Registration for next series is this Thursday, October 25th-9am

We are pleased to remind you that registration for the next computer class series (#56) at 1000 Southern Artery will be held this coming Thursday morning, October 25^th, 2012 at 9am in the main building – so join us and bring a friend…

This Series #56, will run from Nov. 5^th, 2012 to February 7^th, 2013

No classes will be held for various holidays such as Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years and Martin Luther King Day.  

Morning classes, designed for those becoming familiar with computers and the various software application programs such as Word & Excel, will be held:

• Beginners held Monday 9am-10:30am & Wednesday, 10:30am-12Noon
• Intermediate 1/Internet are Monday 10:30am-12N and Wednesday, 9am-10:30am
• Intermediate 2/Word & Excel Basics is Tuesday, 9am-10:30am 

Our morning classes cover…

• Beginner classes cover Hardware, Software and an intro to the Internet
• Intermediate 1/Internet classes cover all aspects of the internet, surfing effectively and using your email to the full extent
• Intermediate 2/Intro to Word & Excel classes are an introduction to the two most popular software programs used worldwide-Word is the basis of all email programs, word processing & texting, and Excel is a spreadsheet program for list management and budgets… 

Afternoon classes are designed for those who understand computer, internet and word basics and are anxious to expand their horizons and have a better understanding of the changing technology (and terminology) and all the “new stuff” that’s available, and our afternoon classes will be held:

• Monday & Tuesday at 1pm-2:30pm
• Wednesday & Thursday at 12:30pm-2pm & 2pm-3:30pm  - Winter hours effective 11/5/2012 for these 2 days of classes 

Our afternoon classes this series will focus on the changing technology and all the wonderful things we keep hearing about – if you have any of these devices or are thinking of getting one, or just want to better understand the system you have – then join us, when we will cover:

• Photo Gifts: More than storing them on PC’s, Gift Ideas, Movies, Digital Photo Frames
• Ereaders… Kindles, Nooks & More..
• Tablets, Netbooks, iPads, Laptops
• Cloud Computing – SkyDrive, iCloud and Google Cloud..
• Music –MediaPlayers-Windows, VLC & Itunes
• Getting To Know Apple, Google & Amazon

A Kindle or a Nook or an iPad or a Tablet?? Oh My!!! Part 2 of 2

Continued from Wednesday, March 28th, 2012…

Then of course there’s the question – is an e-reader enough or should I spend the extra money and invest in a tablet and if so should I get an iPad or a tablet??? Tough choices for sure…

Differences between an iPad or one of the many Android Tablets…
1. The iPad is a single product, Android tablets are a common name for a variety of products
2. The iPad runs on the MAC iOS; Android tablet run on Android based system
3. The iPad lacks flash while Android tablets have it
4. The iPad doesn’t have true multi-tasking; Android tablets do
5. The iPad has more apps than Android tablets – but both are increasing their numbers daily
According to an independent survey done by cnet.com, their recommendations are as follows in these major categories… so happy shopping… and remember as always with technology – do your homework first and set your budget next…

Best basic e-book reader: Amazon Kindle ($79, no touch screen), Amazon Kindle Touch ($99 to $189, with touch-screen), Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch ($99, touch-screen),

Best reading tablet for under $200: Amazon Kindle Fire, Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet

Best all-around full-featured reading tablets: Apple iPad (third-gen), Apple iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 or the new Samsung Galaxy 8.9

A Kindle or a Nook or an iPad or a Tablet?? Oh My!!! Part 1 of 2

Every where we go, someone is using an e-book reader, iPad or Tablet. Yes, whether you are on a train, plane, bus or automobile; or walking down the street or sitting in a lobby – to many, the days of fumbling with newspapers and sneakily removing recipes & coupons from the doctors office are long gone… Today with many of these devices you can do all of this and surf the web and much more…

 

But how do you decide which is best for your needs.. 

 

Yes, it’s true – Amazon’s Kindle was the first, but it didn’t take long for Barnes & Noble to introduce their Nook, and of course we are all familiar with Apples iPads, and then of course other manufacturer’s are introducing their own, including Sony’s Reader Wi-Fi, Kobo Reader and many Android manufacturers which are a step up from the SmartPhones and just below (according to some) a tablet, such as the popular Samsung Galaxy Tablet… Sure can get confusion…

 

As with all technology, it’s all about the options – what do you plan to use the device for – just reading books and magazines, or do you want to be able to store and listen to music, what about taking and storing photo’s, streaming videos like youtube, hulu or netflix, and surfing the web… so many choices – so many options.. And for most, just as importantly, should be that you establish & stick to a budget before you head to the mall..

 

Yes, prices are coming down daily and surprisingly as the prices drop, the list of features grow with each new model – the result obviously of competition….

• Basic Black & White e-reader: Prices range from $80 to $150
• Color e-reader with a 7” color screen from $400-$300
• Full Size, multi-feature, color tablet (like the iPad2 or “new iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tablet ) where screen choices used to be 7” or 10”, but that’s changing and prices are $200 to $800+

Continued Part 2 of 2 on Saturday March 31st, 2012