This video shows you how to change the default style in Gmail. I have received many emails from Gmail users frustrated that they have to change the style every time. This is no longer necessary.

There are 2 steps:

  1. Enable the 'lab' : "Default Text Styling" in the Labs tab of your Mail Settings
  2. Go to the General Tab and Choose your font etc.

Remember to scroll to the bottom of each window and "Save Changes".

Here is a short video that shows how:

 

 



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What Are Drivers?

Drivers are small programs that allow Windows to communicate with your hardware. You will have drivers for your printer, camera, network card, graphics, sound etc. Think of them as adaptors, converters or translators and you'll get the idea. 

Why Should You Update Drivers?

So, why should you update them? The most frequent reason for updating them is because something has stopped working the way it should and someone (such as me!) says: "Try updating or reinstalling the Drivers". This can be necessary for a number of reasons such as a recent update to Windows or other software has 'broken' the currently installed driver. This is why somethimes simply re-installing the drivers could work.

Sometimes you may see a message pop up saying you have an out of date driver. Be careful with this message though because it could be some kind of malware trying to part you from your cash.

How Should You Update Them?

You can go online and search for your drivers but most of the time you will be taken to sites that want to charge you. There is no need to pay for a driver: the manufacturer of the hardware will provide these and updates to them free of charge. You just need to find them!

  1. The first thing I'd say is Windows Update does a check for new drivers so update Windows to make sure Windows has had the chance. Look for optional updates in the update screen (you may need to tick the optional updates to get Windows to install them).
  2. Secondly, go to your computer manufacturer's website and search for drivers for your model. If you don't have a make and model then search for drivers for your motherboard. You will find this on the disk that came with the computer or the manual. Failing that, open the case and you will see the motherboard drivers there.
  3. If all this fails, I use Drivermax to search for and install drivers. It's free for personal use and offers a number of useful tools.



The PC Resolver Blog

Here are some brief instructions on how to change the default keyboard in XP (Windows 7 and Vista procedures are very similar)

  1. Click Start
  2. Choose "Control Panel"
  3. Double Click "Regional and Language Options" (Change keyboards and other input methods in W7/Vista)
  4. Click the 'Languages' tab
  5. Click 'Details"
  6. In the drop-down list at the top choose the language you want to use.
  7. Click OK
  8. Click OK again

This will change the keyboard layout to the language chosen. 

If you need to add a keyboard (so that you can swap between them) then:

  1. Follow steps 1 to 5
  2. Click 'Add'
  3. Choose the language you want
  4. Click OK
  5. Continue from step 6 above to choose your default

For an easy way to change from one layout to another you should enable the 'Language Bar':

  1. Follow steps 1 to 5 above
  2. Click "Language Bar..."
  3. Tick the "Show the Language bar on the desktop" option
  4. Click OK
  5. Continue from step 6 above

You will now have something like 'EN' or 'ES' on your taskbar at the bottom of your screen. Click this to change layout as needed.



 

The PC Resolver Blog

I have personally received a number of warnings about a "Invitation FACEBOOK" message that will delete my hard drive. It is, of course, a hoax.

This is what Hoaxslayer has to say about it:

According to yet another "virus" warning that is rapidly making its way around social network Facebook, users should watch out for messages with an attachment named "Invitation Fb". The warning claims that the attachment contains an Olympic torch virus that "will take the whole hard disk C" on the infected computer. The message further claims that this virus has been classified by Microsoft as the worst ever.

However the claims in the message are total nonsense. There is no virus like the one described in the warning. In fact, the message is nothing more than a Facebook flavoured variant of a tired old virus hoax that has circulated via email since 2006. As the following example of the 2006 email version reveals, the two are clearly woven from the very same cloth:

You should be alert during the next days: Do not open any message with an attached filed called "Invitation" regardless of who sent it. It is a virus that opens an Olympic Torch which "burns" the whole hard disc C of your computer. This is the worst virus announced by CNN, it has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever.
And the original Olympic Torch hoax was itself derived from an even earlier hoax email that began circulating more than a decade ago. Several other hoax messages based on the same "Olympic Torch" theme have circulated since 2006. None have contained even a shred of truth.

Spreading false virus warnings will help nobody. If this hoax message appears on your Facebook page, please do not repost it. And please help to stop its spread by informing the poster and other users that the message is a hoax.



The PC Resolver Blog

If you've been using Facebook, Twitter, Google, LinkedIn etc for any amount of time you will have given permissions to various companies and sites to access your account. I think you'll be surprised by how many permissions you have given. This site will help you check these permissions and disable those you don't need. 

The more permissions you give the greater the risk to your safety, security and personal information.

For example, in my Facebook account I let certain games have access (I was surprised how many games I have played - I really must get some work done!). I disabled all but the games I am still playing. Similarly, in my Twitter account I found a surprising number of sites that have permissons that they no longer need.

This is where MyPermissions comes in.

my permissions logo

When you go to the "MyPermissions" website you click on the icon corresponding to the site you want to check and it takes you to the relevant section in the site (Facebook Security section for example) that allows you to disable permissions. Simple, but effective. Anyone who has tried to do this on Facebook will appreciate how useful this is!

By the way,  it doesn't add itself to your permitted users list! It simply takes you to the right page and leaves the rest to you.


 

The PC Resolver Blog

I received an email from one of my alert clients saying they'd received a call from Microsoft and realised it was a scam. Here's what they wrote:

Hi Steve, I don't know if this is of any interest to you only we had a phone call from someone with an Asian accent on an undisclosed line who claimed he was from Microsoft and that we had downloaded some risky files and we should turn our computer on so he could talk us through the process of how to delete them.
When we asked him what files they were, he hung up! We knew this was a scam as we had not tried to download anything. I hope you dont mind us emailing this just thought you might like too let you clients know.

 

If this, or something similar, happens to you then I hope you know what to do : hang up!!

Here is a link to an article about this on the the www.snopes.com site that I use to test this and other scams. Microsoft will NOT phone you and offer to remove viruses or perform any other remote help.


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