Some Vendors only offer the Windows 7 Starter Edition, which in my point of view is a sham to make you pay even more money for your computer. Steer away from these offers I say – unless of course you enjoy NOT being able to change your wallpaper – ever again.

Upgrade on Demand

Buying the computer online (from Dell or HP etc.), you can order it with Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate – but not without the additional cost; you’ll have to pay for that upgrade (Dell charge from $130-$150 Depending on version). Buying from a store, your upgrade choice is the Anytime Upgrade program ($89.95 for Pro or $139.95 for Ultimate).

Is Ultimate, a “must have” ?

Before you shell out the extra money, you might want to first consider why you want or need the higher cost edition. Is it just that one feature you “need” – then, there might be a less expensive way to get its equivalent while still running Windows 7 Home Premium. Let’s take a look at some of the important features that are missing in Home Premium and how you can add similar functionality without upgrading the OS.

Remote Desktop Service

Home Premium has the Remote Desktop Client, letting you connect your HOME computer to another systems desktop, but you are unable to use the Remote Desktop Protocol.

If you are in dire need of a Remote Desktop, there are several free options to choose from – without paying the extra $80-$150.

• Join.me (The free Remote Desktop App from LogMeIn.com – Our Review)
• LogMeIn.com – full version Remote Desktop Application which has a Free account and several paid account options. http://www.logmein.com
• TightVNC is a free program and versions 2.0 and above run on Windows 7.
  http://www.tightvnc.com/intro.php
• RealVNC offers a free version, but it’s not compatible with Windows 7.
  The personal edition does and it costs $30 – still far less than the upgrade to Windows 7 Pro or Ultimate.
  http://www.realvnc.com/

Network Backup

Network backup is another desirable feature of the high-end editions that you sacrifice with Windows 7 Home Premium. However, there are a number of options here: you can use software such as GFI Backup Home Edition, which is free and easy to use or you can use something like Microsoft’s SyncToy, which will synchronize files and folders between a local and network drive, effectively giving you a network backup of your data.

Windows XP Mode

If you would like to use the XP Mode Feature, you will have to have the Pro or Ultimate version – Or Do you Now?
What is XP Mode Really ? The XP mode is nothing more than Microsoft’s Windows Virtual PC plus a licensed copy of Windows XP in a virtual machine to run on it.

Same thing can be done using third-party applications like Virtual PC 2007, Windows Virtual PC, VMware or Sun’s VirtualBox. However, you’ll still need to buy a license for XP to run it in the VM. If you already have a licensed copy of XP, you’re good to go. Otherwise, you’ll probably come out better by upgrading to Windows 7 Pro so you can download XP Mode free. The nice thing about the “real” XP Mode is the way it integrates with your Windows 7 desktop.

Encrypt individual files to protect sensitive data (EFS)

Another feature that you get with Pro and Ultimate but not with Home Premium is the Encrypting File System (EFS). This feature allows you to encrypt individual files to protect sensitive data stored on your hard drive. There are of course several options you can choose from, which are free or have different payment options, still less expensive than Upgrading to Pro or Ultimate.

• TrueCrypt, Lots of features, tho a bit less user-friendly than EFS
• BitLocker (Our Tutorial), Encrypts entire disks
• Secret Disk, Creates encrypted folder
• AxCrypt, Open Source File Encryption

Discussion: Thoughts on Encryption

To Domain or Not Domain

Ok, so the final argument for going all the way (investing in Pro or Ultimate), is to join a Domain. But do you really need that option ? Unless you want all the flexibility in the world wanting to log in to any of your Numerous PC’s and laptops and receive and send e-mails from any computer, then the ability to join a Domain isn’t all that necessary.

But I want to get access to it all

Your computer doesn’t have to be a member of the domain for you to log into a domain account. Meaning that if you only need to access shared folders, files and printers then Home Premium will work just fine. However, should you need the computer to be managed by domain Group Policy and Active Directory Security, then you need to upgrade the OS.

What do YOU think?

Tell us about your experiences. Are there any features of Windows 7 Pro or Ultimate that you just can’t live without, or have you been able to make do with Windows 7 Home Premium Edition? What workarounds (if any), have you used to “upgrade” your Home Premium Edition?

About Thomas

Computer geek from the age of 7, which amounts to 30 years of computer experience. From the early days (when every computer company had their own OS) of DOS, Windows 1.0 through Seven...

In this guide, we talk more about Windows 7′s Resource Monitor. Previously, Angel Luis showed you how to determine if you need more RAM using Windows 7′s resource monitor. In this guide, we’ll show you what else you can monitor with Resource Monitor and help you interpret the data it gives.

Open Resource Monitor

To open Resource Monitor, either:

Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc and, when Windows Task Manager loads, click Resource Monitor…:

Or:

Click the Start button and click All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Resource Monitor.

View System Information with Resource Monitor

Resource monitor has five tabs:

1. Overview.
2. CPU.
3. Memory.
4. Disk.
5. Network.

In this guide, we’ll take a look at the information offered on the CPU, Memory, Disk, and Network tabs. The Overview is, surprisingly, an overview of these four tabs.

