WAIT – WAIT – Where did my DISK SPACE GO! Windows SP1 Available

Most people get the notice about updates on their systems and say OK and don’t think about it again.  They most likely wont notice the missing 500MB of storage that’s gone.  For many power users this is no big problem, but for those people who have Notebooks with smaller drives this could make a difference.

But WAIT – you don’t want to delete these files for a few weeks of use to make sure you don’t have issue with the update.  Once you feel that you have used your system without any issue, then you might want to take a look at the following article from HOW-to Geek to remove and restore that storage.  At the same time you can remove some other stuff as well!

After you install the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 that we mentioned yesterday, you might be wondering how to reclaim some of the lost drive space—which we’ll show you how today—but should you actually do it?

Note: If you haven’t installed the new SP1 release yet, be sure to read our post explaining what it entails before you do. Spoiler: it’s mostly bug fixes.

Should You Delete Windows 7 Service Pack Backup Files to Save Space?

Wait, What Now?

It’s simple: installing the service pack will take up a bunch of extra space, because Windows is going to create a ton of backups of the pre-service pack files in case you want to roll everything back and uninstall the service pack. This could be anywhere from a few hundred MBs all the way up to a GB or so.

You can easily clean out these backups with Disk Cleanup (see more below), but don’t rush to do that. Keep reading.

Education & Evernote

I have talked about Evernote in the past and a few others web options that I have tried….  These are all more than just Notebooks, it’s a filing systems and can become your 2nd memory.  Take a picture of anything with your phone, send it to Evernote – TAG it and you have a new record.  I am back using Evernote full-time it has become a very important productivity tool for my day-to-day work.  The reason it has moved up in importance is that I was able to install the Windows application on my system and it brought many additional tools that allowed me to be more productive.

Calling – To-Do’s – Scripts – Specials – policy’s – Order tracking – etc…

I believe anyone using a computer can use this great tool – this is really a great tool for Teachers – the following Blog post on Evernote blog details just a few ways one of your peers is using Evernote to make his job easier.

10 Tips for Teachers Using Evernote – Education Series

Windows 7 SP-1 RELEASED to OEM Partners – It’s coming!

For those already using Windows 7 this is no big deal as there is very little new and if you have been updating all along there will really be nothing of importance.  For those moving to Windows 7 this is good news as it will make the install go much faster.

It will be available to home users starting February 22, through the Microsoft Download Center and Windows Update.  If you have been keeping up to date, this update should be very quick.

Windows 7 updates deliver more bang for your buck

Product updates to get the most of out your Windows experience

Today, we’ve officially released Windows 7 SP1 to our OEM partners. We’ve said all along there’s no reason to wait for SP1, but with its official arrival, now there really is no better time to migrate. Windows 7 SP1 includes minor updates, including some made previously available through Windows Update. SP1 also includes client-side support for RemoteFX and Dynamic Memory, two new virtualization features enabled in Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1. You can read more about the desktop virtualization updates on the Windows Server Team blog and get the quick run-down on the SP1 timeline here.

If you’ve already begun your Windows 7 deployment, you should continue with your roll-out while doing an evaluation of SP1 in a test environment then update your images when you’re ready. You also can easily deploy SP1 to existing Windows 7 PCs through management tools such as System Center Configuration Manager and Windows Server Update Services.

The Windows Blog by Gavriella Schuster

Software – PDF FILES – Resource HOG – Adobe Reader! vs Sumatra PDF

 

I would say every single PC that I have used and soon always has Adobe reader installed – it’s just normal practice for everyone to install this application – It’s known – they feel safe installing it etc..  Well as of late Adobe has become the target of hackers and since there install base is so huge.  The Reader has not been the target, but never say never.

Another reason to look at an alternative package to Adobe Reader is that this package is very heavy, many schools have older machines running which can really cause some performance issues.  Even on newer machines, this package is still very heavy.

Why not look to something else that is much lighter and does what Adobe Reader does.

SUMATRA PDF Reader

What is Sumatra PDF?

Sumatra PDF is a slim, free, open-source PDF reader for Windows. Portable out of the box.

Why another PDF reader?

Sumatra has a minimalistic design. Simplicity has a higher priority than a lot of features.

It’s small and starts up very fast.

It’s designed for portable use: only one file so you can run it from external USB drive. Doesn’t write to registry.

Download

Download from here.



Work – Pleasure Mix – Tired Eyes, Head & Neck – working on your PC

Anyone today working in an office can spend the entire day on the computer working – Sitting and staring at your screen or screens.  Many in today’s world work through lunch, coming in earlier and working late.  All this time in front of your computer can be very bad for your health, your eyes and your body.

I am sure you have heard and most likely have tried the 20 or 30 minute break, look around, stand up and move around, but how many of us really do that – not many.

