• TECH

  Got them new phone blues

  Life, James Hein, Published on 30/03/2022

  » It has been 3 years and I have a new phone. Thanks to a very generous rebate from Vodaphone I have the latest flagship in my hands. It feels nice and solid but I immediately put it in a Spigen Neo case, rated as one of the best by some reviewers. I have been happy with the Spigen range over the years. I watched some drop tests and prefer the phone to stay in good shape so I'm also considering a decent screen protector.

• OPINION

  A very taxing problem for all

  Life, James Hein, Published on 08/03/2017

  » Every government wants taxes. It is, after all, how the salaries get paid, and how funds are raised for re-election and looking after the country, often in that order. Consider the UK as an example. Starting in April, there will be a new set of tax regulations based on the IR35 guidelines. With the uncertainty surrounding this change there has been a rush of IT contractors leaving government positions, in many cases over half, halting a wide range of projects. This has been happening for over a year now with, as an example, the Ministry of Defence losing 30 out of 32 contractors last year. When the process of government is stopped because of taxes imposed, you're probably doing something wrong.

• TECH

  Microsoft and the Europeans

  Life, James Hein, Published on 14/12/2016

  » For those upset by Brexit and the election of Trump, Microsoft has an answer -- LinkedIn. In a statement to the EU after the recent acquisition, Microsoft indicated as much after the EU expressed concern that Microsoft would do its usual trick of integrating LinkedIn into Office and combine the databases. There were also concerns that only MS CRM users would have access but, given the take-up of the MS CRM system, that was soon dismissed as a concern. Microsoft has agreed to a number of EU conditions, including third-party access to Office, keeping Office customisable, allowing for separate installation of LinkedIn, and allowing it to be uninstalled. The EU has always been tough on organisations like Microsoft that try to set up any kind of monopoly, but this time it might be a bit of a storm in a teacup.

• TECH

  Microsoft price policy will raise a few eyebrows

  Life, James Hein, Published on 05/10/2016

  » With the Microsoft Server 2016 evaluation version now out, the company is bucking the typical IT trend by planning to make the new version a lot more expensive. Windows Server 12 users thinking about upgrading may be in for a number of pricing surprises. So if you're planning to upgrade, start communicating with Microsoft now to get the best deal for your organisation, at least for the next three years.

• TECH

  Exhausted all lifelines? Call a friend

  Life, James Hein, Published on 06/07/2016

  » People who use computers range in skill levels from absolute novices to advanced, but they all have one thing in common -- eventually they need to ask someone for help. Take the recent case of my Skype not working. I had exhausted my knowledge base, checked a few web searches for solutions and in the end had to call a friend who knows a lot more about networking than I do.

• TECH

  When help is really a hindrance

  Life, James Hein, Published on 16/12/2015

  » Computer help has progressed to the point where it has become annoying. Microsoft is the master of trying to help and at least in my case, not getting it right. Users of Yahoo Mail will also know what I mean. You will be in the middle of doing something and Yahoo will refresh the inbox bumping you out of a move, a delete or some other half-completed action. Note to Yahoo, this is not helping. I can understand that Yahoo wants to get the latest emails to you as quickly as possible but I wonder how those who get lots of emails every day cope with continually being interrupted by the never-ending refresh. I can understand a drive to continually improve things but there is a point where too much help can be less than helpful, and what some consider help is a hindrance to another.

• TECH

  Faster than a speeding bullet? No

  Life, James Hein, Published on 01/07/2015

  » It still surprises me how little the average individual understands about internet speeds and the sharing of a connection. Around the world, companies make grand advertising statements like "up to 100MBs connection speeds", which is, in almost anyone's language quite fast, certainly fast enough to stream ultra high definition video that requires somewhere around 25MBs to perform well. If the server providing the file can provide it at this speed and there is essentially a direct connection between your computer and the server that maintains the speed then yes, you will get the performance advertised. Ironically, if you are connected via some kind of torrent delivery system then it could be 1,000 computers combining to provide the video and you will also get those kinds of speeds in total.

• TECH

  Time for a stainless steel wallet

  Life, James Hein, Published on 08/04/2015

  » Yesterday, as I typed this, one of the guys in the office was walking around with his mobile phone and tapping it to people's wallets and purses to demonstrate how easy it was to pick up information from the cards found there. It was as quick as tap and beep.

• OPINION

  New camera is weighing on my mind

  Life, James Hein, Published on 24/09/2014

  » I've had it for a while now so I finally decided to upgrade my SLR camera. After some research I decided on a Nikon D5300. Nikon, because that's the brand of the lenses and other camera accessories I already own; and the D5300 because it's lightweight and has all the latest features found in mid-range models. If I was going to match my old D200 I probably would've gone for the D7100 which has more knobs that I will ever need and is also a lot heavier.

• OPINION

  Smartphone makers throw a curve

  Life, James Hein, Published on 16/10/2013

  » The internet is an amazing resource. Boasting around 40 billion pages and with exabytes of data, it contains a huge amount of information provided by a multitude of sources. One problem is that a lot of this information is unverified or consists of personal observations and opinions. Despite this, there appears to be a growing trend that the first result received when performing a Web search is the one used to find the answer to a question.

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