Wednesday 13th January 2016
Update Support Ended for Windows 8.0
Support ended for Windows 8.0 on 12th Jan 2016. Users should go to the Windows Store and
update to W8.1 – this is free and would give support to 10th Jan
2023. Upgrading to W8.1 also allows the free upgrade to W10 which will be
supported to Oct 2025.
Discuss On Broadband Connection Problems
Bob was having a issue of intermittent Internet connectivity, especially at certain times of the day. His ISP (Utility Warehouse) has been taking him through various steps to help diagnose the problem, so lets consider some of the basics of problem-solving an Internet connectivity issue.
There are a lot of items in the chain which connects your device to the Internet. There is your device (PC/tablet/phone), the browser (and maybe other apps such as Mail, Messaging, etc), the wireless or wired connection from your device to your router, the router, the broadband filter, the external wiring to the telephone exchange and on to your ISP, the ISP's server that connects you to the world.
You can eliminate as much of this as possible by swapping it out. So, maybe use a different PC (perhaps belonging to a friend or family member), running a different browser, if you normally connect to the router by wi-fi, use a cable instead. You can usually eliminate all other telephone equipment and wiring in your house by unscrewing and unplugging the front face-plate of the master BT socket (this bit belongs to you and you are allowed to remove it). If you have an Interstitial Filter between the bottom front plate and the box on the wall, disconnect and temporarily replace it with a micro-filter. Here is a great description (with a video or two) from Zen, an award-winning ISP, showing the steps you can go through to diagnose broadband problems:-
https://support.zen.co.uk/kb/Knowledgebase/Broadband-Home-or-Business-Premises-Troubleshooting-Check-List
The router has a Power LED, a DSL LED and an Internet LED. On switch on, the Power LED may blink for a while then stay on, the DSL light will blink for maybe a minute and then go solidly on (usually green). The router stores your broadband username and password which it then submits to sign on to your ISP - if this sign-on is successful, the Internet light will usually go green. Most people would not have a spare pre-programmed router to swap out, so if your ISP thinks, as a result of the above diagnostics, that the router may be faulty, they will often send you a new router to swap. If your ISP feels the problem is due to external wiring/equipment, they will get OpenReach to deal with it.
Q - How to Convert Video Files to Play in a DVD Player
Linda asked how to create a video DVD which will play in a standard DVD player attached to a TV. This site explains how to create Video DVDs which can be played in a standard DVD Player which you might have connected to your TV using a program called DVD Flick:-
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/32323/how-to-make-your-own-dvds-from-almost-any-video-file/
Another free program which does this is WinX DVD Author which can be downloaded from:-
http://www.winxdvd.com/dvd-author/
Chromecast
Another way to get photos and videos from your phone/tablet to your TV is to use Chromecast, a £30 dongle which plugs into an HDMI port on your TV and connects via wi-fi to your router. Certain apps on your hand-held Android or iOS device can than 'cast' their screen image to the TV. This works well with Google Photos - go to photos.google.com and also install the Photos app on your mobile device.
Q - How To Virus-Check An Email Attachment
Linda asked how to virus-check an attachment received with an email. She suggested saving the attachment locally, then running a custom virus scan on just that folder. This seems like a reasonable method. Most anti-virus programs would automatically check attachments, but Linda's method would ensure the file was scanned.
The main safety rule is never just double-click on an attachment or open it in any other way unless you are completely confident that you trust the sender and you know what the attachment is. Otherwise, just delete the email.
Spam Email
Spam email is usually identified and placed into a Spam folder (aka Bulk or Junk) by your email service provider (e.g. Gmail). If you log on to web mail and look in the Spam folder you will see mail identified as Spam. If any of these are not Spam, you can select them and click on the Not Spam button to teach it that future email from this sender should go into the Inbox. Similarly, in the Inbox, you can select mail and click on the Spam button to teach it that future mail from that sender should go into the Spam box. You can improve spam filtering by 'teaching' your mail service in this way.
Q - If You Upgrade To W10, Might There Be Problems
I always advise doing an image backup before attempting the Upgrade from W7 or W8.1 to Windows 10. W10 is an excellent operating system, but things can go wrong doing something as complex as a total upgrade. Windows 10 does offer the opportunity to roll back to your previous version of Windows, provided you do this within 30 days of upgrading. However, I have had situations where this roll back feature is not available, and then restoring an image, or re-installing your previous version of Windows and all your software from scratch is the only option.
W7 and W8.1 have built-in system image backup facilities. You also need a bootable Recovery Drive to restore the image. Information on creating and recovering system images is contained in my document "Full Hard Drive Backup in Windows 7 and 8" which you can access from the documents link on the right.
Catch-Up TV
We spent a little time looking at catch-up TV services. BBC have iPlayer, ITV have ITV Hub, Channel 4 have All 4, etc. These are accessible via the web or through an app on your mobile device. These services are free, but do require a sign-in.
Batteries
We discussed the charging of Lithium-ion batteries. this web site has some tips on the subject:-
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/five-apps/five-tips-for-extending-lithium-ion-battery-life/
Most mobile devices now charge using a USB lead which has a micro USB on the device-end. A small, reversible USB connector, call a Type-C, is starting to appear on new devices and will probably become the norm.
IE Support
Microsoft have ceased support (as of 12th Jan 2016) for Internet Explorer versions other than IE11.
Region and Date Format in Windows 10
This should be selected when Windows is installed or upgraded. However, it can be changed by going to Start, Settings, Time and Language, Region & Language where you would normally select United Kingdom. If necessary, click on Date & Time, Change Date and Time Format to change the date format.
Next Computer Club
Wednesday 10th February 2016 at 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
As usual, I will try to answer your questions and possibly talk further about accessibility options.