Resource Monitor CPU Tab

Much like Task Manager, the CPU tab gives detailed information on all processes using the CPU; however, the CPU tab also shows detailed information on the Associated Handles and Associated Modules of a process:

Associated Handles

Associated Modules

How do I interpret this data?

The key take home from this tab is to find processes that are using lots of CPU when you are low on CPU (or when CPU usage is abnormally high under idle usage.) Once identified, you can Kill the process (right click) and try opening it again. If the problem persists (and the usage is abnormally high), try reinstalling the software causing the high CPU usage or upgrading the latest (and in some cases a previous, less-bloated) version.

What’s a Handle?

A handle is a pointer to a system element such as a file, event, registry key etc.

What’s a Module?

Modules are programs or files used to support a process (like a .DLL — dynamic link library.)

Resource Monitor Memory Tab

If you’re running at 80%+ memory, you should identify and kill processes that are hogging up your system (running out of memory will slow down your computer a lot because you will start thrashing — storing data from memory on your hard disk to make more room for current processes.)

Here’s what the Memory tab looks like:

How do I interpret this data?

You should sort the data, by clicking the column heading, to find hard faults (a sign of failing memory) and by Working Set and Private to find the real memory hogs.

What is Working Set Memory?

Working set memory is the amount of physical memory currently being used by a process.

What is Private Memory?

Private memory is the amount of physical memory in use by a process that can’t be shared with other processes; thus, programs using lots of private memory can cause system problems as they require so much of your resources.

What if I see lots of hard faults?

If you see lots of hard faults, you should consider adding more memory as your system is writing current memory to the page file (due to low memory availability.) If you don’t see high memory usage but lots of hard faults, test your memory.

Resource Monitor Disk Tab

The Disk tab shows IO (input/output) activity on your hard disks. If your computer is slowing down, you may find it’s due to too much IO. A program you are using may be slowed down because it is waiting for information to be retrieved from disk (i.e. a photo album application that has to wait for photos to load) or because you are too low on memory and lots of the memory is being paged to your hard disk (see above for more information about memory thrashing.)

Here’s what the disk tab looks like:

How do I interpret this data?

Check the processes with disk activity and look for processes that stand out on disk reading and writing (i.e. the numbers are really high.) As you can see in the screenshot about, Snagit32.exe is reading and writing more than any other programs. In this case it makes sense because it was writing the screenshot I just took to disk. If, however, something like spambot.exe is reading lots of data, kill the process and run a virus scan!

Resource Monitor Network Tab

The final tab is the Network tab, which shows current network activity on your PC:

The Network Activity pane shows network connections and how much data is being sent. If you see a process on here that really shouldn’t be sending and receiving data (i.e. if Photoshop was sending data to Adobe servers, kill it and find out why it’s “phoning home” — yes, Adobe have done this before and were sending statistical data to Omniture.)

You can also see which programs have ports open. Notice the ports opened by Apple services. After investigating them, I found them all to be legitimate (if not a little invasive) connections.

How do I interpret this data?

Read the explanations above and look for either:

• Programs with abnormally high network activity.
• Programs with network activity that really shouldn’t be connecting to anything.

I’d then go to a search engine and find out why these programs are contacting other addresses through your network interface.

Well there you have it: a basic explanation of the goodness that comes from using Resource Monitor. What did I miss? For what purposes do you use Resource Monitor?

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

In an effort to help you find the kinds of wallpapers you like, I’ve put together 19 collections of wallpapers that cover 15 different genres. This week’s genre is computer themed wallpapers (yes, most of them are Apple themed.) If you’re looking for Windows themed wallpapers, you can access them on the Wallpapers by genre page. If you know of any other wallpapers that fit in this genre, please let me know. Looking for a different genre? Head here to see desktop wallpaper collections organized by genre.

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

This week, we have a collection of device, drive, folder, and filetype icon packs. You can use these icons for Windows customization, web sites, applications, mobile apps, posters, and more; however, just because the pack is free doesn’t mean there’s no attached license. Please be sure to check the license for each pack you download as each differs. The license should be available from the site you’re led to and often it’s in the download. If you know of any good icon packs to include in this genre, please let me know. Looking for a different genre? Desktop icon pack collections organized by genre.

