Valley Computer Group

Welcome to our Valley Computer users Group of the Nambucca Valley, NSW Australia. Still in our infancy  we are non profit group for those interested in computers and their use.  

 The changes in technology ensure there’s always new hardware and software to whet our appetites and dream of the next upgrade.

 

The Group offers a friendy enviroment where you can learn about computers, share your knowledge and skills and get help with hardware and software.

For the cost of membership you can bring in the troublesome computer and get help from our very knowledgeable collective. 

It’s the cheapest repair station in Nambucca and Macksville;

We meet every second fortnight. For more information check out our events page or email us at ValleyComputer Group@gmail.com

I was disappointed  to see that windows 7 does not include a simple utility to resize / reduce pictures straight out of the box.

Believe it or not this feature has been hidden in the operating system since at least 2002 (right click a photo and send to email recipient offers ‘make smaller’ for emailing). But ask any IT professional & this is a strange way to access such a useful feature.

As usual the solution has to be free, easy to use and as unobtrusive as possible. Normally this would never point to a Microsoft product but this time it does. 

For XP users I recommend Microsoft Powertoys Image Resizer.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx

For Window Vista and Windows 7 users the remake is available from Codeplex;
http://imageresizer.codeplex.com/

Both utilities offer the ability to right click a photo and select from several reduced sizes.

Now if it could just offer basic file format conversion e.g. gif to jpg it would be perfect. As is this is still an excellent utility.   

This is an all-in-one PC Hardware & maintenance  bootable CD which has all types of utilities, Partition Tools, Disk Clone Tools, Antivirus Tools, Recovery Tools, Testing Tools, Hard Disk Tools etc.

This all purpose CD that contained all my favourite software packaged into one easy to use CD. In fact I was so happy with my version 10.6 disk that I did not bother to update for some time.

Unfortunately since version 10.6 there has been some changes that have left me scratching my head. The boot menu has changed but more importantly the good partitioning and clone tools have vanished.  I was hoping this was just a short term problem but now in version 13 they are still nowhere to be seen.

Does this mean that they have been corrected for not following licencing restrictions? or are they like me having difficulty finding software that performs these functions on Vista/Win7 systems with any stability or reliability?  Or have they just decided that these are not needed? Who knows… but even without these utilities the CD is still a must have.

Big-name companies may soon be able to place adverts on the Windows 7 desktop thanks to a marketing-friendly initiative from Microsoft.

The theory seems to be that Windows Themes, Gadgets, Internet Explorer 8 extensions can all be linked together to create a complete branded desktop and Internet "experience" for the likes of Ducati, Porsche, Fox Movies and others who are participating in a not-so-hush trial. If successful, it could lead to a flood of other marques creating downloadable bundles for fans to adorn their systems, but with a greater product focus than the traditional fan-made themes and backgrounds of old.

more info:
http://apcmag.com/advertising-coming-to-a-windows-7-desktop-near-you.htm

This post has been created using Live Writer. Live Writer is an extra that can be downloaded free for Windows 7 as part of the Live Essentials pack.

Why does Microsoft not just include these applications as part of the original Window 7 CD? Don’t know really! I can understand that most of these applications are not for everyone but the same can be said for most of the inclusions that are on the DVD.

Anyway Live Essentials consists of

• Live Family Safety
• Live Messenger
• Live Movie Maker
• Live Mail
• Live Writer
• Live Photo Gallery
• and the Windows Live Toolbar

I think most of these are worth it, but I don’t like the toolbar. Why is it that Software manufactures must include some near useless toolbar. I would prefer to keep my web browser sleek, simple and maximise my speed and web content window.

Get Live Essentials from http://download.live.com/