Microsoft

The IT Guys (WA) are Microsoft Silver Partners and offer Microsoft product advise, repairs and troubleshooting Microsoft Hardware Microsoft Windows Laptop Repairs Cracked Laptop Screen Repairs Laptop Power Supply Replacement Laptop Upgrades – Windows Laptop Upgrades Microsoft Windows Devices – Purchasing Microsoft Laptops, Notebooks and Ultrabooks Microsoft Surface Dell Computers and Servers Microsoft Software Buy Office 365 Personal Buy Office Home & Business Buy Office Home & Student Buy Office Professional Microsoft Project Comparison Chart Buy Project Professional Buy Project Standard Microsoft Visio Comparison Chart Buy Visio Professional Buy Visio Standard Microsoft Hosted Exchange Microsoft Office 365 for Business Microsoft Surface Range, Sales and Support :jk:

Microsoft forcing Mac users to upgrade macOS devices

In the near future Microsoft will force Mac users to upgrade their macOS devices every 3 or 4 years … … if you want to run a fully supported Microsoft Office version on a macOS device. If you use Microsoft Office on a Mac and your Mac is not running macOS Catalina or macOS Big Sur (or later) and is not listed below, it is probably time to buy a new Mac, an iPad Pro or a Windows computer as Microsoft Office support, updates and compatibility will cease once macOS Monterey is released before the end of 2021. MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2012 or later) MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid 2012 or later) MacBook Air (13-inch, Mid 2012 or later) MacBook Air (11-inch, Mid 2012 or later) MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015 or later) iMac Pro (2017 or later) iMac (27-inch, Late 2012 or later) iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2012 or later) Mac mini (Late 2012 or later) Mac Pro (Late 2013 or later) (source: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210222) and the reason is ……….. MICROSOFT Upgrade macOS to continue receiving Microsoft 365 and Office for Mac updates Microsoft have stated “To provide you with the best experience, Microsoft 365 for Mac and Office 2021 for Mac supports the three most recent versions of Apple’s macOS” And with the imminent release of macOS Monterey (10.16) scheduled for November/December 2021 ….. only macOS (10.14) Catalina and macOS (10.15) Big Sur will also be supported, Mojave (macOS 10.13) will not be supported once Monterey is released. Users of older (pre-2012) Macs running macOS 10.12 High Sierra or earlier have not been receiving updates since November 10, 2020 and may already have noticed Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote. “issues” that cannot be resolved in the usual manner by updating office and the macOS. How to check your Mac’s model and macOS version Checking Microsoft Office for updates Attempt to update Office, from any Office application (Word, Excel, Outlook etc) by doing the following on the top menu bar, click on “Help” then “Check For Updates” Then select “Check for Updates” button if you have an unsupported macOS an attempted update will throw the following errors… With the error “MacOS Upgrade Required” Checking macOS Updates Apple Symbol > About This Mac > Software Update Click on the “Software Update” button If updates are available, you will be prompted to update the macOS, if up-to-date, you see a message such as this, confirming the macOS installed If the specification of your Mac states it is upgradeable but an upgrade it is not offered as an option, you may need to download the required update and install from the download (see How to get old versions of macOS) WARNING – never attempt an OS upgrade before firstly ensuring you have a complete time-machine backup as there is a chance you may corrupt or brick the computers macOS or even cause the disk-drive to fail. Will Office continue to work without the updates? Microsoft stated “If you continue with an older version of macOS, your Office apps will continue to work but you will no longer receive any updates including security updates” New installs of Office 365 for Mac will also require macOS 10.15 Catalina or newer starting next month. The IT Guys (WA) as Apple Authorised Resellers can purchase new Apple computers on your behalf if you need to purchase one or more devices but for individual purchases we strongly recommend purchasing directly from the Apple website :jk:

