My Tech Tips


  • Home
  • Tips
  • Newsletter
  • Get in Touch
  • Privacy

To ID or Not ID - That is the Question

25/5/2021

 
One of the perennial debates in this country is about the pros and cons of Identity Cards (ID cards). It is a complex issue and there are very strongly held views especially in the ‘anti’ camp who cite invasion of privacy, growth of the “big brother” state, infringement of personal liberties and allied wacky conspiracy theories about our being taken over by robots etc. One group claims that Covid injections have inserted an identity chip in us all designed by Bill Gates to achieve world domination.

We probably all have our individual views and I thought I would set out my own whilst also addressing some of the arguments for and against. The bottom line first: I strongly believe that the benefits outweigh the disadvantages (or risks if you prefer that expression).

We cannot escape the fact that we are living in an increasingly digital world. Computers and IT have enabled so many advances in everyday life that I am sure we would find it extremely hard to revert to the world of just a few decades ago. So much interaction with Government, Banks, Utility companies, Shops and Stores, Health services, Travel, Insurance and so on, now relies on digital information exchange.  If we are to avoid having to enter all our personal details each and every time we wish to use one of these services, it makes eminent sense to accept that we must permit organisations to retain information about us for easy access the next time we engage with them. Therein lies the first problem; how much can we trust them with our information once we have freely offered it and how far should we accept that data might be shared with other Governmental organisations or commercial enterprises?

This question of trust is a far more tangible or concrete issue than the rather more emotional arguments of libertarians and conspiracy theorists. How far can we rely upon organisations - be they private or public sector - to handle our private information with discretion and security? How do we know which other organisations they might be sharing our information with? Who actually owns the data about us? What legal recourse do we have if we wish to delete information or otherwise prevent its use?

I think we can place the holders of our data into two categories. Firstly those of a Governmental or other official organisation, and secondly commercial outlets who must clearly have a business model for covering their costs and who need to find ways to monetise this highly valuable commodity - our data. This latter category is where we need to exercise the most caution; the potential for misuse of our data by them is much greater than where official bodies are concerned. It is well known that all the big internet companies and websites - especially those providing social media platforms - have a chequered history of misuse of data. Basically, you never really know who they might have shared information about you with or the extent to which their databases might have been hacked or misappropriated by criminals and malcontents. 

Official (non-commercial) Bodies
I am basing the rest of this article on the pros and cons on official bodies holding, gathering or sharing information about us, whether that data is offered up by us freely in the course of routine interactions between citizens and the authorities, or whether such information is harvested or obtained without our knowledge.

What are those who bitterly oppose the creation or maintenance of a personal identity actually afraid of? Leaving aside those of a criminal disposition who would prefer their activities to remain under wraps but who probably deserve to be unmasked anyway, the most common complaint is the invasion of privacy. Yet how many of those shouting about this regularly and willingly publicise all manner of information about themselves on social media? 

The Benefits
From birth (in the UK at least), we are allocated a unique identity in the form of a date of birth, a name and a National Insurance number. Those details are increasingly used to validate applications for such things as driving licences, national savings investments, travel cards, disabled badges and so on. We need them to prove who we are when we apply for insurance, bank accounts and other legal documents. If you cannot prove who you are, life would be very difficult.  

As national and governmental databases become more full and accurate, we are now often seeing the pooling of our data between different departments. Apply to tax a vehicle and DVLA (the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency) will now have links with insurance companies so that the currency of one’s cover can be quickly validated without us having to submit further details. The photograph on our driving licence can now be shared with the Passport Office. Entitlement to benefits and allowances need to be substantiated by proof of identity. People are regularly finding that, unless they can prove who they are or what their relationship is to a deceased close relative, they can run up against all manner of difficulties when trying to settle an estate. So the question stares out at us, why do we not have a single national identity that can be assigned where needed to a card or phone app in the same way as we now regularly employ for loyalty cards etc?  

The Disadvantages
So what are the disadvantages (the cons) of this ever-growing centralisation of detailed information about the population? Well, there are three main types of objection raised. First the historical experiences of failed government projects, second the lack of confidence in public sector organisations to handle our data securely, discreetly and accurately, and third the concerns that some hold that the requirement to have an identity card or similar proof of identity is the slippery slope to a “big brother” way of life or a police state where failure to show one’s papers is a criminal offence. The tipping point towards the last of these objections - the slippery slope - is whether or not the holding of a form of identity is voluntary or compulsory. It could be argued that if it is voluntary then the full benefits of a computerised existence might not be attainable. On the other hand, making the holding of an ID card or other proof of identity can raise all manner of objections in a free and liberal society. Just consider the current heated debate about whether some form of proof of vaccination should be a prerequisite to being served in a pub. Many who are unable for one reason or another to have been able to have a vaccination - either for age, religious, medical, ethical or personal factors - risk being restricted from partaking of a beer at the pub. Should we force people to be vaccinated or should we say that their refusal to be vaccinated is a price they must pay for their opinions? It is a finely balanced argument but you can appreciate the antagonism to this implicit “state control”. 

Although this Covid “ID” requirement is slightly easier to uphold, not least because of the impact on the whole of society, libertarians and advocates of personal freedom have not been slow to relate this to the broader debate about compulsory ID cards.

Don’t forget another major implication, the manner in which that identity is captured and held. In these technologically advanced days it is not just a simple number or code that might identify us but what about facial images, fingerprints and DNA profiles? Here the objectors do have some grounds for concern since these forms of identity are now capable of being captured and stored without our knowledge! 

There is another aspect to this which emerged with the Covid rules. There was intense debate about which phone app should be used for recording contact or “signing in” to venues. One was developed by Apple/Google and the other by the NHS Data Services.  With the Apple one data was held on the device itself and there was no feedback to any central data repository. The NHS app believed that this approach hindered their ability to track and trace people to their specific region. Opponents viewed this as another example of an intrusion into their privacy and felt it gave no reassurance that an NHS-developed app would not be shared with other Government departments.  Is this a case where the overall health of the population outweighs any liberty concerns?

Finally
I am of the opinion that the case for having a unique identity - supported by an ID card or other computer-held proof, is fast becoming overwhelming. But I also feel that it should remain voluntary and it is up to individuals to decide for themselves whether they are prepared to forego the advantages and, in some cases, make themselves ineligible or disenfranchised for certain services and facilities.  

After I had written this article I happened to see a Times piece covering exactly the issues I have examined.  Though I might derive a little pride from having mirrored the Times article, it at least helped me to review my piece and satisfy myself that I had covered the main issues.  You can see the Times article by James Ball by following this link. 

