expensive and I recommend that if you are budget conscious and do not do a lot of creative things that you do on your computer, stick with a PC. A little unknown fact is that Macs do get viruses too and they do break down. Things to look for in any new computer: Brand Name (yes, there are some duds out there), Speed (the ability to access your programs and documents quickly) and Storage (how much can I put on this thing). Brand – Cheaper is NOT better. There are economy packages all over the place. They are put together poorly and have cheaper parts. It is not uncommon to have your newish computer die exactly one day over the warrantee. I promise I see it a lot. This doesn’t mean that you have spend a lot either, but please don’t be fooled by pricing and all the “extras”. In the end, the extras are all you will have. Now speed. There are 2 things I want you to look for: Processor speed/type and RAM. Yes, bigger here is better. Processor speed is measured in Ghz…again; all you need to know is the larger the number, the faster the computer is going to be. If the computer says Dual Core…this means it is has 2 processors in one. Each “core” is going to run at the speed of the Ghz…so 2 is better than one. Also, there are two major players in the computer world when it comes to processors. Everyone has heard of Intel but only a few recognize AMD. AMD is just as good as Intel. Plus they are generally a little cheaper than Intel. AMD is a fine choice. RAM- all you need to know is more is better. Generally anything new is going to have at least 1 GB (gigabyte) of RAM. The more you can afford the faster and efficient your computer will be. Storage- this will be determined by the amount of GBs stated on the hard drive. Again more is better. The larger the number the more pictures, music, files and documents you can store. Also, you can have a ton of programs stored. Most machines out on the market come with at least 250 GBs…use this as a guideline. I also want to take the opportunity to talk about Microsoft Vista. There are not many choices on PCs/Laptops for your operating systems. Big stores and computer outlets are only going to have Vista. There is another operating system coming out in fall to replace Vista. So far, reviews have been good. Vista has a lot of bugs and you may want to consider staying with XP. Generally, you can get XP from companies that custom build machines. Custom built machines are more reliable and you get what you pay for and no “freeware” or trial packages that clogs up your machine. So remember, cheaper is not always better, the bigger the number the bigger the bang…and don’t be fooled by flashy lights and a fancy gimmick. -Tara Belzer owns Friendly Computers in Charlotte NC. She has her own blog on www.tarabelzerfriendlycomputers.wordpress.com and talks about computer issues in an open forum. She enjoys helping people understand computers and make them feel more comfortable with them. Visit Tara’s Website at” www.friendlycomputers.com/charlotte

What are you really downloading when you download music, games and movies

Getting “free” music and media can seem pretty cool and almost exhilarating. You just figured out how to get something for nothing. But, what are you really downloading into your system? Is it really free…or are you paying for it some how, some way?

 

First, I am going to use the word Malware to represent viruses, Trojans, spyware and other malicious software. There is always a chance that you are picking up some sort of malware when you download media

 

Again, free is not always free. Any sharing site (like limewire, youtube, Kaaza) is just what it sounds like. You are opening up your computer for sharing…music, movies, etc. While you’re downloading the newest Beyonce song…someone is downloading something from you. Right there you are inviting others into your computer. All you need is one smart person to know a little about computers and they can capture all your information. Identity theft is a big problem these days and that free movie can cost you your name and financial information.

 

Secondly, you are allowing files to be downloaded onto your hard drive. Many if not most files have malicious code embedded in the background of that free song. Minimally you are allowing someone or something to track where you go (what websites you are visiting). Worse, you also can be downloading a virus that can wipe out your hard drive. How much do those pictures, documents mean to you? How much money will it cost you to get that machine repaired?

 

Teenagers love these free sites. They can put music on their MP3 players and movies on their ipods. They can share videos with each other and keep each other updated on social sites (facebook, myspace). It keeps them busy but can be jeopardizing the family computer in the ways I have explained.

 

The first mode of protection is to just keep an eye on what they are doing. If you see a ton of music, if you cursor is now a pretty bird or there are smiley faces (emoticons) in your emails…you can be sure the computer has been downloading items for some time.

 

Secondly, Anti-virus is a must. Not a free version Time Warner or AOL gives to you for using their services. Go out and buy a highly rated anti-virus. We sell Panda Internet Security and AVG internet security. I like them both because they update daily and catch things quickly.

 

Remember when thinking about anti-virus, there is no guarantee that ANY anti-virus can catch all malware at 100%. They update there database AFTER a malicious code was made. They other thing to keep in mind is to run the program. I think if you have tweens to teenagers in the house, scan your computer often.

 

The best prevention is just not to do it at all. It will protect the computer and all the information that it holds. It will save you aggravation and money in the long run and just not worth doing.