Elite Icoms

Reflective Dock Icons

Colourflow:lovesamy custom set

Colourflow : Folders – Blue

140 Stone Tile Icons

Developer Library Icon

heart_PNG

Black Vista Icon Pack

Vista Style Ultimate

Aesthetica Icon Set

Ruby Extended Icons

Chums Icons

Human-O2

DI – Folder Icons

Exempli Gratia

Reality

Slick Drives Remake

Sleek XP Basic Icons

iD

Delikate-Lite

Flavours

Media Icons

HydroPRO v2

Coquette 4

Lucid: Icons

ColorFlow Art Project Folders

iSuite Revoked

Sketchy

Dimension Of Deskmod Cds

Blue CD Icon

Leopard Style Drive Icons 2

OSX Refflective Iconset 1

Boxes

TiCons 3

Blue Aero 7 IconPack Project

WEB

Leomx

Hardwaremx Plus

Hardwaremx

Hardware

eico 1 Year

the last order:candy

PSP Icons

Adjust’s Glass Folders

iPlatinum

MICRO + NickelCobalt Mod

GVS iconset

Onyz Leopardized

Yeti Box

Hiddenmx Win

Leomx Win

Movie Icons

Elegant icon set

Black glamour

Azenis IP

Snowe Doc 2

Blue whales 2006

The Last Order Plus

AlumiGlax 2, Special Folders

avXicons

Phuzion Icons

Blueset Icons

Scrap Icons

UMI Icons

Colorabo Icons

Onibari Leopard Made

Green and Blue

De Freu Icon Pack

Carbon Gloss

Distortion Icons

Dellipack 2

Radium Icon Set

DeskMundo Live Icons

BLACK

Colorflow Unique

Classy Icon Set

White Leopard

HydroPRO -HP- Dock Icon Set

comPewter Desktop Icons

File Icons Vs. 3

VIVA Icons

release_synergy icons

Stacks Dock Icons

project: PANDORA dock icons

Helix Icons

Black Elegant – Icon Set

Stilrent Icon Set

Simple and Clean Icon Set

Slick Drives

iZ3

Green Icon Set

icon for transformers

170 dock icons

Mouse Category Season 02

Blossom Icon Set

Stickers Icon Set

iTunes

Sketchy Paper Icons

Made of Wood

Aurora Folders

“16 icons in formats PNG (256×256, 128×128, 48×48, 32×32, 16×16), ICO (256×256, 128×128, 48×48, 32×32, 16×16) and ICNS (256×256, 128×128, 48×48, 32×32, 16×16).”

Must Have Icon Set

59 Icons in all sizes in PNG and ICO formats

Wraith Dock Icon Pack

Computer Hardware

9 Icons in all sizes in PNG and ICO formats

Ive Drives

These hard drive icons are inspired by beautiful Apple hardware designed and crafted by Jony Ive and the Apple Industrial Design Group. Available in four styles of familiar Apple hardware:

Monitor HP

“1 PNG Icon (128×128, 256×256 and 512×512)”

Driver

18 Icons in .PNG format (512×512)

XIII

“21 Icons in .ICO and .PNG Format (16×16, 32×32, 128×128, 256×256 & 512×512)”

Desktop Icons

5 Icons in .ICO and .PNG Format (256×256)

Mod’em

1 PNG Icon (256×256 and 512×512)

Technology Icons

Wooden Dashboard

HD Wooden Storage Box

3D Blue

Mirror

Glass Folders

Aqua & Blend

W R E N

Blend

Stick pack

HP Dock Icon Set

HALO Dock Icons

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

This week, we have a collection of apple inspired icon packs. You can use these icons for Windows customization, web sites, applications, mobile apps, posters, and more; however, just because the pack is free doesn’t mean there’s no attached license. Please be sure to check the license for each pack you download as each differs. The license should be available from the site you’re led to and often it’s in the download. If you know of any good icon packs to include in this genre, please let me know. Looking for a different genre? Desktop icon pack collections organized by genre.

Weathered Apple Icon

Black Aqua Safari

Macbook

Magic Safari

Aqua Dashboard

Stacks Dock Icons

HUD Transparent Leopard Icons

Aqua X

White Leopard

Ive Drives

These hard drive icons are inspired by beautiful Apple hardware designed and crafted by Jony Ive and the Apple Industrial Design Group. Available in four styles of familiar Apple hardware:

Driver

18 Icons in .PNG format (512×512)

Wooden Dashboard

HD Wooden Storage Box

Aqua & Blend

W R E N

Blend

OSX Refflective Iconset 1

iSuite Revoked

Browsers Compass Icon Pack UD

VannillA Cream Icon Set

WEB

Leomx

Hardwaremx Plus

Hardwaremx

TiCons 3

Leopard Style Drive Icons 2

iPlatinum

isabi for Windows

Ipod Nano Icons

MINUM CALABI Mac

Onyz Leopardized

Just in Case – LP Case Icons

Leomx Win

Antares Complete Pack

Browsers Compass Icon Pack UD

Snowe Doc 2

UMI Icons

Onibari Leopard Made

WIP – 32px mania iconset

Exempli Gratia

Reality

Slick Drives

Slick Drives Remake

Fruity Apples

Made of Wood

Hydrogen

iDVD Replacement Drive

Open Phone Pack

iPhone Icon Pack

Leopard iPhone Icons

18 replacement icons of Mac OS X Leopard Folders in iPhone Icons Style

Simply Safari Icon

“1 Icon in .ICO and .PNG formats (16×16, 32×32, 48×48, 128×128, 256×256 & 512×512)”

Mac Mail Stamp Icons

Videos

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

It’s been a while since the new Xbox 360 Slim was released.  I’ve been keenly reading reviews and watching screencasts on Microsoft’s new games console.  In particular I’ve been watching out for RROD issues and comparisons to the Xbox 360 Classic

I came across Paul Thurrott’s review last month, it’s one of the best on the web I’ve read and I’d like to share it with mintywhite readers.

New Form Factor:

While the basic Xbox 360 S form factor is unchanged from its predecessors, you’ll immediately notice the differences. Yes, it’s black, but then so was the Xbox 360 Elite. What makes this one difference is the size–its about 17 per cent smaller than all previous 360 consoles–and the look and feel. Where previous Xbox 360s featured a matte finish, the new S model is all sleek and glossy, and as a result it picks up fingerprints as fast as any Apple product. Even the power brick is smaller–much smaller–than that of its predecessor.