Now Where Did I Put That File?

27/4/2021

 
Picture
One of the most common problems I come across when helping people with their computers is the supposed loss of data files (documents, photos and so on). Unless they have inadvertently deleted something (and even then it is possible to recover the file) the underlying cause of the difficulty is that people don’t fully understand the way data is stored on a computer nor do they follow simple guidelines for managing their data.

Although manufacturers of operating systems (the programs that run your computer - such as Windows and Apple IOS) provide a default filing process with dedicated folders to hold different types of file, saving documents without understanding the folder system will invariably lead to cries of “I’ve lost it”.

In this article I hope first to throw some light on how files are stored and managed on computers and then to offer some golden rules for good file management.  With regard to how files are stored the explanations cover the Microsoft Windows Operating System used on desktops and laptops. It does not cover devices such as tablets and smartphones. Neither does it apply to the Apple Operating System on iMacs and Macbooks. Despite this, the golden rules I offer cover any kind of file management and storage.

Let’s begin. You will be familiar with the way that Windows manages its files because one of the inbuilt programs is its file manager which it calls File Explorer (previously Windows Explorer). This is ever-present on your computer and accessed by finding the icon that looks like this on the task bar at the bottom of the screen or on your desktop.

Picture
As of 2021 Microsoft is changing many of its icons to make them common across desktops, laptops and other devices. You may therefore increasingly see the following new icon:
Picture
Clicking on either of these will bring up the File Manager on your screen which will look something like this.

Picture
I mentioned earlier that Microsoft provides a default file structure which will handle all your data unless you provide your own. We’ll look at how to do this shortly.  However, you can see that there are usually some standard groupings. These are:
Quick Access
One Drive
This PC
Network

Within Quick Access Microsoft provides the default folders called Desktop, Downloads, Documents and Pictures, and (sometimes) Music and Videos. (Note that you can add any file or folder to the Quick Access list. I will cover this a little later.)

Notice also the little symbols to the left of each. These symbols are either > or v.  Clicking on > will expand the entry and create a drop down menu of its contents. If you click on the v symbol it will wrap them up again under the one heading.
In this first picture, look at the line on the left called 'Quick Access'. You can see that the > symbol is against it.
​
​
Picture


Now in the following picture, clicking on the > symbol opens the drop down menu and the symbol changes to v

​ 
Picture
Now turn your attention to the entry that says > This PC. If you click the > symbol here it will open up to show you the full contents of your computer (namely This PC). It will look something like this:
​
Picture
This now shows the default folders for Documents, Pictures etc. Further down it will say Local Disk (C):. The letter C is the standard name that Windows allocates for the part of the disk that holds all the default programs. For many people the only part of the disk they will see is C:. Actually, when the disk is initially “formatted” (when you first start up a new computer) it allocates what are called “partitions” (or segments) to the disk for storing data.  Depending on how you have set up your computer it might alternatively give a name instead of “Local Disk” such as "Fred" for Fred’s Computer.

This Local Disk partition is also where Windows keeps all the programs it needs to manage your computer. This will include a folder called Windows: as well as all the other programs that you use for creating and editing your data, such as word processing programs, spreadsheets, photo editors etc.

Note also an entry called 'Users'. The picture shows this opened up and has the words 'Brink', 'Default' etc. In this case the owner of the computer has the surname 'Brink' and clicking on this name will lead you to Brink's files. (NB. This will include all the default files and folders that appear under 'Quick Access'.

 
Further down the picture above you can see a second partition called D: and in this example it has been given the name “Backup”. The purpose of having separate partitions on your disk is to assist in managing the files contained.  I always advocate creating a separate D: partition called Data (not Backup as here shown) and it will be here that I store all my folders and files.  The advantages of this separate partition are twofold. First it makes it immediately easier to “navigate” straight to your personal data instead of having to click down through the This PC > partition. Second it greatly eases the process of backing up your data when you want to make a security copy on an external disk drive.  Also, you can create a backup of just this personal data without having to copy across a whole lot of Windows Programs.

Once you have got the basic structure of your disk sorted you can move whole folders and individual files around, rename them and duplicate them. You can also add folders to the Quick Access section to enable you to navigate speedily to that part of your data. To do this you find the folder that you want to add and do a Right Click on the mouse and select “Add to Quick Access” from the drop down menu.

FILE NAMING
Having covered (albeit very briefly) the way that data is held on your computer disk, the next vital part of the skill to learn is how you name files and folders. Some of the difficulty that people have arises because, unless you tell it otherwise, Windows has an automatic naming and file location process.
  

Files are named by Windows according to the particular application (program) that has created the file.  For example, when you create a new document in Microsoft Word it will usually allocate the name “Untitled”. If you just click ‘Save’ it will keep that name and save the document in whichever location you have selected for your documents or, by default, in the Documents folder. You should always try to follow the menu option that says ‘Save As’. Then you can create your own name for the document and specify where, on your computer, you want the item to be stored.

Note also that every file on Windows also has a ‘file type’ suffix added to it - again depending on the program that created it. Word documents, for example, will add “.doc” (or similar). This is done so that the computer can quickly locate all files of a particular kind. This helps you the user because if you use the search facility in the Windows Explorer file manager you can search on the term “?.doc” and it will return all Word documents regardless of their file name (the bit before the ‘.doc’). This is helpful if you have forgotten the name you gave to a particular document. Of course, if you know the name you can search for it immediately. 
​

One of the most annoying aspects of file naming occurs with photographs and pictures. Unless you provide a specific name for a photograph it will be given a default filename something like “IMG0089.jpg” or “DSC 009.jpg” or simply a date and time followed by .jpg.  In these examples, IMG stands for ‘Image’, and DSC means ‘Digital Still Camera’. .jpg is the file type that means the picture is in a format set down by something called the “Joint Photographic Experts Group”.  There are many other variants of file name depending on the device on which the picture was taken. Similarly there are many variants of the file type for photographs other than .jpg according to the format that the photo is stored in. By way of interest here is a list of the more common types of photograph format. You can read up more about these by doing a Google search on each term and why they vary.​

Picture


GOLDEN RULES FOR MANAGING YOU FILES
Picture
The picture above, which heads an article written by Susan Ward for the website of a company called The Balance Small Business neatly encapsulates the main golden rules about file management. You can see this article at (https://www.thebalancesmb.com/). 

The rest of this article summarises these rules.
 
 
Use the Default Installation Folders for Program Files
Earlier on I mentioned the benefits of separating program files from data files. This makes it easier to keep track of your data and simplifies the process of backing up your data without copying across all the program files that don’t change.

