Microsoft recently announced that their new version of Microsoft Office likely to be named Microsoft Office 2013 will be released early next year.  As previous, there are likely to be different prices depending on which version purchased. Using the current prices of Microsoft Office 2010 at Staples you can pay as little as $119.99 or as much as $499.99. The price is influenced by whether you are purchasing a CD, the version being purchased and how many machines it is licensed for.

Microsoft Office is the best known and the best office suite software. It also is the most expensive. There are free alternatives to Microsoft Office that are compatible with Microsoft Office applications. The three main ones are Google Drive, Libre Office and Open Office.  Each has their own features and you would need to determine which is best for you if you choose to go the free route.

Google Drive formerly Google Docs is web based and requires you to have a Google account.  You can use it when you are not online but there are certain constraints that you need to follow.  For one you need to be using the Google Chrome browser. This should not be an issue because many (myself included) view Google Chrome as the best browser out there for accessing the internet. It is great for sharing files whether it is with selected people or with everyone.  You can choose whether people can only view the file or edit it as well. You can collaborate in real time with others who have editing privileges as they can change the file contents while you are also working on it.

Libre Office first launched in September 2010 is the new kid on the block.  When Open Office was purchased by Sun there was concern that Open Office would take a different path and perhaps not be free. This led to Libre Office.  While there are many similarities, you can edit files in a Portable Document Format (PDF) in Libre Office but not Open Office or even Microsoft Office.  It is not the most user friendly interface to do so but it can be done. Libre Office and Open Office have components for spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, word procession and database. Google Drive does not currently support a data base application among its components.

Open Office is in essence the predecessor to Libre Office.  As mentioned previous when Oracle purchased Open Office there was concern over the future direction of it.  In 2011 Oracle donated Open Office to the Apache Software Foundation. There are many similarities between Open Office and Libre Office as noted above. Open Office is easier to download but you cannot edit PDF files using it.  The interfaces for both are similar to Microsoft Office (MS Office). Open Office offers more Templates on its site than Libre Office but Libre Office offers more functionality by offering extensions. Per Wikipedia some notable users of Open Office are Singapore’s Ministry of Defense, and Banco do Brasil.
  
So do you continue to use Microsoft Office or do you switch and if so which do you use?  From a personal standpoint being a power user who also uses Microsoft Office in my line of work as I now am also creating customized Excel spreadsheets I will continue using Microsoft Office.  If you are not a power user of Microsoft Office and do not need to use it for work, using a free version is a viable alternative. The free versions offer approximately 75-90% of the features  offered by MS Office. The features not offered in the free versions tend to be more advanced.  I also find the three programs noted user friendly.  The more expensive versions of MS Office include Outlook, Publisher, Access and OneNote.  Access is a database program as Base in both Open Office and Libre Office are as well.  Draw is an alternative to Publisher again in both Open Office and Libre Office.  There are good free alternatives to OneNote and Outlook as well.

If you wish to know more about which Office Suite you should use or about saving time and even $$ from Microsoft Excel spreadsheets call me at (917) 572-3468 or email me at mike@computerconciergeny.com

Due to the recent acquisition of by LastPass, Xmarks will continue on.  It is a great tool for backing up your favorites/bookmarks as well as for syncing them across browsers and other computers. You can sync your bookmarks currently among Firefox, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, and Safari browsers.  


You need to decide which computer and browser is where you will make initial changes to your bookmarks. Usually this will be the browser that you use most often on your main computer.  From here, you can sync across your other browsers and any other computers you have.  Xmarks allows you to merge bookmarks on Xmarks server with your browser, keep bookmarks on your browser discarding those on the server (main bookmark), keep the bookmarks on the server while discarding those on your browser.  You also can integrate passwords (not recommended), and open tabs as well as enabling automatic synchronization. This is a great timesaver that eliminates the need to do this manually. A feature of Xmarks is also that you can be away from your computers but can retrieve that necessary site that you wish to access but cannot remember the name by accessing the website and logging into it. I found the instructions easy to follow and the program is user friendly.


A paid version of Xmarks ($12 annually) allows you to sync between your smartphone and track and backup all changes to your bookmarks. My personal opinion is that this is not needed.  


While there are ways to save your bookmarks on your computer and sync using your saved bookmarks on your computer, Xmarks is a free way to do this saving time and aggravation.


I also want to extend my best wishes to those celebrating a very Merry Christmas and to all a very Happy and prosperous 2011.

