Remote Preventive Maintenance Plans Now Available for Residential Customers!

Since introducing Remote Support capability last year, we have generated a long list of business customers who request regularly scheduled remote visits. This type of service, called "Remote Preventive Maintenance" or "RPM," has allowed us to head off many serious computer issues before they reach "critical mass."

Due to the success of this program, we are now offering scheduled RPM visits to our residential customers as well. The cost is $79 per session. These sessions can be requested on an as-needed basis, or scheduled at one month, two month or quarterly intervals. Since all service is performed remotely from our service center, you save the cost of a trip charge to your home.

During the RPM visit, you will speak to a technician on the telephone while you watch him take control of your computer and step through a checklist of important maintenance tasks. If you have an external hard drive, we can also configure and monitor an automatic backup job in the Windows Task Scheduler. Alternatively, we can set you up for Amazon S3 "cloud" storage service via your high-speed Internet connection – this is an automated backup solution that copies critical files from your computer to a secure location on the Internet. (See the February, 2009 edition of House Call for more information about Amazon S3.)

If you are interested in RPM service, contact the office at 269-327-1574.

OpenOffice – The Free, Viable Alternative to Microsoft Office

In recent months, Computer Homecare has been touting the benefits of “Open Source” software applications – software that is free to use and also free for programmers to modify. A great example of open source software is OpenOffice, a no-cost alternative to the popular Microsoft Office suite. OpenOffice includes the following productivity programs:

• Writer – a word processor similar to Microsoft Word

• Calc – a spreadsheet program similar to Microsoft Excel

• Impress – a presentation authoring system similar to Microsoft Powerpoint, and

• Base – a database development tool similar to Microsoft Access.

OpenOffice Write Screen

OpenOffice Calc Screen

OpenOffice also comes with a very cool drawing program – Draw – which allows you create flow charts, functional diagrams and similar graphical documents. Draw is much like Microsoft’s Visio application, usually only bundled with the most expensive “enterprise” versions of Microsoft Office.

How can OpenOffice be free? It has to be free in order to qualify as open source. Open source is a design philosophy that promotes peer review in the development community and license-free (no cost) usage. The Open Source Initiative – a non-profit organization – provides a list of requirements for all open source software. For more information on Open Source, refer to the “Frequently Asked Question” below.

While the zero cost price tag may be the best reason to consider OpenOffice, the next best reason is compatibility. Most files created using OpenOffice programs are compatible with the corresponding Microsoft applications. Likewise, Microsoft Office files are compatible with matching OpenOffice programs. For example, a memo written in OpenOffice Writer can be opened and modified in Microsoft Word (and vice verse). And yes, the latest version of OpenOffice can even open the Microsoft Office 2007 format (.docx, .xlsx, etc.).

There are a few drawbacks to OpenOffice. Although, the user interface (toolbar icons, text menus, etc.) is similar to Microsoft Office applications, there are some subtle differences. For this reason, you may undergo a brief period of frustration as you try to perform certain tasks with the new software. Second, you may encounter occasional compatibility issues between OpenOffice and Microsoft Office files, but they generally relate to advanced features that most people don’t need. As OpenOffice application matures, it gets better and better and the compatibility issues become fewer and far between. The latest version, 3.1, is the most stable, user-friendly version yet. We believe that the vast majority of people will find it quite capable of meeting basic, intermediate and even advanced productivity needs.

Excited about OpenOffice? Skeptical? Remember, the software is free, so there’s no risk in taking it for a test drive. Check it out for yourself to see if it’s right for you. You can download the installation file via the Web at: http://www.openoffice.org/. Of course, we can also install the application for you – usually while you wait. Just give us a call to make an appointment.

Frequently Asked Question: What is “Open Source?"

Most software you buy or download only comes in the compiled ready-to-run version. Compiled means that the actual program code that the developer created, known as the source code, has run through a special program called a compiler that translates the source code into a form that the computer can understand…. It is extremely difficult to modify the compiled version of most applications and nearly impossible to see exactly how the developer created different parts of the program. Most commercial software manufacturers see this as an advantage that keeps other companies from copying their code and using it in a competing product. It also gives them control over the quality and features found in a particular product.

Open source software is at the opposite end of the spectrum. The source code is included with the compiled version and modification or customization is actually encouraged. The software developers who support the open source concept believe that by allowing anyone who's interested to modify the source code, the application will be more useful and error-free over the long term.

To be considered as open source software by the software development industry, certain criteria must be met:

• The program must be freely distributed.

• Source code must be included.

• Anyone must be allowed to modify the source code.

• Modified versions can be redistributed.

• The license must not require the exclusion of other software or interfere with the operation of other software.

Source: "What does open source mean?." 01 August 2000. HowStuffWorks.com. http://computer.howstuffworks.com/question435.htm, 09 August 2009.

House Call Newsletter Archive 

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House Call, Copyright © 2009 • All rights reserved
Published by Computer Homecare and Small Business Solutions
phone: 269.327.1574 • e-mail: appointments@computerhomecare.net • website: www.computerhomecare.net