One Place for All Documents
Following on from the principle of separating data from programs, it is important to retain one place where all your data is stored. Use subfolders (nested folders) for different types of data but ensure that the top level data folder is the only place where data is stored.

Create Folders in a Logical Hierarchy
Avoid having a single top level folder that has no subdivisions. This will simply grow out of all proportion and you will quickly discover that trying to find a specific file is like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. Make full use of nested files for different subjects or themes. For example, you might have a data file for photos of holidays. Create further subfolders for each trip, destination or year.

Follow the File Naming Conventions
Try to be consistent in the way you name files and folders so that they conform to the way that Windows stores them and also have meaning to you.

Be Specific
Try to allot meaningful titles to each file. If you have a folder for photos taken on a trip to (say) Cornwall in August 2020, don’t follow the default naming or you will have a list of files called Image001- Image xxx. These names mean very little and may require you to open each file in turn to find the one you want.

File As You Go
Get into the habit of saving files regularly when you are writing or editing a document. Not only is this good practice but it avoids the problem where your computer suddenly fails or there is a power cut and you find you have lost a lot of your current work.

Cull Files Periodically
Get into the habit of going through your files regularly and carrying out basic 'housekeeping' on them. Check that there are no duplicates, delete any that you are certain that you will never need again, and re-arrange any files that you think may be under the wrong folder or heading. It is also useful occasionally to archive files that are old and can be safely stored away because they are no longer in current use.

Backup Files Regularly

Lastly make sure that you regularly backup your data. I have written before about the importance of backups (see my earlier article on this here).

Now get to work on your files!!!
​​
​
Picture

Remembering Passwords

4/4/2021

 
Picture

​About a year ago I posted a blog item elsewhere called 'They've got you covered'. This described an innovative new addressing system called 'what3words' which enabled any 3x3 metre square anywhere in the world to have its own unique address by using three words.  This has now become a popular app and is used particularly by the emergency and rescue services and is even built into some new cars. You can test this out for yourself by going to their website what3words.com/ and clicking on "Explore the map site". Each square has been allocated a set of three words chosen randomly from a dictionary of 40,000 words.

40,000 words might not seem many to cover the world. However, the number of 3x3 metre squares on Earth is 57 trillion. The number of permutations of three randomly-selected words from 40,000 is 64 trillion, which is more than enough to cover everywhere including the vast oceans.

The three words are separated by a dot. Have a look for your own house and pick the best set of three words. Since these cover only a 3 metre square you will find that there are several to choose from depending on where you place the cursor on your property. Whichever ones you choose, your three words will be more accurate than a postcode since the average size of a postcode area in UK is a massive 776 square miles! Here is a good example of the words for No 10 Downing Street (no comment!).

Picture

What's this got to do with passwords?
I got to thinking about the perennial problem of creating secure passwords for internet sites - especially for older folk with difficulty remembering the complex set of letters and numbers that many sites are now insisting that you use.  You will have seen how, trying to register on a new site, you are informed that your password is too weak, does not contain enough characters or does not contain a mix of upper case, lower case, numbers or other squiggles. This is why so many people I come across have passwords that (though they might conform to some of the rules) nevertheless are easy to "crack" eg Rover123. Worse still is the repeated use of the same password for different sites.

The Government-sponsored National Cyber Security Centre has been advising home users for some time now that using three random words provides a secure password that is both easy to remember and very hard to crack - even using powerful computers.  Read these two related articles on this at
www.ncsc.gov.uk/blog-post/three-random-words-or-thinkrandom-0
and
https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/collection/top-tips-for-staying-secure-online/use-a-strong-and-separate-password-for-email

It doesn't matter what the words are and you can choose three that are relevant to you. (You are not limited to 40,000 as in the what three words app. The English Dictionary alone has many thousands more). Don't be tempted to use the names of family, pets or your house. It is surprising how easily these can be discovered by criminals (commonly by looking through your Social Media posts) and this vastly reduces the number of words that a hacker has to work through. Also avoid words of less than 4 characters if possible since these tend to be commonly used words; but you can make the words as long as you like. When you choose your 3 words make sure, when you type them in, that there are no spaces between the words (the space character is not permitted in any password); however, you can use punctuation marks like full stops if you wish. Indeed, if you make sure that one or more of your words begins with an upper case letter and make the punctuation mark something like an asterisk, @ sign, £ sign or a number, then you will satisfy all but the most pernickety of web sites. Here is an example:

                          Balloon&volume9youth

A password constructed like this will be highly secure since the possible combinations of words will run into trillions and will take many years for even the most powerful of computers to "crack".

So far so good but...

Of course we are still left with the problem of remembering these passwords - especially if people have quite a lot of sites they visit and want to adhere to the good advice not to have the  same password for different sites. So how can we devise a simple system that uses the three random words principle whilst helping failing memories? Here is one suggestion:

First of all write down in a single column 24 of the 26 letters of the alphabet but leave out X and Z (because there are far fewer words beginning with these letters). Then, against each letter, think up a word starting with that letter. Use a dictionary if you wish. You will then have a page looking something like this:
A  Archway
B  Balloon
C  Citrus
...and so on down to
V  Volume
W Whisky
Y  Youth

When you want a new password pick three words from your list and insert a punctuation character between the first and the second and a number between the second and the third (as in my example up above Ballon&volume9youth).

So should I write those down in a notebook?

NO! That is wrong. You might as well not have passwords at all - especially if that notebook is left lying around.

So what do I do?

On a separate piece of paper, write down the web site title (forget the www and the .com).  Thus you might write 'Amazon'. Against this write down the first letter of each of the 3 words you have chosen interspersed by the punctuation character and number.
For added security, it is a good idea to use different characters and numbers on each new password and to vary the letter that you put in upper case. So, if I do this for my example above, I would write
                                         Amazon  B&v9y

Note that this is only a clue to your password; it is not the actual password. However, now you can write down this list of all your password clues and even put it by your computer and nobody would be able to guess the actual password. Important.  Put the page with the actual 24 words on it safely away in a hidden place and refer to it when you need a reminder. You will probably find that, after a while, you will easily be able to remember what word you selected for each letter.
​​
And finally.......
Apparently you can’t use beefstew as a password. It’s not stroganoff.
​

Picture

The Impact of Social Media

29/3/2021

 
Picture
My previous article was all about Social Media and I described some of the most used examples. Taking this subject a stage further I wanted to look at the impact that Social Media has had on society.  A Google search found an excellent article that is well worth sharing. Although it is from a US site and specifically looks at that country, its messages are equally valid here in the UK and indeed throughout the world.

