Tag: Microsoft Office 365 Training
Microsoft Office 365 Specialist
If you are looking for a Microsoft Office 365 Specialist, we offer fast and responsive experience technical help.
Minnesota Based Microsoft Outlook Expert & Email Specialists and Office 365 Consulting available for break/fix or projects. Call or fill out our form and find out how fast and responsive we are!
We assist with Outlook issues, repairs and problems. Need help with Office 365 migrations or migrating to Microsoft Exchange? Maybe training for Outlook and your new products is needed? Is Office 2013 your struggle?
Whatever your issues are, we can help!
Call today or fill out this form and we will be in touch soon.
Time to check your internet speed
It’s been awhile and I feel I have to remind folks to check their internet speed. The cable companies will change their packages and not send you a message to let you know you to “Upgrade” usually at no cost! Sad, but they do it all the time. What you bought 5 years ago is now outdated and the pricing is the same, their packages now have more download speed at the same price! If you don’t call, you won’t know.
Here is how to test your internet speed, then call your internet company and find out if you’re on the best package.
Go to this site… http://www.speedtest.net/
Click on “Begin Test” in the laptop screen, do not click on “Start Now” as that is another tool we are not using.
The test will run and let you know your download speed and upload speed.
My recommendations for home users: You should have over 10 mbps (megabytes per second) download and 1 up. I have 20 mbps download and almost 5 mbps up! That’s fast and I’m wireless upstairs from my router in the basement!
My recommendations for businesses: If you are just one person in an office, then yes…10 mbps down and 1 up should be fine, but if you have a lot of people in your office, then you want to call your internet provider and check your package. You also might have a bad modem or router if the speed is fine. Just this month I have had 2 businesses call me about “slow computers” and their computers were fine, internet speed was bad.
Some businesses are on a dedicated internet service, and your speed might only be 1.5 down. This is common if you are with companies such as TDS or CBeyond. Some clients I have found are just using these companies for internet only and if that’s they case, I would check with Comcast for business class and get the speed you really need.
How to easily backup your hosted exchange email in Outlook 2013
Awhile back, I had a client who did an update on her iPhone and during that update, her calendar went missing. She was on hosted exchange and due to some “terms and conditions”, a mailbox restore was not going to happen for the client. (By the way, not all companies refuse to do mailbox restores, just this specific one company that will remain nameless for now). Even if you have a company that will restore mailboxes, it’s sometimes time critical to get back your information that you have already stored locally.
So if you have any version of Outlook, not just Outlook 2013 or Outlook 2010, the same instructions will work to some degree. There are screen shots below. The backup file will be stored in your default Outlook folders in your computer, but these should be backed up to an external backup or online.
If you need online backup, please call me to schedule an appointment. We charge $79 for setup and your products costs are $65 for one computer up to $109 for 3 computers.
- In Outlook…click on “File”
- Then click on “Open and Export”
- Then click on “Import and Export”
- Then click on “Export to a file”
- Select “Outlook Data File (.pst)
- Outlook will show you the mailboxes you can export. Click on the “Inbox” and hit “Next”
- Now Click on the browse button, and by default Outlook should save your file where online backup programs know to backup. It should be in the My Documents, Outlook Files folder.
- Create a name for the file and hit “Ok”
- Then hit “Finish”
The larger your hosted exchange is, the longer a backup will take. I recommend doing this on Fridays before you leave the office or before you go to bed. You will not be able to use Outlook during this time.
Click “Finish” and Outlook will now export a full copy of your hosted exchange to your computer.
Tips on how to buy a new computer to replace your Windows XP computer
Since many people are buying new computers because Windows XP will not be supported after April of 2014, here is a guide to buying a new computer and what needs to be done once you buy it. My recommendation? Buy before Christmas too.
Buy the computer is #1!
Here are some ideas on how to purchase, stay in your budget and make a good decision on a computer that will last you many years.
Mac or PC? 
Ah, the big debate! Many PC users are moving to Mac and for a reason, but should you is the question? Many of my clients have called in that have replaced their PC with a Mac to find the learning curve not so easy and the costs outweighing the PC by bounds and leaps. You cannot install your PC software (such as Office) on the Mac and you will need all new. The Mac itself costs much more and the learning curve as I said before…is a lot different, but it can be conquered! Macs are usually better hardware quality, last much longer than a PC and yep, don’t crash as much or get viruses (they can, but not as destructive).
Tower or Laptop?
If you have a nice monitor and prefer a tower, by all means just get another tower. Standard computers are $300 to $500. If you need a more robust computer, you will spend more obviously.
- A good laptop for the home is around $500
- A good business computer will run you $500 to $900.
How much memory should you buy with the computer?
I would buy a computer with 6-8 gigs of memory. If you buy less, one day you will want more. The deals are pretty good with the 6-8 so I recommend that.
What about hard drive size?
Most computers today come with 320 gigs to 1 Terabyte of data space. Get as much as you can for the deal you can get.
Windows 8 or Windows 7?
Try to find a Windows 7 computer if you can, If you buy Windows 8 you will need to have some settings adjusted for you to use it in the manner you are used to. We can help you with that of course if you buy Windows 8
Dell, HP or other brand?
Dell and HP are the most common computers sold today. If you want to spend more, you will get a better quality hardware computer.
Do you have your software ready?