Port Changes:

There are some important port changes with the Xbox 360 S. On the front of the previous consoles, there was an optical drive, an IR port, two Memory Unit (MU) card slots, a connect button (for tying a controller to the console), and a small door, behind which were two USB ports. On the back was a third USB port (which could be used up if you added an external wireless adapter, sold separately), an Ethernet port, an AV port (and, on newer models, an HDMI port), and the power cable port.

The S console drops support for MU. But Microsoft is overcompensating for this by bumping up the number of USB ports to five (two on the front, three on the back), and since Wi-Fi N is built in, you’ll never need to waste one. And thanks to a software update from last year, Xbox 360 users can now use standard USB memory keys as portable storage.

Hard Drive:

Over the years, Microsoft has steadily increased the size of the hard drive it bundles with its mid-level and high-end consoles. (The low-end consoles shipped sans hard drive.) This started with the very first Xbox 360, which came originally with a 20 GB hard drive, and was replaced, in subsequent generations by 60 GB and then 120 GB hard drives.

The new Xbox 360 S comes with a 250 GB hard drive, just like the previous generation Elite console. However, unlike all previous Xbox 360s, the S utilizes a (proprietary?) SATA-style hard drive, one that isn’t placed in a weird, custom shell. This has good and bad implications. On the good front, you should be able to more easily and cheaply upgrade to a larger hard drive in the future, and because the Xbox 360 S hard drive is connected internally, via a neat pop-off lid in its base, it’s not protruding from the top of the unit as before.

Optical Drive:

Previous generation Xbox 360 consoles shipped with a 12X DVD drive, and aside from the capacitive touch eject button on the new console, I can’t tell if there’s any difference here. It’s still tray loaded, and appears to look and work just like its predecessors.

Wi-Fi:

I was as much a doubter of Wi-Fi for intensive online gaming as I was, originally, of wireless controllers, and the Xbox 360 has made me a believer in both cases. Even the previous generation Wi-Fi G (802.11g) add-on adapter worked just fine, and by bundling in an even faster and more reliable Wi-Fi N adapter, Microsoft has pretty much erased any concerns one could have about this type of connection. And of course the internal adapter means you won’t have to waste a USB port if you want to go wireless. It’s a win-win.

Accessories In The Box:

The Xbox 360 S comes with a (new) black controller, a black headset, and a rudimentary AV cable with composite connections. There is some very basic documentation as well, nothing like the nice packet of documentation that came with previous versions.

Noise, Heat and Power Consumption:

Microsoft claims that the Xbox 360 S is “whisper quiet.” This is a bit of an exaggeration. The Xbox 360 lets off a steady humming sound, reminiscent of the PlayStation 3. But this sound isn’t horrible. In fact, depending on the conditions, it’s either acceptably quiet (such as when you are browsing around in the Dashboard UI) or not quite as loud as its predecessors (when you’re playing a graphically-rich game). And that is actually a huge improvement: One of the big knocks against the Xbox 360 is that it has historically been too loud to use in a home theatre set up, because the noise of the fans and optical drive would get in the way of enjoy movies, music, or other media. This is no longer a problem: The Xbox 360 S is, I think, acceptably quiet for the living room.

The Big Question: Reliability:

Reliability is, of course, the big question going forward. Will the Xbox 360 S reverse the reliability issues that made previous versions of the console an accident waiting to happen? I hope so, but of course have no evidence one way or the other. What we need, simply, is time, time to use the console as we have previous versions, and see how it fares. I’m crossing my fingers. But I’ve been burned too many times to get too optimistic.

Final Thoughts

I’ll provide an update if and when anything does go wrong with the Xbox 360 S and of course I’m looking forward to future software updates, including the new dashboard, the updated Zune software, and the Kinect stuff. Overall, it’s turning into a great year for the Xbox 360, and if this console proves anything, it’s that Microsoft’s five-year-old product still has plenty of life left in it. (To put this life cycle in perspective…..

Read the unabridged review here.

About Stu

It seems Microsoft just can’t help taking a crack at Apple recently (you gotta love it!)

Last time it was Windows 7 Vs. Mac OS X.  This time Microsoft are comparing productivity suites Windows Live Essentials & Apple iLife.

Judging by the chart, Windows Live Essentials unsurprisingly comes out on top.  Unfortunately, I’ve never used iLife so i cannot comment either way.

Have you used Windows Live Essentials and iLife?

What do you think to both suites and this comparison?

Should Apple be offering iLife for free?

Why isn’t it free?