Illustrated by some excellent graphics it looks at the impact of social media on the following topics:

  • Why people share information.
  • Politics.
  • Society
  • Commerce.
  • The world of work.
  • Training and development.
  • The challenges of cyberbullying and lack of privacy.
  • Relationships.

You can read the full article here. The site is based on paid-for courses which you may or may not wish to look at also.

Social Media - Good or Bad?

18/3/2021

 
Picture
The term Social Media is now in common parlance. But what does it actually mean and why has it gained such popularity? A very comprehensive dictionary website called Merriam-Webster (https://www.merriam-webster.com/) gives the following definition

“Forms of electronic communication (such as websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (such as videos)”

Within this definition we can identify countless contenders for inclusion in the market but probably they all come within the following broad categories (with the better-known examples shown):

  • Social Networks (Facebook, Linked In)
  • Bookmarking sites (Pinterest, Flipboard, Pocket, StumbleUpon)
  • Social News sites (Delicious, Digg, Reddit)
  • Image Sharing (Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Flickr, Pinterest)
  • Video Hosting (YouTube, Vimeo)
  • Microblogging (Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook)
  • Social Discussion Forums (Tripadvisor, Amazon, Trust Pilot)
  • Sharing Sites (AirBnb, Freecycle, Gumtree)
  • Like Interest sites (Tindr, Grindr, erotica)

What do they each do?
Let’s look at these in turn, bearing in mind that I have only given the more popular examples among the thousands available.
​
Social Networks (Facebook, Linked In)
Social networking is all about keeping in touch with friends, relations and work colleagues and being able to share information with them that you think might be of interest. Facebook has actually turned into a catch all site for sharing almost anything from comments, pictures, jokes, web links and - sadly - vitriol. What started as a fairly benign facility has unfortunately become a platform for weirdos, extremists and rabble rousers. But just like libraries, where you don’t have to read a book you don’t want to, there is no written rule that says you have to read every Facebook post that is shared. The trouble is that Facebook manipulates what users will see by the use of algorithms that analyse what you have previously “clicked upon” and presents you with more of the same. Somewhat akin to the library putting all the books they want you to borrow right inside the door. Notwithstanding this major criticism of Facebook, it can if used sensibly be a tremendous way to keep in touch with friends and relatives.

Bookmarking sites (Pinterest, Flipboard, Pocket, StumbleUpon)
We are used to setting bookmarks on web browsers for sites we regularly go to. Bookmarking sites take this one stage further by providing a repository for our sites and pages of interest. These sites can either be private or they can be used for others to see what you are interested in or recommend.

Social News sites (Delicious, Digg, Reddit)
These sites allow you to share news items with friends. Like bookmarking sites, they can and are usually shared with others and such sites are searchable.

Image Sharing (Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Flickr, Pinterest)
As the name implies these sites are where you let other people view photographs and images that you have either produced yourself or are passing on from someone else. Of all the social media sites these have probably come in for the most criticism - especially where young people are concerned - as they have been the focus of illegal activity, child abuse and harassment. Some of the sites enable the sharing of short videos most of which it has to be said are of a banal quality!

Video Hosting (YouTube, Vimeo)
More serious video sharing is handled by these sites of which YouTube is by far the most popular.  YouTube is a veritable gold mine of anything you want to view and acts as an historical encyclopedia of past and current events. Type in anything in the YouTube search box and you can find a film about it. Try “How to wrap a parcel” or “Sweeping a chimney”or “Musical instruments during WW1”.

Microblogging (Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook)
I have written before about blogs (see my article on blogging). Blogs are sites for would-be authors to write about anything they wish. Blogs can run to many pages and can build up into an archive of articles. (Just like MyTechTips in fact). Often, however, you may have something that you want to say that doesn’t run to or require a long article and for this we have Microblogging sites like Twitter which have limitations on the number of words you can include in any one post.

Social Review and Discussion Forums (Tripadvisor, Amazon, Trust Pilot)
These sites are fairly self-explanatory and are well known - even by those people who will say they never use social media!

Sharing Sites (AirBnb, Freecycle, Gumtree)
Similarly, sharing sites bring out the best in people by appealing to their altruism and spirit of neighbourliness. They enable us to help out others with items, facilities and so on. Quite a number of Facebook Groups now service this aspect of social sharing.

Like Interest sites (Tindr, Grindr, erotica)
Lastly there are sites that specifically cater for the more unusual and offbeat interests. I leave your imaginations to wander as you wish!

So what’s the harm?
There is no doubt that Social Media in its various forms has achieved global popularity on a scale that could hardly have been imagined just 20 years ago. It has brought people together, shrunk geographical distances and provided a platform for self-expression with a global reach.
What users don’t always understand is that the phenomenon has turned the whole business model of the internet upside down. Users are no longer the customer of the media sites, they are the sites’ very source material. Even though photos, comments, videos etc remain the users’ Intellectual Property (IP), users may not realise that by signing up to the Terms and Conditions of Facebook they implicitly “grant [Facebook] a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, worldwide license to use any IP content that you post on…”.
Users can, of course, restrict the distribution of material to a selected audience by changing their privacy settings. However there is nothing to stop any recipient or reader of a user’s material from re-publishing it without such limitations. The golden rule therefore when posting anything on a social media site is that “what goes onto the internet stays on the internet.”
Unlike newspapers, both printed and online, information on social media is not subject to any checks for veracity or any sanction for inaccuracies. With the national press there is recourse to law in the event of libel, lies and falsehood. At the very least publications can be required to print retractions and corrections. Social media does not have the same constraints and the biggest victim of the internet is truth. Given that (as previously described) social media algorithms tailor what users see according to what they have looked at before, lies and inaccuracies are bound to proliferate. “Truth” becomes what you have been conditioned to believe. Whilst it is true that clear libel expressed online can be challenged in law the social media business is renowned for being fairly loosely regulated. An untruth perpetuated across social media can quickly become an established “fact” and lead to all manner of public outcries and demonstrations.
During the current COVID lockdown, social media has certainly come into its own in enabling people to keep in touch with family and friends. But it has also brought with it new harms related to online harassment, child abuse and viciously cruel rudeness. Young girls especially, concerned about image and fashion have literally been driven to suicide by the cruelty displayed online. Adults are not immune to problems. Every day brings a new press revelation about someone’s life being overturned as a result of something said on social media. They may not themselves even have been the publisher of the material that has got them into trouble. This social media today has a lot to answer for.