Well I came across a great little program that you can get from Portable APPs – these are those applications that you can launch from a USB key so you can run these programs on your work machine, home machine – set them up and have the program follow you.  I have gone one step further and have loaded up the loader and programs on my DROPBOX account so I can get to them anywhere, anytime.  I don’t have to worry about a USB key.

You set up the times for a quick break, a coffee break and it pops up with warnings and exercises to do when your taking your short break.  I think it is GREAT!  I loaded up today and have really tried hard to follow it, I have made a few changes to the timing to make it work with my work flow and I will continue to use it at work.

Workrave is a program that assists in the recovery and prevention of Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI). The program frequently alerts you to take micro-pauses, rest breaks and restricts you to your daily limit. Please refer to the feature comparison for a complete list of features, and how the program performs with respect to other programs on the market. The program runs on GNU/Linux and Microsoft Windows.

Welcome to Workrave

Securtiy – Password STRENGTH – Can yours be CRACKED?

There are a number of places you can enter in your password and it will give you the level of strength of that password.  Meaning just how quickly can someone crack your password.  The stronger they are, the harder they are to remember, but you really do not have a choice.  There are just too many people out there that want to take advantage of you and anyone else who doesn’t follow certain rules.

I have posted before about idea’s and methods to make your password stronger – I have suggested two applications that manage and create strong passwords for you.  If your interested in reviewing these posts – do a search on Security or passwords.

Like me I have lots of passwords and have not changed them since using LastPass, it would be nice to see just how strong the passwords I am using are!

Microsoft has a WEB page that tells you how strong your password is and methods to increase its security.

Check your password — is it strong?

Security – Passwords – Improve your security & still remember them!

 

I have talked about passwords in the past – suggested some password managers as well. 

Security – Passwords TOO MANY or TOO Little!

Security – Passwords – Can yours be CRACKED

The last few days there has been a few articles around making your important passwords stronger and still remembering them.  These two items don’t normally go together, but I think they do if you use one of the two suggestions below.

You don’t have to use either method for all your passwords, but you might want to consider them for your Windows Login – Password Manager program and your Banking passwords.  These are key to keeping your information and money safe!  The methods add a another level of complexity making it harder to break and easy to remember.

USB Keys – Drive imaging for USB made easy!

More and more tech people are using USB keys to load up images on systems, it’s convenient and easy to carry with you.  Have you ever had to make multiple USB keys with images?

Well a simple to use FREE software tool available to create multiple USBimages for Windows.  Plug in your devices to your USB ports – as many as you want or can – select the image – press GO and walk away.  When you come back your done!

IMAGEUSB

Overview

ImageUSB is a free utility which lets you write an image concurrently to multiple USB Flash Drives. Capable of creating exact bit-level copies of USB Flash Drive (UFDs), ImageUSB is an extremely effective tool for the mass duplication of UFDs. ImageUSB can also be used to install OSFClone to a USB Drive for use with PassMark OSForensics™.

Unlike other USB duplication tools, ImageUSB can preserve all unused and slack space during the cloning process, including the Master Boot Record (MBR). ImageUSB can perform flawless mass duplications of all UFD images, including bootable UFDs.



WINDOWS 7 – Quick Access – KEYBOARD Short Cuts

As in the past this new version of Windows and it’s programs have many Keyboard Shortcuts.  Computer users often enjoy the fact that when they are using the keyboard that they do not have to move their hands, but just hit a combination of keys to get the same job done as moving one’s hands to the mouse and moving it around and clicking.

 Believe it or not this can be more productive, the problem is knowing what these keyboard shortcuts are and remembering them in order to use them and be more productive.  The best course would be to review the list of shortcuts and pick the one’s you believe will be the most used and remembering those, there are just too many to do anything else!

 MICROSOFT Windows 7 Keyboard Shortcuts

 FULL LIST 

NOTEBOOKS – in the CLOUD – It’s more then just NOTES

I have a few times talked about Notebooks in the cloud and I have really only used the WEB application to quickly put something down so I could view and review later at home or the office.  I recently installed the desktop application for Evernote and started doing a little more research and found out just how powerful this tool really is.  If nothing else you need remember that these documents you create are FULLY SEARCHABLE – even notes that you scan or take a picture of!  Yes you can scan a document, put it in Evernote and your able to search that document.  Two other great features if you have the application or plugins working you can mark anything and add it as a note, you can also send an email to your account and it becomes a note.  Sorting is based on Notebook name and/or tags, plus search.

Evernote posted a great little article for STUDENTS – this is more for University students, but HS kids with Notebook in the classroom should be able to benefit as well.

For sure this can apply to anyone sitting at home or in an office.  With most business computers being locked down so you can’t install software, but that is OK because whatever you do at home on your desktop is SYNC‘d with the WEB and you can access the WEB version of your notes anywhere.

10 Evernote Tips For School – Education Series

10 Great Ways Students Can Use Evernote to Study Smarter, Not Harder.