Wednesday 14th December 2016
Laptop Not Connecting To
Internet
Margaret’s laptop was not connecting to the Internet. It had not acquired the correct IP address
from the router. A re-boot fixed this.
The PC goes through the process of acquiring an IP address from the router when
it is first powered on. It will not do this if you simply put the PC into Sleep
mode and then wake it.
So, if you have IP configuration issues or other problems connecting to
the Internet, first ‘cold boot’ the PC (i.e. shutdown and power on again). If
the problem still persists, power the router off and on again.
In another recent case where the system was reporting IP configuration
problems and would not connect to the Internet, rebooting did not fix it. So the next thing to try in Windows 10 is
resetting the network. To do this, click on Start,
Settings, Network
and Internet, Status,
and click on Network reset (near the
bottom of the window). In the following
window, click on the Reset now
button. You will then be asked to confirm that you want to reset the network –
click Yes. This will remove and
re-install all the network adapters.
Reboot when this process has completed and, hopefully, all will be well.
There have been several Windows Updates which have been reported to
cause a loss of Internet connectivity, so if this happens to you, try the above
fix.
UPDATE:-
Following the Computer Club meeting I discovered that Microsoft have released an update to fix a recent connectivity issue caused by a previous update. Microsoft suggest performing a Restart (i.e. a 'warm boot') to enable connection to the Internet to be able to download this update. See https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4004227/windows-10-update-kb3206632
Rebooting The Router
We discussed rebooting the router above. When you power the router on, its light will give an indication of what is happening. The 'DSL' light will start to blink on and off as the router synchronises with equipment in the local telephone exchange. Once synchronised, the DSL light will become solid green. Then the 'Internet' light (it might be shown with a globe symbol) should switch from red to green. This means that the router has submitted your broadband username and password (these were set into the router by your ISP before they sent it to you) to your ISP and they have now connected you to the Internet. This process could take a couple of minutes or so.
UPDATE:-
Following the Computer Club meeting I discovered that Microsoft have released an update to fix a recent connectivity issue caused by a previous update. Microsoft suggest performing a Restart (i.e. a 'warm boot') to enable connection to the Internet to be able to download this update. See https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4004227/windows-10-update-kb3206632
Rebooting The Router
We discussed rebooting the router above. When you power the router on, its light will give an indication of what is happening. The 'DSL' light will start to blink on and off as the router synchronises with equipment in the local telephone exchange. Once synchronised, the DSL light will become solid green. Then the 'Internet' light (it might be shown with a globe symbol) should switch from red to green. This means that the router has submitted your broadband username and password (these were set into the router by your ISP before they sent it to you) to your ISP and they have now connected you to the Internet. This process could take a couple of minutes or so.
Microsoft Help
You can find help on a whole range of Microsoft products here:-
This includes help on Windows and Office products. If you click on the Windows logo, note that
the next screen allows you to select Windows 10, Windows 10 Mobile, Windows 8.1
or Windows 7 by clicking on the drop-down arrow by “Browse categories” near the
top of the page. It is worth spending a
few minutes looking around some of the huge wealth of information in these help
pages and bookmarking this link.
Epson Printers Power Cycling
On the 6th December, a large range of Epson wireless printer
models started to continuously switch themselves off and on again! This appears
to be caused by changes made by Google to their Cloud Print service. If you can
disable Cloud Print, the printer will work as a local wireless printer.
Otherwise, disabling wireless and connecting via USB also works. Of course, if
you need to use Google Cloud Print (e.g. if you want to print from a
Chromebook) this does not help! This appears to be due to a fault in the Epson
printer firmware which only showed up due to the change to Google Cloud Print.
I expect Epson to issue updates to their printer firmware to permanently fix
this issue. As of yesterday (13th Dec) I was able to reconnect my Epson WF-2530 wirelessly and it worked, so I am assuming Google have (temporarily) reversed the change to their Cloud Print service.
Compatible Ink Cartridges
We had some discussion about using non-genuine ink print cartridges. Using cartridges other than the printer manufacturer's own brand will void any warranty on the printer. However, compatible cartridges can be significantly cheaper than using orginals and usually work fine. I use compatibles in my Epson printer which I usually buy from www.7dayshop.com. If you are printing high-quality photos, I would recommend using the manufacturer's ink with the manufacturer's photo paper, otherwise you can use compatibles.