So should we stop using it?
Despite the risks inherent in social media today I would argue that the benefits still by far outweigh them. They provide world-wide connectivity, reduce isolation, bring like minds and interests together and serve as a platform for self-expression that would otherwise go unheard or read. They offer a limitless source of entertainment for the casual internet surfer and a readily available solution to everyday problems and difficulties.
However, the onus is on users to recognise the potential dangers and use social media sites carefully and thoughtfully.

Facebook - Harmless?

13/3/2021

 
​When I set up a Facebook Group for our local village community some 18 months ago, I canvassed people's opinion as to their willingness to join the group. Our community is a mixture of all ages so this was quite a useful exercise to gauge opinion. The results are hardly scientific but it is probably fair to say that the younger generation (teens-40) is more disposed to social media than its more senior counterpart. However, a regular comment made was one of concern about the dangers of social media in general and Facebook in particular.
I have often remarked that, in an age when you hear more about data privacy and invasion of personal information and rights than ever before, the majority of people are quite willing to expose themselves (metaphorically but sometimes literally) to world scrutiny. Sadly I feel that this majority does not appreciate quite what happens to their information once they click 'send'.
Firstly, anything they write or 'post' has the potential to be shared instantly around the world.  You can quickly delete a post but, unless you are double quick, the chances are that it has already been shared either directly or indirectly and every share leads exponentially to more shares. There is NO WAY of deleting it entirely from the internet. But, even if people are wise to this risk and are still prepared to take a chance, very few are likely to be aware of the mass of other information about them that is automatically captured by social media. This data about you (called metadata) can include anything that Facebook knows about you from the day you joined. This includes all your friends and family, places you have visited, your likes and dislikes, your political and life style choices and so on.
Facebook and other forms of social media - typically Twitter, Google and You Tube - run what are called algorithms; bits of code that analyse all this metadata. The resultant huge databases about social media users are then exploited by advertisers to populate your personal Facebook stream with adverts tailored exclusively to you.  This is what pays for 'free' social media.
But it is not just adverts that are a worry. Facebook (and others) use these algorithms to tailor everything that you see on your Facebook 'news feed'.  Over time, you will only be presented with items in your feed that particularly play to your personal preferences or views.  And how do they know your preferences and views?  Easy. They determine these from the groups that you join, the people you follow, the other posts and comments that you 'like' and 'dislike' and so on.  Again over time, any contrary view or opinion will be hidden or given far less prominence in material presented in your feed.  
You might say 'Well, that's no worse than reading rubbish in the newspapers.' But think about it for a moment. You can choose what papers (and pages/articles) to read and what items to ignore.  You can't with Facebook because your news is personally selected for you.
In a very recent book by Roger McNamee called 'Zucked. Waking up to the Facebook Catastrophe' (Mark Zuckerberg of course being the CEO of Facebook), these algorithms are called 'filter bubbles'. Now consider that Facebook (with its apps) controls the personal data of nearly 3 Billion people around the world.  That is 40% of the world's population of 7.8 Billion. (figures corrected 2021). Now you can see what influence social media has. Have you woken up yet?????

How Safe is Internet Banking?

6/3/2021

 
If there is one indisputable fact about the past year under the Covid restrictions it is that computers and the internet have truly come into their own. Millions of people have (sometimes reluctantly) had to adapt to life online and, without a doubt, digital life has blossomed.  From shopping to keeping in touch with family and friends, the internet has become an essential part of daily life and people have had to learn new skills and ways of coping with the Covid restrictions. 

This has been a godsend for some (not least the purveyors of computer equipment and software); a totally new world for many; and quite frightening for others. The situation has highlighted and exacerbated the so-called digital divide; the gap between those who have or can acquire the necessary IT skills and those who either can not or will not adapt. Cost is a major factor and not everyone has the financial wherewithal to take advantage of the online world even if they want to. This digital divide has compounded the problems of isolation - already bad enough because of the restrictions in place.

One particular aspect of daily life that has changed considerably during the pandemic is the world of consumer banking - everyday use of high street banks and ATMs. The use of cash (notes and coins) for everyday needs has dwindled to such an extent that the amount in circulation (but not being used) is considerably greater than normal. Conversely there has been a dramatic increase in electronic payments by credit card, contactless transactions and by online expenditure. The Bank of England published a very interesting report at the end of 2020 called “Cash in the time of Covid”. Click here for an easy and worthwhile read.

The relationship that people now have with their banking and building society institutions has correspondingly moved away from in the branch/over-the- counter transactions to a far greater and necessary reliance on internet banking. Whilst the younger generation are relaxed about adopting online finance the more senior citizens have a lot of anxiety about no longer being able to handle hard currency - money and cheques - as they have been used to. Whilst they have traditionally been happy to put their trust in their high street bank (even though they can not see the money held on their behalf) they have far less confidence in an internet bank that they can’t see. Notwithstanding this, a surprising statistic is that at the end of 2020 some 80% of British people used some form of online banking; whilst over 25% (or 14 million people) have opened an account with a digital (internet only) bank. (See below for an explanation of this new type of bank.) This would tend to indicate that the level of trust in internet banking in this country is very high and this alone is reassuring.

What is Internet Banking?

For two reasons this article is not a tutorial on internet banking:
Firstly there are so many different banks and finance houses and no two are likely to operate in exactly the same way. Therefore it is best to visit the web site of the bank you are with or proposing to use and follow their guidance and instructions for signing up for internet banking. Naturally, I will not make any recommendations about which bank or type of account to select. Similarly, none of the links I provide in this article constitute any kind of endorsement.

Secondly there are many other sites that give detailed guidance on internet banking in general and I can do no better than to offer some links to trusted sites that tell you all you need to know. I have selected a few that I can recommend with the proviso always that I am not responsible for the content of external sites. 
It is important to understand that there is a major difference between banks and finance houses that have both a physical (high street) presence and internet access, and others that are designated “Internet Only”. The latter can often be attractive because they sometimes offer higher interest rates and benefits purely because they do not have the overheads of premises and staff.  Be careful before opting just for attractive offers.
Similarly online banking can be conducted on a range of devices - on computers, on laptops and tablets and on mobile phones. Many banks have a special app you can download to use on phones and tablets.

Recommended Links

There is a wealth of information on the internet about online banking and I only show below a few of what I think are sites of a more general nature (not related to a particular bank or service) and those which are aimed at the older generation. Never forget that you can use Google (or other search engine) to narrow down your questions. At the end of this selection of links I will also highlight some key golden rules to follow to keep yourself (and your money) safe.