Comparing Windows Live Essentials

About Stu

Here’s a quick overview of the team:

	Name (Username)	Joined Team	Location	Operating System	Profile
	RSVR85	September 2009			rsvr85
	Mike	November 2009			Mike
	Thomas	January 2010			Thomas
	Harry	February 2010			Harry
	Steven Downer (DarkNovaGamer)	March 2010			DarkNovaGamer
	Angel Luis	April 2010			Angel Luis
	Taylor Ling (ghost 301)	July 2010			ghost301
	Deck Hazen (Deck)	July 2010			Deck
	swooper	July 2010			swooper
	Spazz	August 2010			Spazz
	N J West (Nicholas)	October 2009			Nicholas
	ashmsa (Scragg)	January 2010			Scragg
	sergiogarcia9	May 2010			sergiogarcia9
	Rich Robinson (Rich)	February 2008			Rich

Now here’s few sentences about each writer:

RSVR85

Hobbies: Sports, Motorsports, Art & Design, Culinary art, Games Consoles, Gadgets and of course PC’s.

First time using a computer (and which one): I was young when I first mashed a keyboard.  It was my uncles.  All I can remember about it, was it was big and ran DOS.

What are the specs of your current computer? (Proprietary, some customisations)  Wireless HP Touchsmart, AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-56, 3GB RAM, GeForce7600 Go, 2TB HDD.

Mike

Hobbies: Playing sports (soccer, basketball, golf), gaming (PC Games, FIFA10, Starcraft and soon Starcraft 2, Modern Warfare, etc.), home improvement, building PCs, and staying up-to-date in tech news.

First time using a computer (and which one): Probably 1990, it was a Vendex Headstart III 286

What are the specs of your current computer? I’m running a custom-built desktop with a Gigabyte GA-G41M-ES2L microATX motherboard, a Pentium E6300 dual-core 2.8GHz processor, 4GB of G.Skill DDR2 800 RAM, 3 HDDs (1 1TB WD Caviar Black, 1 640GB WD Caviar Black, 1 180GB Seagate), an EVGA Nvidia GeForce 9800GT 512MB HD GPU, an AverMedia AverTVHD Duet TV Tuner card, and an LG DVD+R burner. I have a Microsoft wireless laser keyboard and mouse, a 19″ Acer 1680×1050 LCD monitor, and I run Windows 7 Professional on top of all of that.

What PC component would you be and why? The RAM. I prioritize my to-do list and make sure tasks are executed as quickly as possible while multitasking. I also have a short memory and there is usually not enough of me around :)

Predictions for Windows 8? I think Windows 8 will be highly cloud-based, storing most of the user information on the net somewhere to be accessed by any Windows 8 computer. I also think there will be an integrated app store much like mobile devices, and our computers will be more location-based than before.

Final words? I’m a huge Android geek. I love the platform and the hardware produced for it and am looking in to learning basic Android app coding. I write mainly on mobile integration/cloud apps, some software reviews, and tutorials on media center and OS tweaks.

Thomas

Hobbies: Besides Computers you mean :-p? Photography and Music.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1981, A Tandberg EC10.

What are the specs of your current computer? Homemade Computer, 4GB RAM, 64-bit OS (of course)

Dual (HD) monitor setup and 500 GB Harddrive.

What PC component would you be and why? The CPU, because that’s where the action is :-p

Predictions for Windows 8? I’m hoping it will not be another ME, or Vista.

I am thinking that Microsoft finally will incorporate many of the 3rd party plugins that really makes Windows a great OS. Like the ones we write about here at mintywhite.

Final words? I love getting feedback from our readers, so keep’em coming. Even if it’s just a click on the “I Like It” button.

Harry

Hobbies: Assisting people with all their IT ‘woes’, Xbox 360, Dogs.

First time using a computer (and which one): Was given a ‘no-name’ box, with 64MB RAM and Windows 98

What are the specs of your current computer? Mainly showing people around the operating system, hardware isn’t my strongest point.

What PC component would you be and why? I definitely wouldn’t be the RAM or hard drive – they must live very busy lives ;) Not sure what I would be, though!

Predictions for Windows 8? Good ol’ 32-bit will finally be abandoned, and 128-bit will take its place. I think (or hope) that it will also support 3D as standard. Otherwise, they can’t do much to beat Windows 7!

Steven Downer (DarkNovaGamer)

Hobbies: I like to work on computers. It can be hardware or software related.

First time using a computer (and which one):2003, HP Pavilion (Unknown)

What are the specs of your current computer? Hackintosh – OS X/Windows 7 Dual Boot, Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3L Motherboard, 4GB DDR2 1066MHz RAM, EVGA nVidia GTX 260 SuperClocked Graphics card, and so on.

What PC component would you be and why? Hmm.. that’s a tough one. I’d likely be a graphics card! Not exactly sure why but that’s what I’d like to be. Just feels natural.

Predictions for Windows 8? I’m expecting Microsoft to fully rework the GUI. I’d personally like to see some more eye-candy! Who doesn’t like candy!?

Final words? “I’ll be getting married to my Fiancée Elizabeth soon. No exact date yet.

Thats about all I can think of guys, but feel free to ask me any questions on the forums and I’ll be sure to respond at some point! :)”

Angel Luis

Hobbies: Computers, of course :) I like reading and running. I love travel and learn new things such as improving my english.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1986. Commodore 16.

What are the specs of your current computer? Intel Pentium Dual E2220 @ 2.4Ghz, 4 GB, Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit.

What PC component would you be and why? A CPU, I am capable of doing a lot of maths operations using my brain.