Printing on Thick Card
Arthur asked about printing on thicker photo paper or card. Each printer should state in its specifications the maximum thickness of paper/card that it can handle. Front-loading printers which have to turn the paper through 180° will take fairly thin paper. Rear-loading printers do not have to bend the paper/card so much and may be able to print on thicker card.
Windows Live Mail
We had some discussion about using non-genuine ink print cartridges. Using cartridges other than the printer manufacturer's own brand will void any warranty on the printer. However, compatible cartridges can be significantly cheaper than using orginals and usually work fine. I use compatibles in my Epson printer which I usually buy from www.7dayshop.com. If you are printing high-quality photos, I would recommend using the manufacturer's ink with the manufacturer's photo paper, otherwise you can use compatibles.
Printing on Thick Card
Arthur asked about printing on thicker photo paper or card. Each printer should state in its specifications the maximum thickness of paper/card that it can handle. Front-loading printers which have to turn the paper through 180° will take fairly thin paper. Rear-loading printers do not have to bend the paper/card so much and may be able to print on thicker card.
Windows Live Mail
Windows Live Mail (WLM) is a free download from Microsoft as part of
Windows Essentials 2012. This suite of programs has not had any updates in the
last couple of years and will be officially retired on 10th January
2017. Anyone using WLM (or any other program in the Windows Essentials 2012
suite) may wish to consider looking for an alternative. If you only have one email address, using webmail (e.g. gmail.com) in a web browser is a good option. On Windows 10, you
could use the in-built Mail app or download the free Thunderbird email client
from Mozilla.
Fake Bank Letter
Action Fraud have advised Lloyds Bank customers to look out for a scam
based on a fake bank letter. The letter asks the victim to call a specified
telephone number which will be answered by an automated system that asks for
their credit card number, account number, sort code and date of birth plus
characters from their security code. Currently this letter is on Lloyds bank
letterhead, but the fraudsters could make similar letters purporting to be from
other banks. Genuine communications from banks will address you by name and
contain other details such as part of your account number.
If you are suspicious, contact your bank on a known phone number.
To report a fraud or cyber crime, call Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or
go to
Using Two Apple iOS Devices
Linda raised this issue. If you have two iPads/iPhones, it is possible to use the same Apple ID on both. This will allow apps to be purchased once and used on both devices. However, they will need to have different iCloud accounts so that they can have separate emails, contacts, etc. If they have already been set up with the same iCloud account, go to Settings, iCloud and sign out on one device and then set up a new iCloud account for that device.
Extension in Edge
In response to a question from Margaret, I demonstrated how to add an extension to the Edge browser. The example I used was AdBlock Plus. Essentially, you just click on the 3-dot symbol in Edge and select Extensions. You will see any extensions already installed and you can click on Get extensions from the Store to add new extensions.
To remove an extension, click on the 3-dot symbol and select Extensions. Right-click on the required extension and select Uninstall.
Windows 10 Taskbar
In response to a question from Ray, we had some discussion about the Taskbar and its settings. Here is a web site which covers this topic in more detail:-
http://www.howtogeek.com/225568/how-to-configure-and-customize-the-taskbar-in-windows-10/
Linda raised this issue. If you have two iPads/iPhones, it is possible to use the same Apple ID on both. This will allow apps to be purchased once and used on both devices. However, they will need to have different iCloud accounts so that they can have separate emails, contacts, etc. If they have already been set up with the same iCloud account, go to Settings, iCloud and sign out on one device and then set up a new iCloud account for that device.
Extension in Edge
In response to a question from Margaret, I demonstrated how to add an extension to the Edge browser. The example I used was AdBlock Plus. Essentially, you just click on the 3-dot symbol in Edge and select Extensions. You will see any extensions already installed and you can click on Get extensions from the Store to add new extensions.
To remove an extension, click on the 3-dot symbol and select Extensions. Right-click on the required extension and select Uninstall.
Windows 10 Taskbar
In response to a question from Ray, we had some discussion about the Taskbar and its settings. Here is a web site which covers this topic in more detail:-
http://www.howtogeek.com/225568/how-to-configure-and-customize-the-taskbar-in-windows-10/
Next Session
Wed 11th January 2017 1:30 to 3:30pm.