For those wanting to learn a new subject or brush up on a new one, GCFLearnFree.org is a good site to start.  With courses on subjects like computer software (particularly Microsoft Office), everyday life, money, and career this is a good place to go to for free courses. You can study at your own pace and there are accompanying videos that aid in your grasping the subject and greatly support the content taught. You also can register for courses given online that are graded by instructors. These instructors also will also provide help and feedback as well. You can finish these courses in a few days or up to 4 weeks. Upon completion for these you are awarded a certificate of completion.  You are not awarded a certificate for completing the self paced courses. There are also some good GCF videos on YouTube as well.  See link:  http://www.youtube.com/user/gcflearnfree

Some of these courses are very basic like "Cash Back".  Others like the ones for the various editions of Microsoft Office Excel and Microsoft Office Access are more involved.  By creating an account you are able to see what courses you have taken or are in the process of taking.  Courses that are more involved have various sections and a challenge at the end of each section. What I like about the Microsoft Office courses are that they are not only offered for the current version but for several previous versions. It is not necessary to be using the current version to get instruction that is meaningful for you. For those who are beginners with regards to computers, their Computer Basics course is useful and informative.  Most of their courses are computer related. Their Facebook page notes that  they provide "innovative online learning opportunities to anyone who wants to improve their technology, literacy, and math skills."

You may wonder how are they able to do this for free. GCFLearnFree.org is supported by the Goodwill Community Foundation. GCFLearnFree.org serves to support the educational mission of the Goodwill Community Foundation which is "to create and provide education, employment, and life enrichment opportunities for people who desire to improve the quality of their lives" as per the GCFLearnFree.org site. It certainly is a good site to go to for your lifelong education.

Just like we all or at least should do an oil change every 3,000 miles to keep our cars running properly and go for an annual physical exam so that we are healthy and stay that way, we also need to do preventive maintenance on our computers.  We need to be proactive with our computers, cars, ourselves, etc.  Here are a few computer maintenance tips that will help increase the life of your computer:

1. Defragmenting your hard drive - This reorganizes the files on your hard drive that allows them to be accessed more efficiently. This should be done on a weekly basis.  If it is not done, your computer will operate at a notably slower  pace.  Go into your "Start" tab select "All Programs" then "Accessories", "System Tools", "Disk Defragmenter".  This can be set to run automatically.  "My Defrag" and "Defraggler" are free programs that will also defrag your computer.  Norton Systemworks is a security suite that offers defragging and can be purchased online and at stores. 
2. Your computer also accumulates files that you no longer need. These are files such as temporary internet files, deleted files in your recycle bin and windows temporary files.  To clean up unneeded files, go to your start menu.  In the search bar type in ""Disk cleanup" and select  the Disk Cleanup program shown on top.  The program will scan for files that can be safely deleted.  Select those files you wish to delete and select OK to delete.  This should be done on a weekly basis as well.  A free program CCleaner can be downloaded that will perform this and I recommend this program. 
3. Backup, Backup, Backup.  I cannot say this enough.  I recently did a blog about backing up data.  http://computerconciergeny.com/3/post/2010/06/back-up-back-up-back-up.html.  80% of computer users do not have backup software installed on their computer.  This is a cheap insurance policy against data loss.  Recovering data on your hard drive from a data recovery service will run about $500 minimum up to a few thousand. Recovery is not guaranteed. One service also prices out by emergency service which is 24 hours; priority service which is 3 days; and standard service which is 2 weeks turnaround time. If you want 24 hour turnaround you will pay for that level of service.  As I noted in my last blog, Dropbox can be used to back up your data as well in the cloud as well as to other computers. http://computerconciergeny.com/3/post/2010/06/dropbox-a-real-good-program-for-file-sharing-and-accessing-files-away-from-your-computer.html.  Up to 2GB is free.  You can also back up up to 50GB for 9.99 monthly.  I discussed other backup sites in my blog on backing up.  
4. Make sure your security and anti virus, anti spyware software are current and up to date.  If not, your computer is an open target for new viruses, malware, etc.
5. You also want to check your hard drive about monthly to fix file system errors and recover bad sectors on your hard drive.  This may take several hours so make sure you will not need your computer for a while.  Select "Computer" or "My Computer" Select "C:" and right click on and select "Properties" and then select the "Tools" tab. You then select Error Checking. Select automatically fix file system errors and scan and attempt recovery of bad sectors.  When you get the prompt asking if you want to run this the next time you start your computer, select yes.  Then restart your computer. Again, it may take a while to run.  

By following these steps you will help to extend the useful life of your computer.