Age UK has a very informative and helpful site that covers most of what you need to know - including how to start the process if you are new to it. See their advice by clicking their logo here​
Picture
Digital Unite is a company I have worked with before and am still associated with and it covers practically every subject to do with the internet and Information Technology. Click on their logo below to see their article Introduction to Online Banking.
Picture
Money Advice Service
The Government sponsored Money and Advice centre has a lot of free information about internet banking on its comprehensive site which can be viewed by clicking on their logo here
Picture
​Saga similarly offers some practical tips for older readers here

Picture
Money UK
Lastly a valuable resource is the Money UK website which covers all things to do with money but has a detailed section on internet banking. Click on its logo here to find the article about how internet banking works.​
Picture
Some Golden Rules for Staying Safe 
Internet Banking is remarkably safe considering the number of scare stories that one reads about daily. That is not to say that standards across the industry are necessarily the same. Which magazine conducts an annual survey to assess the security of internet banking. Its latest report (September 2020) compares 16 banks and building societies. Read it here Don’t be too downhearted if your own bank does not compare well because you need to remember that the survey is conducted rigorously to quite demanding security standards, carried out by cyber security experts attempting to break the web sites' defences.
Of all the risks surrounding internet banking (and indeed use of the internet in general) perhaps one of the greatest is the individual user. Human failings, carelessness and failure to observe basic caution account for more cases of lost money and data than the common risks. At all times one needs to stay aware and alive to all the risks. Just as you would not (should not) leave the house unoccupied without securing it or walk down the street with a handbag open or a wallet on show, neither should you feel you are safe just because you are sitting comfortably at your computer or device. So please adopt basic internet safety behaviour at all times especially where money is concerned.

There are some particular things to watch out for:
  • Always ensure you use strong passwords.
  • Never disclose your passwords to anyone else.
  • Remember that Banks will NEVER ask you for your password.
  • Beware of any email purporting to be from your bank or building society and never follow a “click-through” in an email. Always visit the site yourself and log on in the usual way, not by following an email link.
  • Whenever possible avoid conducting secure business in public or on open (free) wifi services such as in cafes and hotels.
  • If you are using an app on a mobile device use your mobile data service not open wifi.
  • When in public, maintain your privacy and watch out for what is called “shoulder-surfing” by someone else.
  • Always ensure that the banking site you are visiting has https:// and the padlock symbol in its internet address. This denotes it is a secure site.
  • Always check your bank statements.
  • Where offered, sign up for paperless statements. Paper statements are much easier to intercept and misuse.
  • Always log off from your internet banking site when you have finished. (The more reputable sites will do this automatically but don’t assume it will be done).
  • Lastly, something you can do safely is let someone know your Bank, Sort Code and Account name if they are going to pay you. However, make sure you know who you are dealing with first.

Summary
Internet banking is safe and very convenient provided you stay alert and follow the basic rules outlined above and as instructed by your bank.

​

Backups and Storage

28/2/2021

 
Keeping regular backups of data should be as routine as brushing your teeth twice a day - something you should do automatically. In this article I look at the subject of backups of your data and where you should store them. There are some basic points to understand about backing up data and I need to go through them here first.

Why back up? This ought to be fairly easy to answer and yet it is surprising how many people overlook the need. Although computers these days are pretty reliable they are not infallible and they can and do go wrong - sometimes quite disastrously. We all keep information (data) on our computers and tablets that is important to us. Invariably it comprises memories in the form of photographs, videos and other records. We also write quite a lot and send and receive emails from friends and businesses. Those who may be writing professionally or who are, perhaps, documenting their family history (for example) would be horrified if all their efforts were suddenly to disappear. Think of the heartache if you were to lose hundreds of much-loved family and holiday photos. Common sense should dictate that you keep a copy of the most precious material.

Think about where to keep copies. It is very easy to make a copy of something and keep it alongside the original. However, you would be surprised at how many people will think they are religiously copying data only for me to find that they are - but on the same computer! They lay themselves open to the same risks as not making copies of the data in the first place. If their computer fails completely they simply lose two copies of their data. The golden rule about copies is that they must be kept in a different place or on a different medium to the originals.

Keep copies safe, secure out of sight. Exactly where this “different place” is will depend on how you perceive your vulnerability to other risks such as burglary, house fire or flood. Keeping a copy of data in the same house is better than not keeping a copy at all but it still potentially leaves you open to loss. You can minimise this loss, of course, by investing in a secure, lockable and fireproof container that is not easily removable. A wall safe is ideal. Alternatively it is possible to make copies and store them “off-site” in a separate secure location. Many businesses will do this in a secure back-up building outside their main premises. The only drawback to this is that every time you wish to update your copies you must retrieve them from wherever they are stored in order to do so. The way to overcome this is to keep digital copies of data (not physical ones such as disks) and keep those digital copies on someone else's computer. These days that someone else will most probably be computer storage provided on the internet - commonly called “in the cloud”.

Is one copy enough? Lastly, it is worth considering whether keeping just one copy of your data is sufficiently safe. If, for some reason, your backup location fails what will you then do. Although this is likely to be a rare occurrence it is not impossible for an internet/cloud-based company to go out of business with disastrous consequences for its customers. Maybe, if you are from the “belt and braces” school you might feel that a second copy kept at a different location might reduce your risks to the minimum. Many businesses follow this rule. For the average home user it is most probably 'overkill'.

Did you know?  In fact I didn’t but there is actually a World Backup Day! This year it is on 31st March 2021. You can find out about it on a dedicated website which contains many of the messages I have already outlined. You can read it here.

Type of Backup 
With these points in mind the rest of this article will look at the different types of backup and leave you to decide what is best for you. I’ll cover them under the following headings:
  • Local In-Built
  • Local External
  • Off-Site
  • Internet-based
Local In-Built. Using this term I am referring to keeping a backup copy of data on the same device as the original. Although this option is definitely better than nothing at all, it is by far not one to rely on.  You need to create a separate folder on your computer (which you can call ‘Data’, ‘Archive’, ‘Memories’ or whatever name you choose) and regularly copy your important stuff to that folder. You can create sub-folders as necessary. For those of you who are more technically-minded you might be aware that you can set up completely separate areas (called ‘partitions’) on your computer and these are allocated a letter of the alphabet to denote their name. You are probably already used to seeing something like C:/username on your file explorer. This is called a “Drive”. The C: Drive is where all the computer’s programs are stored and (unless you tell it otherwise) where the computer also stores your data. It is perfectly possible - and indeed desirable - to create a separate Drive (Partition) which will take a different letter of the alphabet. Commonly this will be the next available letter so it is pretty usual to see a D: Drive. I have not gone into detail about how to partition your disk to create separate drives but I needed to explain the concept for the purposes of this article. It is quite good practice to use the D: Drive to hold your data as this keeps it separate from the programs and operating system held in the C: Drive. This greatly eases the task of making copies of your data for security purposes because you don't have to go searching through your computer to find it all. (Later on, when I look at external drives connected to your computer you will find that they are automatically allocated a different letter as their ‘root’ name.) 
Do note of course that, although you may have your data held on its own drive, a D: Drive, this is only the original version of your data. It is not in itself a copy. People therefore feel that by making a copy of this data elsewhere on their computer they have somehow met the requirements of a backup. That is fine until the whole computer fails. This argues for backups to be held externally to the computer as in the next section.

