www.computerconceptsia.com
503 N. Main Street
Carroll, Iowa 51401
FEB
‘14
Newsletter
712-792-3565
Your Trusted
Technology
Partner
CCI Spotlight
We have continually grown to
meet the needs of our clients
in this ever changing business
of computers.
Computer
Concepts of Iowa has 10 full
time employees. Combined we
have 76+ years of professional
computer experience. Contact
us with any of your IT needs.
Adam Schweers, Aaron Leiding,
Andy Nygaard, Billy Pryor, Brett
Beaubien, Craig Ehlert, Darwin
Ritchie, Jill Schweers, Todd
Buse, Travis Brincks
Windows XP is Expiring
Is your computer currently running Windows XP for the operating System? If so, you need to be
aware that as of April 8, 2014 there will no longer be support or updates or programing written to
work with your computer.
What does this mean to you?
It means that since it will be unsupported you may be at a security risk and will have problems
getting any new programs, including some websites to work with your computer.
The solution: A new computer with a newer operating system, either Windows 7 or Windows 8.
Unfortunately the hardware in your computer that is running Windows XP is not adequate for
running Windows 7 or Windows 8 and it is not cost effective to upgrade your current unit.
How do you know if you are running Windows XP?
The most accurate way to know is: go to Start, Right click on My Computer, choose Properties and
there it will say what version of Windows you are using.
Even easier is when you first boot your computer, does it say Windows XP?
Office 2003 is also Expiring! April 8, 2014
This is Microsoft Office 2003-which is your Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook programs. So if
you are using Office 2003 it is time to upgrade. Office 2013 is the current version available. There
are many packages, including Office 365 available.
Let Us Help You Get The Most Out Of Your Technology
Do you have products that you’re not fully utilizing?
Maybe it is a Printer that can be wireless but your wireless
devices aren’t all set up to print to it.
It could be a laptop that you’d like to do more with but you
need additional software to get it done.
Now that you have multiple wireless devices, are you
needing a better wireless router.
Computer Concepts can help you maximize what you have
and give suggestions of the best upgrades needed.
www.computerconceptsia.com
503 N. Main Street
Carroll, Iowa 51401
FEB
‘14
Newsletter
712-792-3565
Speed & Performance:
What to look for
Your Trusted
Technology
Partner
CPU, Ram, Solid State…These are all parts that
affect a computers performance.
The cpu is the Central Processing Unit. This
indicates how many process it can do at what
speed. As an example: An entry level processor
is an Intel i3 2.4 ghz-this does 3 processes at
2.4 ghz. The higher the numbers the faster the
processor.
Ram or memory is measured in gigabytes.
In most cases the minimum required by
Windows 7 or 8 is 4gbs. An upgrade to 8gb or
16gb will speed the computer up.
Solid State refers to a newer type of Hard drive.
The hard drive is the storage for your data,
documents, pictures and everything that is
on your computer. Standard hard drives have
moving platters with a read/write head on an
arm that accesses the data while the platters
are spinning in a hard drive enclosure. In Solid
state drives, data is stored on interconnected
flash memory chips. The main benefit to a
Solid state drive is the speed. They boot in
seconds rather than minutes. A Solid state
drive is also more durable since there are not
the moving parts A downfall to Solid state
drives is they have less storage space, usually
250gb to 500gb, than the standard 500gb or 1
terabite(1000gb) sata hard drive.
Desktop vs. Laptop, Laptop vs. Tablet: What is best for you?
Why still think about a desktop when it seems everything is going mobile? The main benefit of a
desktop or tower pc, is that they are easily upgradable. Adding a graphics card or a stick of ram
is a simple and inexpensive upgrade. For many, you already have a desk and spot in your home
for it and have all the extras like the monitor, keyboard, mouse and speakers so for a replacement
you would just need the tower itself. We easily custom build desktops to suit your needs and they
include a 3 year warranty. So if you have no desire to be mobile, a desktop is still the way to go.
On the other hand, why a laptop? A laptop can have as strong of processing power and as much
memory as a desktop. They run the same Windows 7 or 8 operating system as a desktop so all
the same software will work, and you have the benefit of portability. You can use the laptop
while sitting on the couch or at the kitchen table or take it with you wherever you go. There are
different sizes of screens on laptops from 10 inch up to 17 inch. Currently 15.6 in is the most
common. Internet can be used wired or wireless on a laptop. So with a laptop you get both
portability and functionality.
Now, how about all these new Tablets? There is a huge number of tablets currently available from
different manufacturers. They come in a range of screen sizes, but most are 8 to 10 inch screens.
They use different operating systems so they will have different functionalities. Windows Surface
Pro, which has Windows 8 as the operating system, is the only tablet that runs a full Windows
operating system so will be most comparable to a laptop with the most functionality. Tablets are
touchscreen, but most can use an add on keyboard as well. Tablets are very portable and great
for internet use.