Predictions for Windows 8? For me I don’t want more features. A better user experience, using resources in a more efficient way is what I expect. Microsoft with Windows has an advantage over other operating systems and is the number of people using it. This, which can be seen as a pressure, is the best way to test everything.

Final words? I love computer problems. I hate formatting computers because is a lost opportunity to learn.

Taylor Ling (ghost 301)

Hobbies: I love gaming very much. I love car simulation game and RTS game. I also like to keep myself updated with latest news of IT world, gadgets etc. Beside that, I always love to test new software and share my experience to the others. Singing and badminton also are some of my hobbies.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1999? Custom build model with Windows 3.1.

What are the specs of your current computer? I don’t have a very powerful rig yet due to the limitation in financial status at the moment, but still it handles well in quite a number of games and my daily usage. My PC is having a AMD Athlon Dual Core 7750, 4GB RAM, nVidia GeForce GT240, and using Windows 7 Professional 64 bit.

What PC component would you be and why? High quality sound card? I love singing so I hope my voice output can be the best. :P

Predictions for Windows 8? Faster boot time. Less security issues. Even better user-friendly interface. Perhaps one version to rule them all instead of having Home basic, Home Premium, Professional etc. like in Windows 7. Better integration in Tablet. New logo? :P ”

Final words? Drop me a comment or two in my post, so I can learn more and polish my writing skill. Still in the very learning process so please forgive if there is any mistake done.

Deck Hazen (Deck)

Hobbies: The Internet (of course) also theoretical physics — quantum mechanics, cosmology, parallel universes – that sort of thing. I’m into DIY and I’ve got a great workshop in my garage – I’m hoping to find time to fire up my wood lathe and turn out a bowl or two. Also – Solar Energy — still just in the “learning” phase, but I have 2 solar panels on my roof that feed a bank of rechargeable “AA” batteries during the day, and then power my string of diode night-lights that run from the bedroom to the bathroom. And then there is Cryonics — I hope to be frozen in liquid nitrogen at some point toward the end of my life, and then revived when future technology (nanobots) can repair my old body and keep me young and healthy unit I decide to pull my own plug.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1976 – DEC PDP 11/70

What are the specs of your current computer? 2 machines – both Pentium dual core – the “Data” box has a 2 Tb RAID array, while the “Media” box just got an 8 Tb RAID upgrade featuring a 9-drive enclosure that I built myself out of sheet metal and pop-sicle sticks. 3-screen display – Media box goes to the 42″ high def wall mounted flat screen (upper) while the “Data” box goes to the dual flat screen 22″ monitors just underneath.

What PC component would you be and why? no idea — something powerful and fast I expect.

Predictions for Windows 8? Bill Gates will be even richer than he is now.

Final words? I love feedback on my stuff — good, bad, ugly — bring it!

swooper

Hobbies: I make spare time to:

• Game on – I’ll whoop you in any genre, but despise MMO
• Pull electronic things apart and see how they work
• Make old computers useful however i can, utilising Linux and a library of spare parts.
• I’m a painter, using acrylics and water colours.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1998 P2 633mhz desktop 64mb graphics FTW :3

What are the specs of your current computer?

• Win 7 64 bit Ultimate / Xp Pro/ Kubuntu
• Intel Core 2 Duo E8400, 4GB DDR2 RAM
• Asus Dark Knight Nvidia GeForce GTX+
• 30/250/500/640GB Drives

What PC component would you be and why? Heatsink, cause I’d always be chillun. XD

Predictions for Windows 8? 3 new wallpapers and a gadget. Seriously though? There is going to be a LOT of online movement, given that “”Cloud Computing”" is digital life two point oh. We even have HP pumping out printers 2.0 that print via the internet with their own e-mail address. Next they will have twitter too, to tell their iPad friends what they ‘juzt printed!!1′.

Really, I sense MS is just following the ideas of Google and Linux in trying to merge everything online with the desktop now included. Even mac seems to trail open source these days. Oh, but they have pretty icons.

Spazz

Hobbies:

• Computers.
• Movies – Sci-Fi.
• Food.
• Woodwork.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1987 – XT 8086

What are the specs of your current computer? Not too impressive, 2,3GHz dualcore, 2GB Ram, 160GB HDD, Windows 7.

What PC component would you be and why? HDD, I am a gatherer. Too sentimental to let go of stuff, I suppose.

Predictions for Windows 8? As Vista was a step-up from XP, and 7 less so from Vista, I think 8 will be at least as big or bigger than XP from 2000.

Final words? I new to this and hope I can contribute positively.

N J West(Nicholas)

Hobbies:

• Programming.
• Mathematics.
• Physics.
• Reading SciFi.
• Running Experiments.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1995 (PowerMac G2)

What are the specs of your current computer? I don’t so much have a main computer, but I do have a server (an ex-laptop with a broken screen which is currently down for major maintenance), an ‘Ultra-Portable’ laptop running Windows 7 and Ubuntu, 10.10 and an iMac G5 running Snow Leopard and Ubuntu 10.04 under VirtualBox.

What PC component would you be and why? Processor, because I am very good at processing information, which is why I am very fond of Maths.

Predictions for Windows 8? No startling or ground-breaking new technologies, just making the kernel and the OS smaller and more efficient, increasing operating speeds and maybe a few new core programs.