Hackers Breach Thousands of Microsoft Customers Around the World

March 2021 – Hackers Breach Thousands of Microsoft Customers Around the World Firstly the good news. If you are a client of the IT Guys (WA) or Hydrid ICT and we provide you with email support services, then you are probably safe. All Hybrid ICT & The IT Guys (WA) clients are setup on Microsoft “Hosted” Exchange. The mail servers are cloud-based and hosted by Microsoft themselves. Microsoft recently confirmed that customers using its cloud-based email system  (Hosted Exchange) are not affected. However, if your company or e-mail provider runs an “old” or “unsupported” version of Microsoft Exchange Server, then you/they could be in trouble. Many of the latest batch of hack victims are small-to medium-sized business and local government agencies according to the reference Bloomberg article. Organizations that could be most impacted are those that have an email server that’s running the vulnerable software and exposed directly to the internet, a risky setup that larger ones usually avoid. How can I determine if I am using Microsoft “Hosted” Exchange or an older version of exchange? Step 1 Make sure Outlook is running, then locate the Outlook icon by clicking the “^” (hidden icon) symbol. Step 2 Hold the “Ctrl” key down and with the mouse right-click over the Outlook symbol and select “Connection Status” Step 3 In the new window that appears called “Outlook Connection Status”, under “Server Name” if this contains “office365.com” then you are using Microsoft Hosted Exchange. If something different is displayed, send us a screen shot and we can help you determine what kind of mail server you are connected to. Further Reading https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/determine-the-version-of-microsoft-exchange-server-my-account-connects-to-d427465a-ce3b-42bd-9d83-c7d893d5d334 Exchange 2019, 2016 , 2013 and 2010 Security Updates for March 2021 Which Exchange version am I using? HYBRID ICT are a Microsoft Silver Small and Mid-market Cloud Solutions Partner and Apple Consultant Network Partner :jk:

Microsoft Visio Comparison Chart

Microsoft Visio Comparison Chart With 4 Microsoft Visio offerings it is difficult to know which to purchase. The following is a comparison table of all five products and links to purchase directly if you are in Australia with pricing start from A$7.56*/user/month   Microsoft Visio Standard Microsoft Visio Professional Microsoft Visio Plan 1* Microsoft Visio Plan 2* License Type Outright Purchase Outright Purchase Subscription* Subscription* Price A$ Incl GST $408 outright purchase $789 outright purchase $7.56* user/month $22.66* user/month Buy Now Email Us Email Us Features Create professional diagrams easily with ready-made templates and shapes •Get started quickly with a familiar Office-like experience •Use your finger or pen to draw and make notes more naturally on touch-enabled devices •Create database visualizations using the built-in database model diagrams •Collaborate with others by adding and replying to comments directly within Visio Licensed for 1 PC. . Create professional diagrams easily with ready-made templates and shapes •Build and validate diagrams that support industry standards, including BPMN 2.0 and UML 2.5 •Use your finger or pen to draw and annotate more naturally on a touch-enabled device •Create database visualizations using the built-in database model diagrams •Collaborate with others by adding and replying to comments within Visio •Link diagrams to live data from internal and external sources Licensed for 1 PC. Work virtually anywhere, anytime with the web version of Visio and 2 GB of OneDrive for Business cloud storage. • Start diagramming fast with an intuitive experience and simple UI. • Choose from dozens of professional templates, starter diagrams, and shapes. • Access and edit Visio files directly inside Microsoft Teams.* • Embed Visio diagrams into Power BI reports for unified perspectives.* • Store and share your work on the web and access it from almost anywhere. • Get around-the-clock support from Microsoft. *Microsoft Teams and Power BI available separately. Get Visio and the always up-to-date Visio desktop app, for use on up to five PCs, and 2 GB of OneDrive for Business cloud storage. • Enjoy everything in Plan 1 plus exclusive Plan 2 features such as export to Microsoft Flow or Word, Excel data visualizer, and PowerPoint slide snippets.1 • Connect diagrams to external data sources and embed Visio diagrams in Power BI.1 • Store and share your work on the web and access it from almost anywhere. • Enjoy around-the-clock support from Microsoft. Sync with Microsoft Visio Online and Microsoft Project Server. Included n/a n/a Use fully installed, up-to-date Microsoft Project desktop application On 1 PC On 1 PC online only On up to 5 PCs Work together on projects, using Microsoft Teams. Included Included Price A$ Incl GST $408 outright purchase $789 outright purchase $7.56* user/month $22.66* user/month Buy Now Email Email Monthly subscription fee. First month payable immediately with repeat monthly invoicing after 30 days. 30 day FREE Trial available :jk:

Microsoft Project Comparison Chart

Microsoft Project Comparison Chart With 5 Microsoft Project offerings it is difficult to know which to purchase. The following is a comparison table of all five products and links to purchase directly if you are in Australia with pricing start from A$13.70*/user/month Microsoft Project Standard Microsoft Project Professional Microsoft Project Plan 1* Microsoft Project Plan 3* Microsoft Project Plan 5* License Type Outright Purchase Outright Purchase Subscription* Subscription* Subscription* Price A$ Incl GST $841 outright purchase $1,645 outright purchase $13.70* user/month $41.20* user/month $75.50* user/month Buy Now Features Build visual, interactive roadmaps by aggregating different project types across your organization for visibility.. Read-Only Included Included Capture and evaluate project ideas from anywhere in the organization through a standardized process. Included Included Capture project and nonproject time spent on payroll, invoicing, and other business tasks. Included Included Included Define the project team, request resources for the project, and assign project tasks to those resources. Included Included Included Includes familiar scheduling tools to assign project tasks to team members and use different views like Grid, Board, and Timeline (Gantt chart) to oversee the schedule. Included Included Included Model different portfolio scenarios to determine the best strategic path by weighing project proposals against strategic business drivers. Included Included Plan and manage projects, using an ordered list of tasks. Included Included Included Starting in a centralized view, create new projects easily, quickly access important, top-of-mind projects, or open projects most recently worked on. Included Included Included Sync with Microsoft Project Online and Microsoft Project Server. Included n/a n/a n/a Track and understand dates, assignments and the relationships of project tasks in visual timeline view. Included Included Included Use fully installed, up-to-date Microsoft Project desktop application On 1 PC On 1 PC online only On up to 5 PCs On up to 5 PCs Use pre-built reports to track progress on your projects, resources, programs, and portfolios. Included Included Included Included View and compare how resources are used across projects to optimize assignments. Included Included Visually track project tasks for better workflow and status, using out-of-box and custom task boards. Included Included Included Work together on projects, using Microsoft Teams. Included Included Included Work together with stakeholders and team members to edit and update task lists, project schedules, and more simultaneously. Included Included Included Price A$ Incl GST $841 outright purchase $1,645 outright purchase $13.70* user/month $41.20* user/month $75.50* user/month Buy Now Monthly subscription fee. First month payable immediately with repeat monthly invoicing after 30 days.* 30 Day FREE trial available* :jk:

End of support for Microsoft Products.

  When does Microsoft Office and Microsoft Windows Support Expire? Microsoft only support their operating systems and office products and will stop issuing updates and fixing security issues once this happens. You are advised to renew or update these licences before the following dates. :jk:    

Save up to 13% on Microsoft Fees before Dec 31st 2018

Microsoft Australia has just announced an 8% increase in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Hosted Exchange fees from January 1st 2019 If you currently pay your subscription monthly to Telstra or directly to Microsoft, you will have to pay an additional 8% from January 1st 2019. However,  The IT Guys and Hybrid ICT can put the 8% increase off for 12 months PLUS save you a further 5% (by paying for 12 months subscription before December 31st) Contact us on 08 6365 5603 or support@itguyswa.com.au before 15th December 2018 if you wish to save 13% on your ongoing Microsoft Subscription fees. :jk:

Microsoft Surface

Purchase Microsoft Surface Products, Accessories and Services through The IT Guys WA The IT Guys supply “Commercial” grade versions of Microsoft Surface Pro, Surface Go, Surface Studio, Surface Laptop and Surface Book that differ from the versions purchased directly from the Microsoft site or a retail outlet which are “Consumer” grade, in the following ways. Item Consumer/Retail Grade Commercial Grade Operating System Windows 10 Home in S Mode(1) Windows 10 Pro Warranty – Standard Go, Book, Studio 1 Year Send the broken device before receiving a new one(2) 2 Years Send the broken device before receiving a new one(2) Warranty – Advanced Exchange* Pro, Laptop N/A -Send the broken device before receiving a new one Receive a new device before sending the broken one back Extended Hardware Warranty N/A Optional 3 and 4 year Warranty Available Warranty – Advanced Exchange* Pro, Laptop N/A -Send the broken device before receiving a new one Receive a new device before sending the broken one back Extended Hardware Warranty N/A Optional 3 and 4 year Warranty Available Advanced Exchange Send broken one to Sydney before receiving a replacement after repair. Receive replacement in 3-5 business days (before sending the broken one back) Complete for Business – Accidental Damage coverage N/A Optional cover available, allowing 2 claims per lifetime over 2, 3 or 4 years Repair Turnaround 5-8 business days to get a new device (after sending the broken one back) 3-5 business days to get a new device (before sending the broken one back) Note Only Microsoft Apps purchased from App Store allowed Return damaged/faulty units to Sydney Surface for Business warranty page In addition to purchasing Microsoft Surface Pro, Surface Go, Surface Studio, Surface Laptop and Surface Book and accessories through the IT Guys, we also offer additional services not available from retailers. Such as: Microsoft Office and Mail Setup Data Transfer from old computer or device Anti Virus Supply, Install or transfer Extended Warranties After sales services, troubleshooting and repairs Surface Repairs However, when things go wrong and a component needs repairing, this can ONLY BE DONE BY MICROSOFT, by sending the device to the nearest Microsoft Surface service centre (Which is in SYDNEY for anyone in Australia) Surface devices cannot be repaired due to their construction. Components and the casing are glued in and not designed to be disassembled and reassembled. Damaged or faulty Surfaces are simply REPLACED with new or refurbished models. Microsoft send damaged ones back to the factory to be scrapped or refurbished. Can Microsoft Surface parts be replaced or repaired? Microsoft have a policy of not attempting to repair any damaged or failing components, and third party repairs are also unable to fix the following (although some repairers may claim otherwise) Microsoft will offer you a replacement or refurbished model through the main Microsoft office (in Australia, it is Sydney) for any supported devices for Cracked Screen Failing Components such as: Faulty Battery Failing Storage (RAM and SSD) Failing Motherboard Depending on the devices warranty status, the replacement could be free or a fixed fee may apply to swap-out or exchange your failed device for a new or refurbished model. Consumer/Retail Grade Surface’s only have a one-year limited hardware warranty If you have a non-business, standard-warranty, you could be without a device for many weeks as they need to be sent to Microsoft, assessed and then returned (quoted is 5-8 business days but this is based on Eastern States of Australia) Extended Warranties are available using Microsoft Complete, which also gives some cover against accidental damage. Microsoft Surface Business models have different warranties, some provide for a replacement device to be sent out to you prior to you sending your old device back to Microsoft.  

Microsoft Hosted Exchange Security Features – Standard v Advanced Threat Protection (ATP)

Microsoft Hosted Exchange Security Features – Standard v Advanced Threat Protection Microsoft Hosted Exchange mail boxes offer Malware, Spam and Phishing protection as standard, features not offered by POP or IMAP mailboxes provided by ISP’s or Domain Hosting Companies. Under the “Security & Compliance” section of the hosted exchange admin web page, you can configure Hosted Exchange to deal with threats in many different ways. Rather than directing E-mails containing Spam, Malware and Phishing to each users “Junk” folder, you have the option of holding them on the Hosted Exchange Server in “Quarantine” where they can be held, examined and possibly released without threatening the clients network.       Anti-Spam, DKIM and Anti-Malware are standard options using Microsoft Hosted Exchange. However, by adding the optional “Microsoft Advance Threat Protection (ATP)” additional security options become available including sophisticated “ATP Anti-Phishing“, “ATP Safe Attachments” and “ATP Safe-Links” The additional features allow customised threat protection not offered by any other mail platform. :jk:

How to run Microsoft Windows 7, 8 or 10 on a Mac

Mac computers can run Mac OS or Microsoft Windows OS. iMac, Macbook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air and Mac Mini can all run Mac OS AND Windows OS, so you can have the best of both world’s, however this is not possible on a Windows PC or Laptop. Mac computers are preconfigured with Mac OS (El Capitan, Sierra, High Sierra etc) but do not come with a Microsoft Windows licence. A genuine copy of Windows 7 Pro or higher is required. A Mac computer can run Microsoft Windows OS in two or more ways: Bootcamp – Bootcamp is a FREE built-in Apple Mac OS utility which allows the user to restart the mac in a choice of OS (Mac OS or Windows OS) Parallels – Is a paid third-party program which allows for both Mac OS and Windows OS to run simultaneously on the one computer, allowing the user to flick between Mac OS and Windows OS or display both on twin monitors at the same time. If you only need to run Windows OS on your Mac with an occasional use of Mac OS then Bootcamp may well be suitable, is FREE and has less demanding hardware requirements than the alternative. If you need to easily and quickly run programs on both OS and have sufficient RAM and disk space and are willing to pay the annual licence fee, then Parallels should be your choice. Bootcamp   Bootcamp can be setup in one of two ways, to always start in a particular OS or to give the optional choice on startup. Use Startup Disk preferences When you use Startup Disk preferences to select a startup disk, your Mac starts up from that disk until you choose a different one. Choose Apple () menu > System Preferences, then click Startup Disk. Click  and enter your administrator password. Select your startup disk, then restart your Mac. If you see a message that your security settings do not allow this Mac to use an external startup disk, check the External Boot setting in Startup Security Utility. Use Startup Manager When you use Startup Manager to select a startup disk, your Mac starts up from that disk once, then returns to using the disk selected in Startup Disk preferences. Hold down the Option key immediately after turning on or restarting your Mac. Release the Option key when you see the Startup Manager window. If your Mac is protected by a firmware password, you can release the key when you’re asked to enter the password. Select your startup disk, then click the arrow under its icon, or press Return. If you press and hold the Control key during this step, your selection is saved in Startup Disk preferences, so it persists until you change it.   Parallels Parallels allows you to run one or more instances of Windows OS (Windows 7, 8 or 10) in a Mac OS Window or full screen. Parallels can be licenced in a number of ways, but the “Home” version would be suitable for most non-corporate clients or individual users   A Mac with 8GB of RAM and an SSD drive is recommended but not essential.   Parallels can be run in a Mac OS window or Fullscreen.   Prices For installed prices of Bootcamp or Parallels with your own copy of Microsoft Windows or with us providing the licence, please contact us on support@itguyswa.com   :jk:

Microsoft Bookings appointment management, now part of Office 365 Business

Microsoft Bookings is a NEW feature of the Office 365 Business Premium* package and it makes it easy for small businesses to schedule and manage appointments with their customers. Bookings gives you a quick and easy alternative to scheduling appointments over the phone. A customizable public webpage lets your customers find available times and book appointments 24/7. You get a private calendar for managing your schedule, and automatic confirmations and reminders that save time. *Bookings is included in Office 365 Business Premium, Office 365 Education A3 and A5, Enterprise E3 and E5 subscriptions. The IT Guys use it for booking appointments at our office, here is a screen shot, click here or on the image below to go to the live site. When someone makes an appointment via the booking webpage in one of the available time-slots, the appointment gets immediately added to your diary   … and you receive an email confirmation of the booking. (see following example) You can re-arrange the appointments, block out certain time-slots …. on your computer or by installing an app for iPhone/iPad or Android device You can even add a Bookings button to your Facebook page Also try these sample booking pages to see what your customers will see when you start using Microsoft Bookings: Hair salon Financial services Home services We believe it is an excellent resource for Trades People, Professionals and Personal Service people. Microsoft Bookings is available as part of the Office 365 Business Premium package which can be purchased for A$17.50 per month per person. Please contact us if you would like to make a purchase or upgrade your existing Office version. Buy Office 365 Business Premium or higher packages now by contacting the IT Guys on 08 6365 5603, Bookings is easy to setup and configure yourself, or you can let the IT Guys do it for you for only :1hr: inc GST. :jk:   Office 365 Business – Pricing and Products Explained

