Outlook .pst file backup procedure

To manually back up your Outlook:

1. In Outlook, Go to File > Import and Export > Export to a File.

2. Click Next.

3. Select Personal Folder File (.pst); click Next.

4. Highlight "Mailbox-Your Name".

5. Check "Include Subfolders".

6. Click Next.

7. In the "Save Exported File as:" field use the Browse button to select the location and file name of this .pst file

8. Select "Replace Duplicates with Items Exported".

This creates a nice, compacted version of your mail, calendar and address book in case the new software does something terrible to Outlook.

9. Click Finish.

External enclosures

Vantec seems to be making some well rated HDD enclosures.

What internet provider do I choose?

Comcast is typically one generation ahead of Qwest, mostly because of the medium (coax is newer than copper). My default is to go for cable, but it depends on your neighborhood. There is a third option, Clear, that just became available in our market too.
When choosing your interwebs, there are multiple variables. Cost and speed duke it out for primacy. Reliability and convenience run a distant second. Check both Comcast and Qwest to see how fast you can get. In older Portland neighborhoods, Qwest often sucks. In Beaverton, it is significantly faster. Once you get their assurance of x speed for x location, check the price. Both have rotating specials that will save you a ton of money.
Do NOT ever use their built in email. If you ever switch providers, you get the ugly. This way, once your special for X internet provider ends, you switch to Y.
Clear is a dark horse in this race. They are a new 4G wireless provider in the area, at about 4MBps (comparable with low-end cable or high-end DSL). It works like wifi with a 7 mile range. Portland was the second US market to get it, so the hardware you buy will only work in the metro area and, I think, D.C. or Virginia somewhere. It's certainly growing, but it will take several years to cover the country. It is optimal for someone who needs to do their computer work on the road, but in PDX.

Countdown for XP and the near future of computing

This email is targeted at people who may need to buy a new computer in the next year or so.

As many of you know, Windows has been attempting to phase out XP for Vista for over a year now. Though they've extended the cutoff date a couple of times, it looks like this last one is the end: July 31, 2009.

Now, Vista is not a terrible operating system, and will probably work just fine for most people. The major complaints about it are that they've moved some of the features around and made them hard to find (If you have started using Internet Explorer 7 or Office 2007 you have already got a taste of this) and that some older printers and other hardware devices may not have software written for Vista, rendering them useless. There are also rumors of older versions of software not running in Vista, forcing you to buy new updated copies. If your hardware devices are under two years old and you aren't planning on installing old copies of software you have laying around, Vista should work for you.

However, if you still want a new computer that has XP on it, you'll need to do so before the cutoff date. Otherwise, you'll be stuck with Vista. Even so, it's difficult to find XP today. Here are some tricks to finding XP that you may not know about.

If you are in the market for a computer and you go to just about any electronics store or website, you will only find Vista listed. Netbooks (those tiny laptops) are the exception, Vista is too much for most of them to run, so they still come with XP. To find XP, go online and look for computers that have Vista Ultimate Edition or Vista Business Edition. For a fee ($75-$150) the vendor will typically allow you to choose to "downgrade" from Vista to XP. When you get the computer, you will get two operating system install discs, and usually XP will be preinstalled. You'll have a copy of Vista included so that you can upgrade your XP later on if you need to.

I helped a client buy a laptop using this downgrade method yesterday, from dell.com. Lenovo (formerly IBM) is known to have the same sort of downgrade opportunities, as may others. The total cost, before shipping, was about $650. A comparable Vista version of that laptop would have been about $100 less.

What happens after XP goes away?
Windows is working on the next version of the operating system, named Windows 7. From the rumors around the tech sites, it is slated to be released in the first quarter of 2010. It appears to be a reworked and fine tuned version of Vista, so it will probably have the same sorts of problems. However, Microsoft is actually listening to the beta testers, so it may be better. Regardless, XP will be out of date, new software will only be being written for Windows 7 or Vista, so you'll be having to buy it eventually. Or going Mac.

...and should you even buy a computer now? Are faster ones on the horizon?
Sort of. Intel just released a new processor type that is faster, and uses faster memory chips. It is designed for high end corporate computers and servers, but it is likely that it will make it into desktop machines within a year, and perhaps laptops a little later than that. It is not radically different, just faster. Additionally, both Intel and AMD are working on smaller CPUs, which translates to lower power and therefore longer laptop battery life. The Intel version of this will take at least a year to hit the market (they are currently building the fab plant in Hillsboro). The AMD version doesn't matter, as AMD is running at least a year behind Intel in laptop chip breakthroughs (their desktop chips are cheaper and just as fast though). The Intel Core 2 Duo is currently the cutting edge, and looks to stay that way for about a year.
If you wait a year to buy, you're going to get an upgrade to your computing power. However, it does not look like a dramatic difference. Computers have come to the point that they are so fast, the typical upgrades do not make a huge difference in the perceived speed of the computer. It isn't like in the past, where you *had* to upgrade your computer. Now older computers are humming along just fine with newer versions of software. Max out the memory, and keep running with it until it breaks.

You are backing up your data, right?

Intro

I use many IT tools when fixing computers, and sometimes I forget which one fixed a particular problem. This blog is a memo to myself, helping me choose the right tool for the right job.