Author Archives: Dick Buchanan

About Dick Buchanan

I started working with computers some 25 years ago when my wife, Carol, and I purchased our first PC which was a Kaypro IV CP/M machine. This lead to studying computer science at Seattle Pacific University and becoming a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE). During this time I have worked for The Boeing Company, IBM Global Services, and Microsoft. I currently own and operate a local computing services company called Byte Savvy located in Kalispell, MT

Cloud Computing

Posted on January 10, 2011 by Dick Buchanan

Up in the Clouds There is a lot of buzz today about the “Cloud.”   What is this exactly and how can it work for you?  This article will answer those and other questions. The History For decades now the Internet … Continue reading →

Posted in General Interest | 9 Comments

Perk Up Your Hard Drive

Posted on December 13, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Perk Up Your Hard Drive Is your computer slowing down?  Is it acting sluggish?  This article covers some simple steps you can take to take to speed things up a bit.  You can remove some unneeded files and also optimize … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, General Interest, Productivity | 5 Comments

Android Smart Phone

Posted on November 29, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Droid Does About six months ago I made a couple of major changes in the area of my business cell phone.  I changed carriers and also switched from a Pocket PC platform to a Motorola Droid on the Android platform.  … Continue reading →

Posted in General Interest, Mobility, Productivity, Smart Phone, Software | 3 Comments

Keyboard Shortcuts

Posted on November 20, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Mixing the Old with the New Did you know there are a host of time-saving shortcuts built into their computer keyboard?  This article will introduce you to these great little tools to help you be more efficient with the PC. … Continue reading →

Posted in General Interest, Productivity, Software | 9 Comments

Backup and Recovery

Posted on November 10, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

What Could Possibly Go Wrong? One of the most important things you can do for your PC is to prepare to recover from disaster.  Unfortunately, most users tend to either ignore this entirely or at best they back up data … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing, General Interest, Software | 7 Comments

Windows Updates

Posted on November 3, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Windows Updates Many times customers ask me about Windows Updates and whether they should install them.  In this article I’ll describe exactly what they are, what they will do for your PC, and why they are important. What Are These … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer Threats, General Interest, Software | Comments Off

Brainstorming

Posted on October 27, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Brainstorming You have a new project looming ahead of you and are not quite sure how to define it.  You don’t know what direction to take, what to include, or how to proceed.  Does anyone have any fresh ideas on … Continue reading →

Posted in General Interest, Productivity, Software | Comments Off

Task Management

Posted on October 20, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Remember the Milk Once I had begun my journey toward better organization that I talked about in the previous posting, I needed to find a task management system that supported the Getting Things Done (GTD) philosophy. My Environment I spend … Continue reading →

Posted in Productivity, Smart Phone, Software | 4 Comments

Getting Organized

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Why Have Organization When Anarchy Will Do? Multiple stacks of paper cover the desktop, the filing cabinet, and the floor. Yellow post-it notes adorn the monitor, the phone, the bookshelf, and just about everything else.  The “IN” box is overflowing. … Continue reading →

Posted in General Interest, Productivity, Software | Comments Off

Wireless Computing

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Dick Buchanan

Wireless Computing You have a laptop, netbook, or possibly a desktop computer with wireless capability.  What are the key points you should know about this technology?  Some major issues are: Connection Types Methods of connecting Security  Connection Types The two … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer Threats, General Interest, Laptop, Netbook, Networking, Tablet, Wireless | 1 Comment