Microsoft Office 2007 – Support Ended 10th Oct 17. Time to upgrade

Support for Office 2007 ends in 10th October 2017. Office 2007 is now 10 years old and has been long superseded by Office 2010, Office 2011, Office 2013, Office 2016 and Office 2019/Office 365. It will no longer be supported from October 2017. The Office 2007 suite comprised of some or all of the following products: Microsoft Office Access Microsoft Office Basic Microsoft Office Excel Microsoft Office Home and Student Microsoft Office Outlook Microsoft Office PowerPoint Microsoft Office Professional Microsoft Office Professional Plus Microsoft Office Project Microsoft Office Publisher 2007 Microsoft Office Visio Microsoft Office Word How do I know if I’m running Office 2007? The symbols and logos above may give you a clue or else try the following: There are a few methods : Go to Control Panel -> Programs -> Programs and Features or Go to Control Panel -> Programs -> Programs and Features -> Installed updates And look for Microsoft Office, it should tell you the version number By default, the 2007 Office programs are located in the following folder: C:\Program Files \Microsoft Office\Office12 By default, the Mso.dll file is located in the following folder: C:\Program Files \ Common Files\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE12 Or try other techniques mentioned at the following links If you wish to purchase and install the software yourself, Microsoft Office 365 – Annual Subscription Fee, Personal or Home Office 365 Personal – A$99 per year 12-month subscription for one person (choose Office 365 Home for up to six people) 1 TB OneDrive cloud storage and also collaborate on documents with others online Premium versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher and Access (Publisher and Access are for PC only) with Premium support via chat or phone with Microsoft experts Renewing your existing subscription; simply purchase Office 365 here and enter your login ID from your current Microsoft account Buy Now – Office 365 Personal A$99 | 1 user | 1 year | PC/Mac | box (PC) Office 365 Home – A$109 per year 12-month subscription for up to 6 people 1 TB OneDrive cloud storage and also collaborate on documents with others online Premium versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, and Access (Publisher and Access are for PC Only) with Premium support via chat or phone with Microsoft experts Renewing your existing subscription? Simply purchase Office 365 here and enter your login ID from your current Microsoft account For use on multiple PCs/Macs, tablets, and phones (including Windows, iOS, and Android. OS and Android require separate app download) Buy Now – Office 365 Home A$109 | 1 year | PC/Mac Outright Purchase of Microsoft Office 2019 Microsoft Office Home & Student 2019 (for Mac or PC) A$169 inc GST, 1 user …one off purchase One-time purchase for 1 device – Install on 1 PC or Mac – licensed for home use System Requirements Windows 10 or Mac OS Classic 2019 versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Plus OneNote for Windows 10 Microsoft support included for 60 days at no extra cost Does NOT include Microsoft Outlook Buy Now – Microsoft Office Home & Student 2019 (for Mac or PC) A$169 Microsoft Office Home & Business 2019 | one-time purchase | 1 PC (Windows 10) or Mac | home &/or commercial use | box (PC) $A249 One-time purchase for 1 device – Install on 1 PC or Mac – Licensed for home and commercial use System Requirements Windows 10 or Mac OS Classic 2019 versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint and Outlook. Plus OneNote for Windows 10 Microsoft support included for 60 days at no extra cost Buy Now – Microsoft Office Home & Business 2019 (for Mac or PC) A$249 Microsoft Office 365 for Business Microsoft 365 Business, includes the following plans and package. Click on the product name for further details on the packages they contain and fro pricing. Office 365 Business Essentials Office 365 Business Office 365 Business Premium Office 365 Pro Plus Exchange Online Plan 1 Exchange Online Plan 2 Office 365 Enterprise E1 Office 365 Enterprise E3 Office 365 Enterprise E5 Office 365 Enterprise F1 Office 365 Education A1 Office 365 Education A3 Office 365 Education A5 OneDrive For Business Plan 1 OneDrive For Business Plan 2 Advanced eDiscovery Audio Conferencing Common Area Phone Exchange Online Archiving for Exchange Exchange Online for Exchange Server Microsoft Flow P1 Microsoft Flow P2 Microsoft Powerapps P1 Microsoft Powerapps P2 Microsoft Stream Plan 2 for Office 365 Add on Microsoft Stream storage ad-on 100GB Microsoft MyAnalytics Office 365 Advanced Compliance Office 365 Extra File Storage Office 365 Threat Intelligence Office 365 Cloud App Security Phone System Power Bi Premium P1 Power Bi Premium P2 Power Bi Premium P3 Power Bi Premium P4 Power Bi Premium P5 Power Bi Pro Project Online Essentials Project Online Premium Project Online Professional Project Professional Project Standard Sharepoint Online Plan 1 Sharepoint Online Plan 2 Skype for Business Online Plan 2 Skype for Business Plus Cal Visio Online Plan 1 Visio Online Plan 2 Visio Professional 2019 Visio Standard 2019 Windows 10 Enterprise E3 Windows 10 Enterprise E3 vda Windows 10 Enterprise E5 Click here for details :jk:

Mac or PC, Apple or Microsoft, we swing both ways

Mac or PC, Apple or Microsoft, we swing both ways Whether your problem is with an Apple Mac or a PC or laptop running Microsoft Windows or even a Linux server, the IT Guys have the experience in configuring, troubleshooting and repairing individual devices or hybrid networks. The IT guys can advise, consult and even purchase Apple or Windows devices and computers and help you set them up for home or office use (or both) but if you would rather do this yourself, here is a guide on what you need to consider before making any further purchases. What is best? Apple or Microsoft? How do I choose? The million dollar question 🙂 When you buy Apple you are purchasing the hardware (Macbook, iMac, iPhone, iPad) plus the operating system (iOS) which are designed to work perfectly together. Up until the introduction of the Microsoft Surface, Microsoft was a software designer and Operating System provider (Windows XP, Vista, 7,8,10, Office, Server) designed to work on all major hardware (IBM, HP, Dell, Toshiba, Acer, Asus etc), they even design and sell software for Apple devices (Office for Mac) but with the supply of their own hardware, Microsoft are moving ever closer to the Apple concept. As to which product is better or represents the best value for money, the answer is complete conjecture. Apple products may appear to be more expensive on initial purchase but as Apple supply and update their operating systems for FREE over a 10 year period there would be little difference in price if you had to upgrade your Windows OS, once or twice. However, with the launch of the New Apple iPhone 6S at over a thousand dollars, commentators are speculating that Apple are deliberately putting prices up to make their products more “elitist” to cater for the burgeoning Chinese Middle Class market. Not only are Apple products well made but no they have also become a status-symbol. How do I choose between Apple and Microsoft The simplest advice is to stick with what you know. If you have always used Microsoft products on a PC, then stick with Windows and Android devices. Unless you are prepared for a certain amount of self-training and angst we would advise against Windows user moving to Apple or Apple users moving to Windows devices. Q1. What kind of Smartphone do you have? As we become more and more mobile-centric, the choice of our smartphones or hand-held devices becomes  a decisive factor when choosing a brand or operating system of our laptop or desktop devices. Having an Android smartphone restricts you to using other devices using either Android, Chrome or Windows. iPhones and iPads will happily work with Apple iOS devices or Windows computers.     Q2.  Do you have other devices and computers you wish to share data with or information between It’s rare these days that we only own one computing device. It is not uncommon that we have a laptop or PC plus a smartphone and/or tablet device such as an iPad. Once you start using more than one device and wish to share an address book, music or files between devices and possible in the cloud, life becomes more complicated and choices have to be made.   iTunes does not work natively with Android Devices Although Apple iTunes is available for iOS and Windows platforms, you cannot easily play your itunes music on an Android phone or device. Apple have said this will be available in the future but as of September 2015 it is only available via exporting/importing and/or a number of Android apps.     Sharepoint & Onedrive If you are a user of Microsoft’s cloud sharing products SharePoint and Onedrive be wary of using them on Apple devices as doing so is not straightforward and does not work in the same way as on Microsoft platform’s. Outlook for Mac 2011 supported Sharepoint as a drive such as in iCloud, Google Drive or Dropbox but this was removed in Office for Mac 2016 much to our dismay.   Microsoft Outlook & Apple Calendaring Although these work well together on a Windows PC, they don’t work so well together on an Apple especially if you use iOS/iCloud calender apps which are iCal compliant. Adding Calendar entries on Outlook for the Mac using an Apple device does not sync with iCloud!! However, if you use Outlook on a Windows PC, syncing to iCloud is seamless and works very well. Another example of Apple and Microsoft’s petty rivalries.   Printing from Tablet’s and Smartphones Printing from iPhone or iPad In the early days the only printers an iPad or iPhone could print to were those labeled as AirPrint, your old faithful printer may not be able to be printed directly to from one of these devices. AirPrint is an Apple technology that helps you create full-quality printed output without the need to download or install drivers. To use an AirPrint printer with your Wi-Fi network, make sure your printer is connected to the same network as your iOS device or Mac. Then select the AirPrint printer from your favorite app and you’re ready to print. Apple authorised AirPrint Printers Many printer manufacturers are also bring out their own Apps (these can be found on the Apple App store) Printing from Android smartphones. To print from an Android smartphone is slightly different by installing and launching  on your Android phone or tablet after downloading it from the Android App store. It uses Google Cloud Print which works with most printers. But, for the best experience, a Cloud Ready printer is recommended. These types of printers can directly connect to the Internet and don’t need a computer for it to work. Google keeps a growing list of Cloud Ready printers here.   Cost of Repair, Maintenance & Resale Value,  Apple v Windows Where Apple and Windows/Android Computers and devices really shows their differences is the cost of maintenance and repair of their respective products. Apple Computers, devices and phones tend to hold their resale value […]