Scobie.Net

  • Can you live in the Cloud?

    What is the shape of that cloud that has been brewing up for quite a few years and can you put all your computing needs in it? The cloud we talk about for computing means really nothing more than doing your work and play through some service or website that does not use anything other…

  • Didn’t I just get a new operating system last year?

    This must be the year of operating system upgrades. Just as people are settling into Windows 7 and Lion (OS X 10.7), both pretty major operating system changes released in just the past year or two, we are now facing the release of Windows 8 and OS 10.8 (Mountain Lion) Interestingly, neither are going to…

  • Virtual Vacations, seeing the world for free

    There may too many places you want to still visit but you can tour many of them over the Web. First off, take advantage of Google’s Street View taken around the world. Now, you can “vacation” in such spots as Saint Brendan’s Cathedral in Ireland, Shark Bay in Australia, or even the Historic District of…

  • When to buy a new computer

    When Microsoft stops supporting an operating system, such as XP Service Pack 3, on April 8, 2014. When the new software you just have to have won’t work well on your old computer. When you are learning a new computer skill, like music editing, on that old computer that just barely handles email. When you…

  • Fire-up your web browser(s)!

    Since the web browser is the focus point for many attacks on your personal computer, why do we spend money and time on firewalls and security software that does not seem to catch things like fake antivirus programs? I propose that you start using multiple web browsers, along with keeping up with security updates and…

  • How do I know which updates to trust?

    Yes, people, you do want to keep up with security updates for all those programs and such on your computers. But, how do you recognize the legitimate ones? The written list includes: Windows Security Updates, Adobe Reader and Flash updates (or pretty much any update from Adobe) and Java. Here are images of what to…