2008

Cheap laptop fix: How I learned to upgrade my own RAM

Embarrassing admission of the month: before last Friday, I'd never replaced my own RAM.

Honestly, the explanation's simple: I tend to buy new laptops before I consider upgrading RAM. The last time I considered a RAM boost was probably a decade ago, and back then I paid to have it installed. I also found the idea of RAM slightly less immediately appealing. Upgrading a hard drive? Sure, lots of storage space. New processor? Faster speeds. But RAM...for many people, it might lack a certain sexiness or essential quality that justifies the upgrade.

It took my friend persistently reminding me that his RAM upgrade on the same laptop model (a late 2008 aluminum MacBook) paid huge dividends on performance to finally pull the trigger. I'm glad I did.… Read more

Chrome and Office updates address vulnerabilities

Yesterday Microsoft released updates for Office 2008 and Office 2011 for OS X, which include patches for a couple of vulnerabilities in PowerPoint and Word.

In the security bulletin accompanying the Office 2011 update, Microsoft warned that the vulnerabilities include exploits in which an attacker can use specially crafted Word files to gain access to the system. In addition, the updates address the reliability and stability of Excel and Outlook, fixing problems in which the programs could exit unexpectedly or give improper password expiration notifications.

For the Office 2008 update, the vulnerability is similar in that opening a specially crafted … Read more

Microsoft releases updates for Office 2011 and 2008 for OS X

Microsoft has released updates for Office 2011 and Office 2008, both of which are the only Office suites that will run in OS X Lion since they contain code for Intel chips. The update addresses critical security flaws in the program that could allow an attacker to execute malicious code on a system, and also provides a number of fixes and improvements to the programs, including the following:

Office 2011:

Office documents not opening in some Web browsers PowerPoint crashing unexpectedly when using Command-Tab Excel crashing when switching workbooks or when saving files Dutch citations not appearing properly in Word … Read more

Office updates address compatibility and security issues

Microsoft recently issued updates for Office versions 2004, 2008, and 2011, which address security flaws that could leave your computer vulnerable to attacks. This vulnerability is addressed in all three releases, but in addition the update for Office 2011 includes some bug fixes for errors with Word and Outlook.

The updaters can be downloaded using Microsoft's AutoUpdate utility, or can be downloaded from the following locations:

Office 2011 14.1.2 Update

Office 2008 12.3

Office 2004 11.6.4

The specifics for the Office 2011 update are that Outlook now handles time zones more reliably so "… Read more

Simple scheduler

It's not always easy to keep up with the activities of everyone in the household, and traditional calendars can quickly become cluttered and hard to read when multiple people are using them to manage their schedules. Activity Scheduler 2008 is a basic program that lets users create and view calendars for multiple people or purposes. It's nothing fancy, but it might be just what you need to keep track of all your goings-on.

The program's interface is plain and easy to navigate. The bulk of it is taken up by the calendar itself, which can be viewed … Read more

LaCie unveils Windows Server-based 5-bay NAS

It's been a while since I last had opportunity to take on a Windows Server-based NAS server, such as the Acer Aspire EasyStore or HP's MediaSmart series. And now when Microsoft fanboys are starting to worry that the company has abandoned the NAS server market, LaCie has announced its first network storage server that's based on an NAS-specific operating system (OS) from the software giant, the 5big Storage Server.

The new NAS server is powered by Microsoft's Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Standard operating system, which was introduced in October 2010 and is based on Windows … Read more

Report: Windows 7 almost five times more secure than XP

Windows 7 is four to five times less vulnerable to malware infections than is Windows XP.

Those are the findings of Microsoft's latest Security Intelligence Report (PDF), which detailed in depth the state of software vulnerabilities, exploits, security breaches, and malware in 2010.

Overall, the study found that infection rates for newer Microsoft operating systems with the latest service packs are consistently lower than those for older OSes, giving Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 the highest marks for security.

Looking at the number of reported infections per 1,000 computers, Microsoft found that Windows 7 64-bit had … Read more

Addressing problems with installing Office for Mac updates

Microsoft released updates to Office 2011 and other Office versions earlier this week that provide a number of security updates to the program and are recommended installations for people running Office on their Macs. The updates seem to install fine on most systems, but a few people have contacted us and mentioned on the Office for Mac forums that they are experiencing problems with hanging or other errors when attempting to install.

If you are having troubles installing the latest updates, there are a few things you can try:

Turn off sync services in Outlook's preferences MacFixIt reader "… Read more

Consumer Reports rate some Japanese used cars as 'more reliable'

In the market for a used car? Here's some good news. Consumer Reports today released its list of used cars that rate as more reliable than their brand-new counterparts.

The Consumer Reports' Annual Auto issue lists 11 2008 models with about the same or even fewer problems than comparable 2010 models. That list includes the 2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser and Yaris with a reported 11 and 12 problems per 100 vehicles, respectively. Although Consumer Reports reveals the average 2010 car had 13 problems per 100. Consumer Reports did not rate the FJ Cruiser and Yaris with high in road … Read more