Many of you bought a computer years ago and it already had Office on it. You did not get it for free, many people think so. You did pay for it and it probably came preinstalled with your computer. You need to find your disks and license keys. If you do not have these, you need to contact whoever you bought the computer from to get a copy if you don’t want to buy the new Office 2013.
If you need to buy new software, Microsoft has some handy packages for you to get software at a low price. But they changed their licensing to one computer per install. Not two as it used to be.
Want just basic word and excel for free? Try Open Office, it has the look and feel of Microsoft products without the extra cost
Buy it!
Now, with all the awesome online deals, you can just buy your new computer online…or should you? I’ve been very disappointed lately with some of the new laptops out there with the touchpad on the left side (due to the fact they added on calculator keys to the laptop keyboard). I bought a laptop with the touchpad on the side and I hated it. I could not get used to working “off” my usual and needed the touchpad in the middle. This may bother you as well.
I do recommend you go to a store that sells computers and touch and feel them. Be sure you don’t have heavy glare in the screen, the keys are ok for you to constantly be typing (some are horrible and float, my fingernails got stuck using!), and be sure it’s not too heavy (laptop only of course) if you will be traveling often or carrying it around.
If you find a good laptop in a store and it has my recommendations, buying it at the store may be best, then you can also return it fast too if you need. Returning online is a pain, but you can get better deals too.
TIPS!
- If you have wireless in your house, get a computer with wireless already installed on both laptop (standard) and your tower, not standard, but worth getting!
- Buy the extended warranty if you have a business computer, usually these are good deals and with your business needing to stay running, the warranty may have next day or same day assistance.
Budget!
Stay within a budget that works for you. If you can get financing that is a great deal, go for it. Never buy a computer from a rent a center or retail location that has huge interest rates.
Set it up
Setting it up at home by yourself may be something you want to do or you can hire us to help. Or you can do it yourself and call us if you need help with certain iss
Here is how we can help. Once you get your new computer up and running, you will need the following done to insure you can get back to work quickly or without hassle if you don’t know how to do it.
- Install a Windows 8 start menu
- Transfer your data
- Set up your printers
- Set up your Outlook/Email
- Install your software (new or old)
- Set up your antivirus
- Remote the junk preinstalled
For more tips…
To read a blog published awhile back on buying a desktop, click here
To have us assist, please call 612-865-4475 or email info@callthatgirl.biz and we can help you do the purchasing as well as everything else. You will save money by having us help you even with the buying, did you know most people OVERPAY for their computers?
Subscribe to the Microcenter newsletter, each week they have some good deals! Here is this weeks specials.
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How many Internet browsers do you need?
Did you know that there are currently 5 major web browsers on the market? Most people know about Internet Explorer (IE) and maybe Chrome due to Google’s influence. But Opera, Safari and Firefox also have a large share of the market.
Really? Two? Three? Four? Five? Why do you need so many? I ask because almost all of my clients now use three browsers. Internet Explorer, Firefox and Chrome. Back before Chrome, it was mostly IE and Firefox competing…they said “Use Firefox, it’s more secure and fast”…not anymore. Then came Chrome, they said the same thing “It’s more secure and faster”…not anymore. Might be faster, but it’s not so safe in regards to installing 3rd party software and I have found it allows more junky extensions and redirect pages than any other browser out there.
So back to my question, how many do you need? I need one. I’m a die hard Internet Explorer gal here. I do have three browsers on my computer for testing and Googling. But I could live with just one. And when I say I use one, I just use Internet Explorer, all day everyday. Sometimes when I am working with someone, they will say “It doesn’t work on my computer” and I say “What browser are you in”….yep, not every browser works the same on every computer, so yeah…I get it, why you need more than one. But for day to day, use just one is what I recommend.
Now the reason I am asking how many do you need or use is because of this…when a redirect toolbar gets loaded into a computer (usually downloaded by you unknowingly), it normally installs into all three browsers. I know to remove it from all three, but sometimes other things break while fixing this…such as flash. On occasion, one of the browsers just isn’t going to work the same as it did and on occasion I have to ask the client to just use one browser because I have put in time to fix one (that they don’t use often, and it keeps breaking, usually because they install more 3rd party software after I did a redirect removal believe it or not!).
My job sometimes never ends 🙂
If you have any questions or IT support needs don’t hesitate to contact Call That Girl today by scheduling an appointment here!
What to do if the power cord for your laptop stops working
Drat, that power cord. Always causing problems! Most clients call us for a few reasons in regards to power issues with their laptop. Sometimes we can fix it, sometimes we cannot. Most of the time, we can fix it, but the cost is roughly $150 (it’s a hardware repair, done inside the computer and very labor intensive). If the hardware, also known as a DC jack, is fine, then the problem is most likely a dead power supply (cord).
How to figure out if it’s your power cord:
Unfortunately, there’s not always a clear cut sign as to which is your problem. One thing you can tryif you have another that fits and is the same voltage (using a different voltage charger can mess with your computer) is to plug in a different power supply and see if your computer gets a full charge. If it does, then your power cord is most likely the cause. If this still doesn’t work or you don’t have an extra cord, you can drop off your computer for a free diagnosis and let us figure out what exactly is going on!
What to do if it’s your power cord:
- Purchase a new power adapter from the manufacturer = spendy, but probably best if your laptop is under 3 years old.
- Purchase one from Best Buy or Microcenter = also spendy, but convenient.
- Purchase a generic adapter set online = Most folks do this, but…the adapter can be a problem later. They will either stop working or fail before a manufactured one will.