Local External There are two options in this category the first of which is becoming far less used. They are CDs/DVDs and Removable Hard Drives.
​ 

CDs/DVDs
Data can be stored on a removable medium such as a CD or DVD disk. Some computers come complete with a mechanical drive that slides out of the computer and into which one places a recordable disk. Most people will be familiar with this. The slide out tray may be held in a laptop or computer tower.


Sometimes this drive is not integral to the computer but is stand-alone and needs to be connected via a USB slot. Here is a picture of such an external CD/DVD disk Drive.
  
Picture

Originally the only available disk was a CD (Compact Disk) but these are much less used now for data storage since they can only hold a relatively small amount of data. The norm now is the DVD (Digital Video Disk - sometimes called a Digital Versatile Disk). The DVD can hold up to 7 times more data than a CD. It is worth mentioning here that there are lots of different kinds of CD and DVD. Without going into the variants, it is important that the one used must be capable of being read 
and written to (usually denoted by the abbreviation R/RW) and not just a read only disk (RO or ROM).
​
Removable Hard Drives
​
Far more regularly used now are removable hard drives. These can be of varying capacity mostly limited by how much you wish to pay. For the average home user, however, a drive holding 1 or 2Terabytes (TB) of data is ideal and is quite cheap. Expect to pay about £50. Anything less than 1TB is not really recommended. These external drives are very compact and typically the size of a cigarette packet. Like a removable DVD drive, they plug into a USB slot and are powered by the output from this slot.

Picture

These days you can also buy a large capacity memory stick instead of an external drive. It will plug into the computer in the same way and is essentially another form of external drive. Memory sticks are sometimes called 'Flash Drives'. Their data capacity varies up to and exceeding 2TB but the only word of caution to offer is that they are easily lost or mislaid because of their small size. This photo is courtesy of SanDisk - one of the typical memory sticks. Many other makes are available.

Picture

​Word of warning. Many people use an external drive as extra (overflow) storage (if their inbuilt storage is running low) and it is quite acceptable to leave it plugged in. However, if you are using it for backup (as opposed to overflow) purposes, do remember that it runs the same risk as keeping backups on the internal storage. If the computer is stolen or destroyed the chances are your connected backup data will go the same way. Therefore, when you use an external drive or a memory stick for holding backups, do remember to store them in a safe place away from the computer when not in use. 

Off site storage. This type of storage tends to be used mostly by businesses who keep their backup disks at a safe place away from their main premises. Sometimes this is a dedicated second building. In the same way, the home user might consider keeping their external drives and memory sticks away from their home if they hold really precious data.

Internet-based. Internet-based storage is becoming the norm these days as it is so readily available, reliable and reasonably priced. Often called “Cloud Storage” it requires you to take out a subscription with a particular company (which may be storage offered by your internet provider or a third party) and trust them to look after your data. Provided you choose a well-known and well-established company you can now have peace of mind regarding long-term retention of your memories. Some of these internet-based products available act simply as online storage and you upload your data to them on an as-required basis. Others act in conjunction with your computer and regularly update the internet store with any new data you have created since the last update.

Summary
Which brings me on to some final points that concern backups in general. You need to pay particular attention to which copy of your data is the latest. In the jargon this is called ‘version control’. It is especially important when using some of the backup programs that are available on the market. When backing up data there is a need to differentiate between incremental and non-incremental backups. In order to make the backing up process as quick as possible most backup programs do what are called incremental backups. They compare the data on your computer with the data from the last backup and only copy across any changes. This is much more efficient in terms of computer processing time than if they were to copy the whole data file across. If trying to do the latter you will probably get a message asking if you want to make a copy or to replace the data on your external storage. If you make a copy you finish up with duplicated data. On the other hand, if you replace data you may find that a change on the computer that (for example) deleted an earlier version of a file, overwrites what is held on the backup store and you may lose earlier versions of the file. This does not happen with incremental backups.
A similar problem can exist with programs that synchronise data. In this form of backup the program compares the computer version (the source) within the backed up version and makes them both exactly the same. This can result in the program deleting some older material on either the source or the backup to ensure they look the same. That older material might be extremely important.
If this is all confusing you then don’t forget to make good use of Google (or whatever internet searching tool you prefer) to find out all about backups and synchronisation.  You’ll find some useful links as well as helpful videos on YouTube to guide you. 

Lastly
"That's all well and good." you might say "You've described all the different types of storage but you haven't actually told me how to make copies. I hope to be able to return to this in a follow up article at a later date.
​​

The Facebook Row in Australia

24/2/2021

 
Doubtless you will have heard and read a lot about the row that has broken out in Australia about Facebook’s right to publish news material on its users' pages and feeds. The publishers (the news media and journalists) argue that because their news content "shared" on a Facebook user’s page can be read by countless other people, then Facebook should pay the source of the news item just as if people who read it on Facebook had bought the newspaper or published article from the original source. Furthermore, they argue that, since the news item is quite likely to appear on the same page as an advert for a product related to that news item from which Facebook derives a revenue from the advertiser (for every time someone clicks on that advert), then Facebook are getting benefit from the item without any journalistic effort on their part.

This might be a valid argument were it not for the fact that Facebook itself is not "publishing" the article as such and that (Facebook would argue) it cannot predict or rule how much news feed Facebook users might wish to share. They would argue that it is the Facebook user who is the publisher NOT Facebook and it would be patently impractical to levy a charge against the millions users of Facebook who share news items. If you share a news item with a family member or group, are you publishing that news item in the true sense or merely repeating what you have heard or read?

Supporting the journalistic claim, the Australian Government threatened to bring in a law to mandate payment by social media companies like Facebook for the benefit they get from news items. In retaliation, Facebook temporarily blocked users in Australia from being able to read such news items on their news feeds. In fact, both parties then backed down and a calmer approach is currently being thrashed out.

