I’m a technology mess. There was a time last month that there were six computers on my desk. There was Mrs. App’s work laptop, two work laptops for me and three computers that we’ve used at some point over the past six years personally. I didn’t realize I had an issue until I switched jobs. I had to move anything personal from the old work laptop to somewhere.
As I launched the three personal computers, each one had major challenges. One crashed, another was so hot that I seriously worried it would burn down the house, and the other moved so slow that I forgot what application I clicked by the time it actually opened. I see these three computers will not be reliable for me to move my personal stuff from my work pc.
I booted the crashed pc with Darik’s Boot and Nuke (www.dban.org), which removed everything from that pc rendering it useless. The program took nearly 48 hours to run. Next, I removed anything personal from the hot and slow computers. There was one common theme with these three personal computers. I was smart enough to use Dropbox to store my files, music and photos. Short of a few replaced files on each pc, I wasn’t too worried about losing anything.
My next challenge was to buy a new laptop. Upon a recommendation from an IT Guru, I purchased a Dell laptop for $299. In the past, I always purchased computers with lots of this and that within the specs. Now, I just need the laptop to have 500Gb of hard drive space and 4Gb of RAM since I have all of my files in the cloud.
The next challenge was do I purchase Microsoft Office? I decided to use their Office 365, which offers Excel, Word, PowerPoint and OneNote as online applications only. This is a free version of Office (http://goo .gl/UQm4vz). I was able to remove my personal data from my old work pc, which is the task that started this mess.
I learned a few things in the process. Computer maintenance along the way probably would have saved at least one of the three computers that were not working properly. Office 365 is a fine alternative for the investment, which is $0. It is rare that I don’t have access to the Internet, however I struggle with Microsoft not allowing any cloud storage provider other than their own, OneDrive (was called SkyDrive). If you’re new to storing your data in the cloud, Sky may be for you.
There are a number of computer recyclers, such as DenverPCRecycling.com, which will pick up and certify that the pc and data was destroyed for free. I should have purchased a touchscreen laptop. At least Toddler App wouldn’t have asked why my new pc is broken. Funny, a three-year-old just assumes everything is touchscreen. The most obvious lesson? Don’t load anything personal on a work computer!
FUN SITES: Check out the new Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle site at glendalecher rycreek.com. Looking for an affordable service for your home or business, check out fiverr.com. This site offers services for as little as $5. I have no clue how anyone earns a living doing this, but I have a few friends that have given this site good reviews after using this site for projects… Looking for national sports coverage with a local flavor, check out @TheCauldron or the https://medium.com/the-cauldron. Andy Glockner, Denver resident and former Sports Illustrated writer, is the lead columnist.
COOL APPS: This is a much needed app for a three-year-old that has to check out every bathroom, SitOrSquat… Delicion, an app for gluten-free recipes… Keep an eye out for Quixey, a search engine that searches your apps for relevant information… Acompli, another calendar and email combo to make checking email enjoyable
NEAT PRODUCT: Looking for a baby monitor or home camera, check out Dropcam. It is a wifi camera, which syncs with your mobile device.
Do you have a favorite app you’d like to share? Contact Brian at brian@brianzabro ski.com, on Twitter @BrianZab or LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/brianzab.
Brian has spent nearly 20 years in the telecommunications and software industry. Brian’s clients use his software to run and manage all of their business applications. This software, NetSuite, is web-based, so you can access your business from anywhere; Flexible, allows you to customize the software for your business; and, is built on a single platform, which provides you a single pane of glass view whether your business has multiple locations, departments and divisions. Trending companies, such as Box, GoPro Camera and Dropbox use this software to run their businesses. Reach out to Brian to look learn your business can benefit from this software.