Final words? Not much, I shall refrain from advertising my site while it is down. I have had to take a break from writing while I have been doing my GCSEs, but I will be starting a review soon.

ashmsa (Scragg)

Hobbies: CB RADIOS, COMPUTERS, Horse Shoes.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1993 286

What are the specs of your current computer? CLONE Gamer

What PC component would you be and why? Memory because I need more in my head LOL

sergiogarcia9

Hobbies: Graphics, Software, Computers, Cars and Motorbikes. Also I like hanging out with my friends and family

First time using a computer (and which one): 1999, can’t remember what brand. I have only been really into PC’s the last 2-3 years.

What are the specs of your current computer? AMD Athlon II X4 Quad Core 2.6ghz, Foxconn motherboard, Nvidia gt220, 4gb Ram, Coolermaster HAF 922 case, 750gb + 500 gb HDD’s (7200rpm)

What PC component would you be and why? The CPU. Because the CPU is what brings it all together, its the main component of every system and an important component as well. Without it, no computer can run.

Predictions for Windows 8? Clean simple GUI, easy interface, and new options regarding customization. But to be honest, i do not think Windows 8 will be made much different than 7. But i’ll wait and find out!

Rich Robinson (Rich)

Hobbies: Road biking, skiing, football (soccer), running, hanging out with my family (and our two puppies), computers, home improvement, cars, tennis, and pretty much anything outdoors.

First time using a computer (and which one): 1990, Commodore 64. If that doesn’t count: 1992, Apple IIc.

What are the specs of your current computer? Quad Core @ 3.0 GHz, 1066 Mhz FSB, 8GB 1066 RAM,  5+ TB HDD, NVIDIA GTS250.

What PC component would you be and why? I’d be an ethernet card so I could learn something with all the inputs coming to the machine (yeah, I’d be nosey) without really thinking about the information I had to push around all day if I didn’t want to.

Predictions for Windows 8? User awareness (auto login, custom interface etc.), quicker startup (instant on), more touch-screen support, and a Windows app store.

Final words? Thanks for reading this and thanks for visiting Windows Guides. I really appreciate all the writers for how hard they work and I thank you for visiting this site.

Final Words

When asked who would win in a battle between a Hot Dog and a Cheeseburger, the team unanimously voted cheeseburger. Now you know what kind of team you’re dealing with :)

I hope you enjoyed reading about our team. I’m sure they’d appreciate a comment or two on their latest posts to let them know how they’re doing on what you’d like to see.

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

iPods;

All iPod Touch models on 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 4.0 & 4.0.1 Firmware

iPhones;

All iPhone models on 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 4.0 & 4.0.1 Firmware

iPads;

All iPad models on 3.2 & 3.2.1 Firmware

(MC Models & New Boot Rom included)

The traditional method of JB’ing would be to download software to your PC and run it with your device connected to your PC via USB.  What’s new about this JB, is that it all happens on the device making the whole process super easy!

Why Jailbreak?

“Jailbreaking is a process that allows iPhone and iPod Touch users to run unofficial code on their devices bypassing Apple’s official distribution mechanism, the App Store. Once Jailbroken, iPhone users are able to download many applications previously unavailable through the App Store via unofficial installers such as Cydia, Rock App, Icy, and Installer. Cydia is popular with users whilst Rock App has a small catalogue of mainly paid apps. Icy and Installer are officially unsupported by their developers and rarely used. Cydia founder Jay Freeman estimates that 8.5% of all iPods and iPhones are jailbroken. A jailbroken iPhone or iPod Touch is still able to use and update apps downloaded and purchased from Apple’s official App Store.”

(Source…)

Basically put, Jailbreaking your device breaks the Apple shackles and opens a whole new world of apps, themes, sounds & much much more!

The Jailbreak

Step 1.

Lets start by making sure everything is up to date. Connect your iDevice to your machine via USB and fire-up iTunes.

In iTunes, head to the toolbar and click Help > About iTunes. (At time of writing it should report 9.2.1.4)

In the navigation pane of iTunes, click on your device and then the summary tab.  Be sure it’s currently running one of the Software versions (firmware’s) outlined above.

Step 2.

Next up is to restore your device.  This isn’t a necessity but is recommended.

Click the Restore button (hold Shift & click if you have already downloaded your firmware.)

You’ll be asked to backup your device.  Choose whether you need to and click the appropriate button.

Then click Restore.

Step 3.

The restoration usually takes a while to complete.  Grab your self a coffee and patiently wait for the slowest device restoration in history!

Once it has finished, choose not to restore from backup and set up as a new iPhone.

Step 4.

Make sure you’re connected to a WIFI network, open Safari and head to this address; http://jailbreakme.com

Give the page a second to load and you’ll notice it says ‘Slide to Jailbreak’.  Slide the button and your JB will begin.  The process took about 5 minutes for me.

And that’s all there is to it.  Your iDevice is now Jailbroken and ready to rock!

The Unlock (iPhone Only)

This unlock will work for;

iPhone4

Baseband 01.59

3G/3GS

Basebands 04.26.08, 05.11.07, 05.12.01 and 05.13.04

To check which baseband you’re on; on your iPhone, go to Settings > General > About. Scroll to the bottom of the screen and under Modem Firmware be sure it reports a version as outlined above.

