PCTips Box

A picture is worth a thousand words. It’s also much easier for someone trying to help you solve a computer problem if they have access to your computer. They can see the problem and figure it out much faster if they can access your computer rather than taking shots in the dark by asking you all kinds of questions.

This guide shows you how to ask for remote assistance which enables someone to view or control your computer remotely.

Warning: Only give people you trust access to your computer with Remote Assistance. (more…)

No matter how fast or shiny computers might be when they are new, they all seem to get slower over time. That state-of-the-art PC you bought last year might not feel like such a screamer after you install a dozen programs, load it with antispyware and antivirus tools, and download untold amounts of junk from the Internet. The slowdown might happen so gradually you hardly notice it, until one day you’re trying to open a program or file and wonder, “What happened to my poor PC?”

Whatever the cause, there are a lot of ways to help speed up Windows and make your PC work better even without upgrading your hardware. Here are some tips to help you optimize Windows Vista for faster performance. (more…)

Microsoft has made Origami Experience 2.0 available for download. A collection of programs designed to enhance the user experience of ultra-Mobile PCs, Origami Experience 2.0 is set up to integrate seamlessly with Microsoft’s latest Windows operating system. In the Redmond company’s vision, UMPCs upgraded to Windows Vista should also feature Origami Experience 2.0, as the project announced at the Consumer Electronics Show January 2008 was finalized. In fact, even as early as the start of May, the Origami team was hinting that the downloads of 2.0 were planned to go live with the final bits.

“The Origami Experience 2.0 is designed for Ultra-Mobile PCs that run Windows Vista. To run the Origami Experience 2.0, a UMPC with the following specifications is recommended: minimum 100 MB of available hard disk space; minimum 1 GB of system memory and touch panel display (required for Origami Picture Password),” revealed Microsoft’s Brandon LeBlanc.

A total of four applications have been packaged into Origami Experience 2.0. Users running Windows Vista Business; Enterprise; Home Premium; and Ultimate on UMPCs will be able to enjoy the added power, flexibility and functionality of Origami Experience 2.0: Origami Central, Origami Now, Origami Picture Password and Touch Settings. (more…)

This second and final part of our quick tour through the world of portable applications will focus mostly on programs that are not necessarily needed by the common user, but may come in handy in certain situations or to the more experienced Windows fans.

Compressing and decompressing files may be a very easy task, but things change when you have to use another computer that doesn’t have a compression utility installed, so here are some of our suggestions. You can try using the trial version of popular archivers WinRAR and PowerArchiver, or consider giving 7-zip, IZArc2Go and PeaZip a go, which are free for both personal and commercial use.

An organizer is not very helpful if you need to access your agenda from more than one computer. To overcome this inconvenience, feel free to install any of the following portable organizers and personal information managers: Sunbird, EverNote, EssentialPIM Pro, Avignon Concept or MSD Organizer. (more…)

PC Security must be your first priority. Your personal computer is a common target for intruders and other malicious users because they want to access personal data such as bank account information, credit card numbers or any important data they could find.

Intruders not only steal your financial information, they could also use your computer resources – such as hard disk, processor and internet connection to attack other users. This way, law enforcement will find it difficult to solve where the attacks are coming from.

To prevent possible identity theft or computer hijack, follow these eight steps in maintaining PC security: (more…)

Internet users in India is growing at a very fast rate with easy and cheap broadband services provided anywhere by mtnl or bsnl and other companies like airtel ,sify broadband etc.

With the increasing use of internet among the young children it becomes very crucial to block those web sites like which are not healthy for young children’s ( online games and chatrooms) etc.

Solution to the problem is to block the websites with the help of website blocking software like Any Weblock

Any Weblock - It is a free program to block access to any website on your computer. (more…)

Wireless hotspots are changing the way people work. These wireless local area networks (LANs) provide high speed Internet access in public locations as well as at home and require nothing more than a notebook PC with a wireless card. From coffeeshops to restaurants, airports to hotel lobbies, hotspots are ubiquitous. They are the de facto connection method for travelers and remote workers to access the Internet, their e-mail, and even their corporate networks.

Hotspots range from paid services, such as T-Mobile or Boingo, to free connections at your local coffee shop or library. But they all have one thing in common: These are all open networks that are vulnerable to security breaches. And that means it’s up to you to protect the data on your PC. Here are a few tips to make working in public locations more secure. (more…)

The prospect of moving old files and settings to a new PC can be daunting and lost productivity that may occur can be stressful too. Yet, as you will see in the steps that follow, Windows Vista Ultimate greatly simplifies the process of transferring files and settings to a new Windows Vista-enabled PC.

Choosing the Right Transfer Method

This scenario assumes you are transferring files and settings from an old PC running either Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home, Windows 2000 or Windows Vista to a new computer with Windows Vista installed. You can migrate files and settings using any of the following options:

• Network connection
• Removable media (such as a USB flash drive or external hard disk)
• CD or DVD
• USB Easy Transfer cable

Note that both computers must support the transfer method you choose. (more…)

I use firefox web browser every where, at my office pc, on my home desktop pc and as well on my laptop.

I always wanted to sync up my firefox on all these locations automatically, including my firefox bookmarks, browser settings ,add ons so I don’t have to configure my firefox at all these places etc.

So. I decided to google out the ways for syncing up my firefox browser with my google account.

Basically there are certain things which needs to be in sync like firefox settings , its bookmarks, browsing history etc.

Let’s cover them one by one

Following are the firefox extensions required in order to sync up your firefox with your google account. (more…)

The first thing that you will have to make a decision on while planning out your home network is will your network will be wired or wireless. The notion in each case will stay put the same where in all your computers will join up to a central router, which will talk the connections to your ISP from side to side a cable or a DSL modem.

It is a frequent fact the wireless home network provides much more expediency than wired networks. They do not necessitate cabling and permit users to move from one room to another with freedom. But wired networks are more secure and dependable and if you can use again the existing phone lines or the electrical wiring, then the cost of installing new cables are reduced radically. (more…)