Whilst there is a degree of logic in the media publishers' argument and undoubtedly people are reading their output without buying a newspaper or article, or subscribing to an internet-based news site, this totally ignores the universality of Facebook and the internet as a conveyor and sharer of information worldwide. As Sir Tim Berners-Lee (the architect of the World Wide Web) himself says "the Australian law could make the internet as we know it “unworkable,” arguing that it “risks breaching a fundamental principle of the web by requiring payment for linking between certain content online.”

Sir Nick Clegg (remember him?) who is now Vice President for Global Affairs for Facebook has today published an excellent article on this subject and indicated the way the affair might pan out. You can read his article here.

Computers & Printers - What To Get and Where To Buy

16/2/2021

 
​In my previous article giving some thoughts about what sort of computer to get (read it here) I wrote at some length on the subject, describing the different forms of computer and what questions you should ask yourself before parting with your money.  I promised a further two articles about where to buy your computer and what kind of printer to purchase.  I decided that I can best cover these two items in one combined post. Let’s look first at the subject of printers after which I shall suggest a short checklist of some of the factors to consider when looking at the buying options for all your IT needs.
 
Printers
Many of the questions I suggested that you need to consider when buying a computer apply equally to the purchase of a printer. Factors like where will you keep it; how often will you use it; what kind of items are you likely to print; etc can have an impact on your choice. For instance if space is at a premium it might not be advisable to invest in a large, office type machine.  Having said this, remember that most printers these days have a wireless capability so it is not always necessary to site the machine in the same room as your computer. Do bear in mind, though, that too many regular trips to the printer in another room can be come tiresome. Similarly, if you don’t think you will need a high-quality colour capability for photo work then scale down your options accordingly.  One possibility is to get a small portable printer that can produce factory quality colour prints in a 4x6” or similar size. Watch out for the price of the special paper here though.
 
Types of Printer
We have come a long way over the years from some of the clunky old printers of yesteryear. Two of the earliest printers followed the principle of the typewriter with fixed, pre-cast metal letters and ink ribbons. Here you can see a Barrel Line Printer and a Daisy Wheel Printer.
​

​Then came the Dot Matrix printers that used a print head impacting/striking the paper through a ribbon (again much like a typewriter). The difference between these and earlier printers was that the dot matrix printers work on impacting either a sheet-fed paper hopper or a continuous reel of paper with perforations to separate each sheet. This style of printer can still be bought today and is useful where multi-copy forms are being printed.
​

The other significant difference between the dot matrix printer and earlier ones was that the characters produced on the screen are not created by pressing an exact letter shape against a printer ribbon but by “firing” part of the print head against the ribbon forming the character on the paper in a pattern of dots.
​
​These dot matrix print heads evolved to become the basis of today’s printers which, instead of firing pins against a ribbon, send a burst of ink at the paper. These are called Inkjet and Bubble Jet printers. With these printers and all modern ones you buy replacement ink tanks or cartridges, instead of print ribbons, when you need replacements (which is when the print starts to fade).
It is possible to get ink cartridges that are re-fillable but this can be a messy process and also quite expensive to set up initially.
Replacement cartridges from the maker of the printer can be relied upon to give good results. However, there are many places on the internet where you can buy what are called “compatible” ink cartridges. These are not produced by the printer manufacturer but by a third party. Manufacturers will give you dire warnings about the dangers of using other than genuine replacement cartridges, citing machine damage through to poor print quality. I must say, however, that I have used many compatible inks over the years and have seldom had any problem with them.  
 
For the more professional printer output there are also Laser printers which can be bought either for Black & White or Colour. They work by firing an ink powder (toner) onto the paper. However, you need deep pockets for these - especially when it comes to buying replacement “toner” cartridges.
 
All-in-One printers   It is unusual these days to find a printer that just does printing. The majority of printers now act as copiers and scanners and these capabilities are provided “all-in-one”. Generally speaking this type of printer should really be the one to opt for. They don't usually cost much more than a simple printer without copier or scanner.
 
Where Should I Buy My IT Equipment?
Whether it is a computer, tablet or printer there is no shortage of options for where to buy from. These range from major stores; specialist computer shops; direct manufacturer sales; any number of small suppliers; Amazon and private sellers. Below I have offered a check list of some of the things to consider. These points apply whatever type of IT equipment you are buying.
  • Generally speaking it pays to shop around and compare prices before deciding.
  • It is also important to beware of the reliability of the seller. This is unlikely to be a problem with major department stores but definitely worth a good deal of research if it is a private seller.
  • With a private sale be careful about parting with cash until receipt of the goods. If this is not possible, always use credit card since they include some consumer protection should the goods prove faulty or fraudulent.
  • Make use of review sites and customer reports always bearing in mind that sometimes these can be “economical with the truth”.
  • Make sure you have a clear idea of what you want your purchase to include – in other words its specification.
  • Check after-sales service and all-important guarantees. I would generally advise you to steer clear of after-sales support packages from stores which are often offered in order to bump up the salesman’s totals. Some major stores will include a complementary guarantee in the sale and these can be excellent value.
  • Unless you are adventurous you should go for known makes rather than custom-built machines.
  • Be careful when comparing prices that you are looking at like for like; what might look like a better price might hide a smaller memory or less powerful processor.
  • Look at the year of manufacture and try to buy the most recent model.
  • If buying off the internet make sure that you cost in delivery prices.
  • New or second-hand? Don’t necessarily discard the second-hand market as you can sometimes obtain more power and features for the same money as a new machine.
  • Always make sure when looking at an advert that the necessary peripherals are included. What looks like a good computer and screen might actually not have a keyboard or mouse with it and these will add to the cost.
  • Always face the fact that the minute one buys anything there will surely be a better model on sale the next day!
  • Lastly remember my earlier advice; if you have carried out your proper research and made your choice, you should avoid the disappointment of regretting what you have bought.
Summary
Any major purchase involves a degree of risk. However, if you take time in reaching your decision and remember the guidelines I have suggested you should have nothing to worry about.
<<Previous

    Author

    Alan Pollard
    Retired computer professional now in my 70s but still passionate about computers, the internet and information technology in general.
    All views my own unless otherwise stated.

    Archives

    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020

    Categories

    All
    Blogging
    Buying Guides
    Communications & Networks
    Emails
    Internet
    Online Banking
    Printers
    Quirky
    Search Engines
    Social Media
    Terminology
    Windows

    ​Click to comment
    (only viewable by me)
    Picture
    Follow @MyTechTips44


© 2020 mytechtips.co.uk, Odstock, Salisbury, Wiltshire
All content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License except where otherwise attributed.
Website by Weebly