Simple advice on Technology in Education and at home
Tech at Home
My Internet Speed–before and after BT Infinity Install
0484 days
by richardklane
in Tech at Home
BT Infinity has now reached deepest darkest Wiltshire…
What a difference a day makes
Before…… Booooo (Slower than 87% of Great Britain)
After…… Hoooorah (Faster than 89% of GB)
Highly recommended if, like me you live in Sticksville with no option of cable speeds
Office 2010 – the screensaver
1643 days
In addition to the free Office 2010 training game – Ribbon Hero 2 discussed here…
Another great way to help users get up to speed with Office 2010 features is the new getting started screensaver..
Well designed animations guide the user through the steps needed to complete various scenarios – across the suite of Office applications
The free screensaver can be downloaded here
http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=26508
Check out examples taken from the screensaver:
Free training game for Office 2010/2007 from Microsoft–Introducing Ribbon Hero 2
0695 days
Microsoft has recently released Ribbon Hero 2 - a great game based training solution for Office 2010/2007 – and yes, it is completely free.
Clippy is back!
The game see’s the humorous return of Clippy, the Office Assistant from Office 97– a character many people found quite annoying – and after a few years trying to help office users – Clippy was dropped in 2001.
The game starts with Clippy looking for a new job – and asking you to help him format his resume. He then accidently boards a time machine – which travels through six different ages of time, starting with the Middle Ages. Each age requires a number of challenges to be completed before unlocking the next, more challenging level.
The game can be launched from Start menu, or from the Office Ribbon. The Office Ribbon also shows you current skill level and score – a nice touch.
Upon launch – you are presented with the selection page for your current skill level.
The game includes challenges for Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote. Some challenges relate to both Office 2007 and Office 2010, others use functionality new to Office 2010.
Each challenge will earn you points – you can earn bonus points if you don’t use hints.
Summary
This is how training should be – both fun and informative
Great for home, office, school – wherever
I highly recommend Ribbon Hero 2
Download from www.ribbonhero.com
It works with Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7
Note
There are 2 download options – for single users – download from the homepage
To install for multiple users of a PC– use the download from the FAQ page
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Stop buying anti-virus software for home
0726 days
by richardklane
in Tech at Home
Many people buy security software without realising there are great and importantly free alternatives.
I personally use Microsoft Security Essentials it is free for home use and for small businesses (up to 10 PCs)
It is completely free, easy to use, it updates itself and doesn’t bombard you with security messages
It gets great reviews – and consistently performs well in the industry tests – performed by IT Labs et al
Save yourself some money 
Uninstall your old software first
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Need help with a Microsoft product?
0772 days
Ever wish you could easily get answers to your questions on Microsoft Products?
Every day more than half a million people visit Microsoft Answers to get their burning Microsoft product questions answered. The company’s recently refreshed question-and-answer forum brings together consumers, experts, and technical enthusiasts into a single online community. 
Need help with Windows, Office, Internet Explorer, Security Essentials etc
Then give Microsoft Answers a go
My Speed Improvements with Windows Phone 7 Update 1
0783 days
I saw some dramatic speed improvements when loading games on Windows Phone 7 after installing Update 1.
The following table shows the number of seconds various games took to load, both before and after the update was applied.
| Game | Before Update | After Update |
| Fruit Ninja | 22.68 | 16.00 |
| I Dig It | 24.73 | 11.68 |
| PES 2011 | 14.22 | 10.44 |
| Rise of Glory | 34.41 | 16.30 |
| Tiki Towers | 21.48 | 7.64 |
| iBlast Moki | 13.49 | 10.46 |
| Deer Hunter 3D | 36.63 | 18.46 |
My Phone: HTC Mozart
Lost your Windows Phone 7?
0814 days
Windows Phone 7 comes with great some features which could help you recover your lost device.
Get to a browser and you can:
- Map it’s location (if the device – has the find my phone feature enabled)
- Ring it (even if it is on silent)
- Lock it (and write a message on the screen)
- Erase it
Visit http://windowsphone.live.com/ to get to your Windows Phone dashboard
Click Find my Phone
To view the phones location on a map – choose Map it
Once located, the Bing Map is displayed – and you can zoom in, change view type etc
If it doesn’t find your phone, it will keep trying and email you when it is found.
Locking your device – allows you to display a message on the screen
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