Usually, I just don’t know what that reason is. Typically, I do have a reason for whatever I am doing. It may be stupid, but I have given thought to it.

So why is the iPod Touch still around? I get old smartphones, and I think they still have a life. While they might not be a good choice for a phone, they are still powerful computers that run apps like News, email, Chrome, Whatsapp, and Square Reader. They work even when they don’t have a sim card installed. In fact, they work just like an iPod Touch.

So, there may be a reason why having a powerful computer in your pocket is useful, even though it may not make phone calls. You might have a flip phone you like, and you might get a free smartphone from a friend, relative, or from me. You might just like the iPod Touch, or you might want your kid to have a pocket computer, but not a phone. Read about the iPod Touch HERE.
​

I love Google. I love all the info at my fingertips, it's simply amazing. However, it's also full of crap. 

Nobody is really in charge of cleaning out the old, outdated information on the internet. And nobody is really policing the info there either. I can look up a Microsoft support phone#, but what comes up first is an Ad, barely noticeable as such, and it offers a phone# pretending to be Microsoft support, but it's not.

You can do the same with anything, Intuit, Amazon, Google. It's not straightforward getting actual support numbers. Unfortunately, some of the companies doing this are not honest. Seems hard to believe, but it happens ALL THE TIME. I was at work and the person in the office with me was calling Intuit for help with something. She started talking about the $370 charge they wanted and that's when I knew it was a scam. She was just asking a question. 
​
Like phone calls and pop-ups, you really need to be careful who you call and who you let onto your computer. I've said it before, don't let anyone you don't know on your computer. 

I've been talking about Windows aplenty. Let's talk about something else.

So, how are you? We haven't chatted in so long. I hope you are doing well.

OK, enough of that. Believe it or not, there are alternatives to Windows. I like Win 10, but I understand that not everyone does. While Apple computers, which are fantastic, do not account for more than 10% of the market, they are certainly beloved by those that use them. Well, mostly. I know Eileen isn't thrilled with hers. It took me a while to get used to it but it's a fine alternative, and indeed, an excellent computer. 

Many people get an iPad and practically never go on their computer anymore. It doesn't need to be an iPad, it could be an Android tablet, or even your phone. I think I saw that Samsung is coming out with a phone that will have a full TERABYTE of storage on it. And 6 cameras. At what point is a computer just superfluous? 

You can cast your phone screen to a larger screen or TV, you can use a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse with it. At that point, it seems like you wouldn't need a computer. And considering you can do word processing and spreadsheets for FREE in Chrome, then there can be a real cost savings involved. Also, you don't need to use your current phone, you could use the last smartphone or tablet you had, as a computer. That's only a little bit out there, but seriously, what's a computer really needed for these days?

Another computer option is the Chromebook, which is generally a Google product, though several computer hardware manufacturers make Chromebooks. Basically, the Chromebook turns on and it's running the browser Chrome. Pretty much everything you do is done via Chrome. It runs really fast, it's simplicity is wonderful, and it generally costs much less than a Windows or Apple PC.

Finally, there is a flavor of Linux. There are MANY. I only know one person that uses Linux. What is really neat about it is that it works pretty well on very little hardware. That means you can keep your old computer going by converting it to Linux. It's a little different, but once installed, it will be 'familiar' to use. It generally will have the look and feel of a Windows computer,with a desktop, and associated icons.

Those are a few thoughts about alternatives to Windows, if you are so inclined.

Windows XP has an update.  Take a minute to ponder that one.
Apparently, there is a vulnerability so dreadful that Microsoft decided to make a patch for it. You might think, well, who's still using XP? It turns out, there are quite a few users. Hospitals, Businesses, Utilities, the Military. Yikes, you say? And with good reason.
A link to that interesting article is HERE.

It's important to keep up. 

I was reading an article about the May update that will be trying to install soon. If you are like me, these Windows updates are about as annoying as when Windows 10 first came out and relentlessly tried to force itself down your throat. That said, I really like Win 10, and think it’s the best OS that Windows has had so far. The one thing I hate is the inability to not update if I don’t want to.

Not that it’s going to change in the next update, but apparently Windows will be allowing some flexibility in its update. I’ll post a very good article on the subject HERE. 

I’m a believer that you should be keeping up with your operating system and app/program updates. Not just for security, but also for performance. That goes for Apple’s MacOS as well as the PC’s Windows OS. I also recommend putting MalwareBytes and CCleaner on both these platforms. Each has a free version, which is more manual. I buy MalwareBytes so it automatically runs in the background. Again, they are both available for Macs and PCs.

Finally, both the Mac and PC have built-in backup programs. Use them, or another program of your choice. You can do various cloud based backups as well.
​
If you are on Windows 7 still, or Vista, or Windows 8.1, then you are definitely behind in the Windows lifecycle. However, they aren’t going to stop working on any particular date, just because Windows doesn’t support it. As I’ve said in the past, if you use an old OS that runs some important programs or hardware, then keep using it. Just don’t go on the internet with that computer.