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Apple vs Microsoft

Computers & Electronics,

The big battle out there in the land of super players of the computer world is always Apple vs Microsoft. It seems like people have to be on one side or the other. But more recently the battle lines have been reduced a bit by the huge popularity of the iPhone. For some people the iPhone is their first venture into Apple products. They have not used a mac before and have been solid users of Microsoft Windows on the home computers. But with the advent of the popularity of the iPhone more people are realising that a mac is maybe not such an alien thing as they thought and might be worth a try.

There are many fundamental differences between using an Apple Mac and a Microsoft based computer that for most of your everyday users, who have got used to using one and have found that hard enough, they are not going to learn a whole new set of commands and a different user interface. Most people  in fact do not really need a Mac. In fact I would go as far as saying most people do not really need a full spec computer. How many people do you know that just use their computer or laptop just to check emails, surf the web and maybe create the odd document? It would be interesting to see the statistics on that kind of usage. Maybe that is limited to the older age group and that kind of use will drop out in time. If that is the case then there is an argument to be had that the use of Apple products will increase in time with the users wishing to maximise the available technology.

It would be a bit of a generalisation to say that the majority of Apple mac users are in some way connected to art and design – the Apple system has long been heralded as the best way to view and edit photos, graphic and other kinds of artwork, but as digital manipulation expands, maybe the use of Macs will too.

For Microsoft users there are plenty of programs that may match up to the capabilities of the Apple Mac (although that is disputed by the Mac users) plus with the ‘everyday surfers’ they still have a large proportion of the market, so they should still have a huge user base for years to come. However, the more that people use their iPhones as a computer (and if you can do your email and surf then that is a big bonus), then the use of standard PCs and Laptops may diminish in time anyway and at that point, who will lose the lion’s share of the market?

Blank Calendar – Build Your Own

Business, ,

If you are looking for a blank calendar that you can use for any year or any month then you can certainly build your own calendar using some software that you might already have installed.

You can find blank calendars for 2011 or 2012 in Microsoft Excel and in Microsoft Word and more than likely many other packages that you already have installed on your computer. if you are using Microsoft Word then open the package and click on New, then select document type Calendar. You will then have a selection of which type of calendar you wish to create including the 2011 calendar and more than likely soon the option of the 2012 calendar will come up. In any case, if you want to choose another year for your calendar  you can select these in the other calendar options.

The templates that are available for blank calenders are variable and you can choose from many different images for your calendar or styles depending on what type of data you want to enter for each day and how much space you might need for each entry.

So it is easy to customize and print your own 2011 calendar, 2012 calendar or indeed a blank calendar that is suitable for any year.

Staples and Office Depot

Business,

Staples and Office Depot are two of the largest stationary and related equipment chains in the US, as well as Staples being an international brand name.

There have been many discussions of the merger of Staples and Office Depot over the years starting in 1996 when plans of a merger were announced. However, the merger was stopped by the Federal Trade Commission as it was believed that it would be unfair on consumers as the combined retail giant would have too much of a monopoly on office products and hence be able to push prices up too much.

Since then Staples and Office Depot has been big commercial rivals in the same field with both retailers managing to survive in the tough times. However, there has been one other big player in the stationary and office supplies industry in the US and that is OfficeMax and now that the recession is really biting in the US it is thought that the decline in earnings for office Depot in particular means that they will need to merge with officeMax in order to be able to compete with Staples.

Economic times have changed since the proposed merger of Staples and Office Depot in 1996 so it would be interesting to see what developments are made in this industry in the next year as otherwise it looks likely that at least one player may fall by the wayside after the massive falls in the purchasing of office equipment over the last 4-5 years.

Paypal and Online Security

Business, ,

In the current climate it is really important that we all take an active role in online security of our financial affairs. One of the main players and easiest ways to make payments to people online is PayPal. Paypal are constantly reviewing their security so that people are not scammed or conned out of their money.

There are quite a few security measures that you can take to make sure your PayPal account is kept secure. Some of them are pretty obvious like never giving your password out to anyone and not clicking on emails that purport to be from PayPal but are not.

Some things that you can do with regards to security and your PayPal account are as follows:

  • Ensure you have the most up to date version of your browser and the browser you have is secure and recommended by Paypal
  • Keep a check on your PayPal activity so that you notice any untoward activity quickly
  • Report any unusual activity to PayPal promptly
  • Ensure that your computer is protected including having anti virus software installed
  • Log in to your account with an extra secure key (see below)
The PayPal security key is a feature that has been introduced to make Paypal even more secure.  Not only do you use your email address and password to login, but you also use a personal security key. The key can be generated either by a credit card sized security key that you can order from PayPal (it costs £20 or $29.99). Each time you use it it generates a new key that you then enter to access your PayPal data, thus ensuring that no-one else can access it.
Otherwise you can register your mobile phone to get a security key, You will then be sent a code by SMS to allow access. The downside is that you might be charged for each SMS that you receive.
So if you use your PayPal account regularly and for large transactions then it may well be worth registering for the PayPal Security Key to get extra peace of mind.

Hair Feathers and Fascinators

Beauty & Personal Care

Evolving from the traditional hat is the current fashion for fascinators and another new fashion is that of adding hair feather extensions.

Hair feather extensions are similar in a way to real hair extensions which can be integrated with your real hair, except of course it is obvious that the hair feathers are not part of your hair! Hair feathers are a really fun way of customizing your look and there are some really weird and wacky feather that you can get. In this way you can add color and individuality to your hair with the option to change the look at any time. Some of these feathers can be treated like real hair so that you can blow dry and straighten/curl them as you like, so forming part of your current hairstyle. They can be made from natural feathers or else hand made.

Fascinator hats were made popular by Kate Middleton amongst other people and are usually worn to events and weddings etc in place of actual hats. They are preferred by younger people and can be fun and funky but at the same time be stylish coupled with your stunning outfit.