Tech Help for the Holidays

The holidays have arrived, and with them comes family gatherings. With family gatherings comes the distinct possibility that you may be asked to help family members with their computer problems. Here are two sites to help prepare you for the role of being the family computer troubleshooter.

If your family has basic tech questions, Google's new Teach Parents Tech site is sure to help. Teach Parents Tech features a short videos about a variety of basic computing concepts, including how to send email attachments, how to crop photos,  how to find information in Google, and more. It also features a form that you can fill out so you can send links to specific videos.

If you need to help with more complicated issues, such as virus removal and computer slowness, pcmag.com has an article dedicated to PC troubleshooting tools that you should have on a USB drive. Some of these tools include antimalware software, a Linux distro, and alternate browsers.

Good luck answering your family's tech questions this holiday season!

Soluto: Anti-Frustration Software for the Average User

A common question that we are asked at the Technology Center is "My computer is running slowly; how can I speed it up?" While this is an open-ended question that could be answered in a variety of ways, there are usually some common culprits that lead to a "slow" computer. 

One of the biggest problems is the large numbers of startup programs that are set to run as soon as you log into Windows. Having multiple programs running after booting not only slows down the boot-up times of your computer, but also can affect the overall speed of your computer once it is up and running.

This is where Soluto comes into play. Soluto claims to be "anti-frustration" software that will help speed up your boot times, and your computer overall, by eliminating or delaying programs from starting up immediately after you log into Windows. It sounds a little complicated, but honestly, this software is a joy to use. 

After you download and install the software you will immediately notice that it has a clean and clear interface. It is easy for the average user to understand what is slowing down their computer and how to disable or delay start-up times for those programs. Soluto then references a database of users that have contributed feedback on the programs that you have running at start up, and whether or not they have disabled, delayed, or allowed the program to run at boot. You are then able to set your own preferences for each program to your liking. Soluto will also give you an estimated time of how long it should take your computer to fully log into Windows, and how much faster it will be after your changes are made. 

If you still have questions, take a look at the video below from Soluto, explaining their product: 



If you are interested in speeding up your PC, give Soluto a try today.