Step 1.

Open Cydia on your device.

When it’s done loading, click Manage > Sources > Edit (top right) > Add (top left).

In the address bar, enter this URL: repo666.ultrasn0w.com (the o in ultrasnow is a zero) and tap Add Source.

Wait for Cydia to reload all the necessary data and tap Return to Cydia.

Step 2.

At the Cydia homescreen, click Search and type in ultrasn0w

Tap the ultrasn0w from repo666, not SiNfuL

Tap Install > Confirm.

Wait for Cydia & ultrasn0w to do it’s thing and then turn your iPhone completely off and then back on again.

You may have to wait a few minutes for your SIM to be recognised.

Want to SSH into your iDevice?

Need to lock down root access to your iDevice?

Disclaimer:

Please note, whilst Jailbreaking your device is not illegal, Jailbreaking your device may invalidate the remaining warranty held with Apple, Inc. for said device.  Device restoration through iTunes rectifies this however.  Jailbreaking also carries a small risk of rendering the device unusable. Whilst we will do our utmost to help if something does go wrong, please note that we assume no responsibility for any damage caused to any device through Jailbreaking.  Please see this forum for any questions or help.

About Stu

But EXIF also stores more information than that.

If you’re a fan of the CSI series (or any other crime fighting series), you have undoubtedly seen that they from time to time try to verify if a photo has been altered in any way. What they draw their conclusion on, is the EXIF Data stored in the file. What they don’t tell you is that some equipment also stores your GPS-position which may lead someone to your home adress, phonenumber, income etc.

Personal information at stray

In todays digital world, many share their photos on sites like Facebook, Twitter etc. without any concern. Some may blur out faces and other revealing “information” in the photos, but leave personal information available for anyone who knows where to look.

First off, NOT ALL photo equipment store personal information. But how do you know that yours don’t – if you don’t check ?

There are some Cameras that has GPS or GeoTagging features. But for the most part, Cellphones are the ultimate culprit as many nowadays have built-in GPS.

Imagine this scenario: You take pictures around your house, showing off the expensive home cinema system, new car, cellphone etc. You upload these pictures to your public folder. If any of these pictures have your GPS-Location stored in the EXIF, anyone can find your address from the GPS Coordinates (using Google Maps). Then a quick search on Yellow Pages (or similar) reveals who lives at the address, then a new search can reveal your phone number, your tax and income and so on. All of which can lead to identity theft.

Try for your self, and see if you can figure out who lives here.

I’m not writing this to scare you, but… well, okay maybe I am… Just a little…

Cameras

Cameras such as the Ricoh Caplio 500SE, Nikon Coolpix P6000 or some higher-end mobile phones, have a built-in GPS receiver and store the location-information in the EXIF header. Recorded GPS data can also be added to any digital photograph on a computer, either by correlating the time stamps of the photographs with a GPS record from a hand-held GPS receiver or manually using a map or mapping software. The process of adding geographic information to a photograph is known as geocoding. Photo sharing communities like Panoramio, locr or Flickr equally allow their users to upload geocoded pictures or to add geolocation information online.

Cellphones

Most of Nokia’s N-series mobile phones (such as the N95) are equipped with a GPS receiver, using Location Tagger all  images are tagged with corresponding GPS coordinates when GPS signal is available.

The second generation of iPhone (known as the iPhone 3G) by Apple Inc. is also equipped with a GPS receiver, and uses the receiver to GeoTag photographs taken with the device. I’m sure this also applies to Generation 4.

The first generation iPhone is not equipped with GPS, but use a service provided by Skyhook to triangulate and approximate the location (at which the picture was taken) using nearby cellular phone towers and WiFi hot-spot signal strength data. The Skyhook service provides approximate location information which is then added to the EXIF-data associated with the picture.

Also mobile phones with the Android operating system can GeoTag images with the included camera application.

How to check your images

The EXIF information can be read by a number of programs, called EXIF Readers. Not every program can read all the information, depending on how new your equipment is or which EXIF version it supports. I use a free program called KUSO Exif Viewer.

KUSO Exif Viewer can search online maps like yahoo maps, googlemaps etc. using the GPS information found in your image.

Download KUSO [Freeware]

Ensure your privacy

Before you upload a photo to an online site, make sure you first remove any (or all) EXIF information stored in your photo. This can be done with free programs like EXIF Tag Remover. These programs remove what is considered private data. A side from protecting your privacy, you also get smaller image sizes as a bonus.

Download EXIF Delete [Freeware]

Edit or Modify Exif Information

Another program that not only allow you to view or delete EXIF information is a Shareware tool called: Opanda PowerExif Editor. Which also allow you to edit and add Exif Data. My reason for mentioning this last, is that this actually not a free program thou they distribute a light version as shareware.

Download Opanda [Shareware]

To summarize

If you want to protect your privacy, Make sure you really delete all personal information from your images, not just the visible parts.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exif

http://www.digicamhelp.com/glossary/digital-photography-glossary/

About Thomas

Computer geek from the age of 7, which amounts to 30 years of computer experience. From the early days (when every computer company had their own OS) of DOS, Windows 1.0 through Seven...