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‘Windows 7′ is the latest release in Microsoft’s long running Windows Operating System family. It replaces the (disappointing) Windows Vista, and not a moment too soon. Released back in 2007, Windows Vista was set to supercede the reliable Windows XP as the standard desktop operating system on Windows computers the world over. Unfortunately Vista was a disapointing release to say the least, causing performance and stability issues for most users, and headaches for tech support staff everywhere. In Microsoft’s defence, Vista was the first release to properly address wide  ranging security issues that had been causing the company no end of bad press for some time. Unfortunately this was overshadowed by the new issues Vista introduced.

The new Windows 7 is what Vista should have been from the start. Both visually and under the hood, Windows 7 shares strong similarities with Vista, to the point where some have nicknamed it Vista Version 2. The good news is that Windows 7..well…actually works. We’ve been running early beta versions of the software at the Garden Shed for some months now, and even with early pre-release versions, a day in front of the computer was a much nicer place to be than with Vista.

WIndows 7 does offer a raft of new features for all levels of user. To our thinking though, an operating system is something that you should hardly even notice. It should just sit there behind the scenes quietly providing you access to your software applications and your data. To that end, Windows 7 is an absolute winner. It’s fast, reliable, and a pleasure to use.

Would we recommend upgrading? To that, an unequivocal “maybe”. If you’re currently running Vista, call us now. The sooner we can stamp out any remaining traces of that problem child, the better! If you’re running Windows XP, which is still quite reliable, there’s no hurry to upgrade. All new computers are now shipping with Windows 7, so as your current systems gradually get retired, Windows 7 will find its way into your organisation, so perhaps just wait for that to happen. Either way, Windows 7 is a strong release from Microsoft, and definitely a change for the better.

Finding it tricky keeping track of a colleague’s appointments? When you use an Exchange account (as a lucky Small Business Server user will do), you can open another person’s default Outlook Calendar – all you need to do to get started is get them to grant you permission to view the calendar.

If the other person whose Calendar you want to open has not granted you permission to view it, Outlook prompts you to ask the person for the permission you need. If you click Yes, a sharing request e-mail message opens automatically. The message requests the person to share his or her Calendar with you and also provides the option to share your default Calendar with him or her. After you access a shared Calendar for the first time, the Calendar is added to the Navigation Pane (side bar) in Outlook. The next time you want to view the shared Calendar, you can just click it in the Navigation Pane.

To begin the process of sharing calendars in Outlook 2007, open your Calendar in Outlook and click on the Open a Shared Calendar link in your Navigation Pane. Type a name in the Name box, or click Name to select a name from the Address Book. Then click OK.

In Outlook 2003, you’ll need to ask the person whose calendar you would like to share to open his/her Calendar in Outlook, and in the Navigation Pane, click on Share My Calendar. They will have the option to allow anyone access to the calendar or just grant access to specific users.

To all those hip and with-it, you can now follow us on Twitter!
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Ben, Annie, Dimity and David took on the Bridge to Brisbane challenge on 30 August 2009, walking to support one of our clients and a very worthy cause, AEIOU. Despite some sore feet, we had a great morning and enjoyed being out amongst the 45,000 or so Brisbanites walking. Thanks to everyone who made donations! continue

We’ve all had those moments where we print off a document from Excel and find that our spreadsheet annoyingly sits across one and a bit pages, rather than neatly across one page. Rather than trying to rearrange your graphs and tables, there is a quick and easy way of making sure the document fits across one page.
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The Print Screen button (generally located above or to the right of the Backspace key) will copy a snapshot of whatever is currently displayed on your monitor to the clipboard. If you press Alt and then Print Screen, this will copy a snapshot of only the top window that is open on your screen. Opening a new document in Paint, image editing program or Microsoft Word and selecting Paste will copy the screenshot there and allow it to be saved. This is particularly handy for emailing us exactly what that error message looks like – saves you having to write it out long hand!

We are very happy to announce that after a long and successful partnering relationship, Grassroots IT and IT Power have agreed to come together as a single entity operating under the Grassroots IT brand. with many years of industry knowledge serving the SMB market space with innovative solutions and support services, IT Power brings valuable experience to enhance the Grassroots IT offering. A warm welcome to all IT Power clients. We look forward to meeting you all soon and introducing you to the team here at the Garden Shed.

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It’s not unusual to see PR announcements from big corporates discussing their environmental policies and what they are doing to ‘go green’, and the IT industry is no exception. It won’t be long before it’s simply standard practice to demonstrate environmental responsibility as a business, but in the meantime, it’s good to see that the big IT firms are leading the way in developing energy efficient, eco-friendly products and practices. Hewlett Packard (HP) and Dell are two such companies showing commitment to going green.

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Okay, now I’m not the sort of guy that tends to go all gooey and ‘ooh wow’ over new technology. In my world technology is a tool. Technology is the enabler, not the end goal in itself. Now that’s not to say that there’s not a little part of me that longs for the excitement and romance of some new technology that gets the heart pumping and the inner-fanboy twitching.

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The seasons have turned, and summer is well and truly upon us. Along with cricket, scalding steering wheels, and the inevitable rush into the festive season, summer brings with it the summer storms. And haven’t we seen some crackers lately! I know we talked about it last year, but when a storm hits this summer, spare a thought for your computer systems, and how they might fare.

We’ve seen our fair share of crispy computers thanks to power surges (and nearby lightning strikes), and it’s not a pretty sight. Now here at the Garden Shed we’re certainly not qualified sparkies, so can’t offer any scientific backing for what we’re about to propose, but from years in the trenches, here are our top 6 tips for helping your computers survive the summer storms.

• Make sure all vital systems (especially the server) have power protection. Ideally that means an Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS), which can be bought for as little as about $120. In the event of a prolonged power outage, a good UPS can also shutdown your server gently, making sure not to damage or corrupt any of your data.
• Although not as effective as a UPS, for the less vital systems (such as your PCs), you could consider a ‘surge protector’.
• If not already installed, get a licensed electrician to install safety cut-outs at your switch box.
• When that summer storm does hit, complete with thunder and lightning, shutdown your computers and network infrastructure such as switches, modems and routers, and pull the power plugs from the wall.
• If your office is shutting down over Christmas, consider unplugging computers from the wall. Remember to leave your server plugged in, though, otherwise your email won’t be delivered while you’re gone.
• Make sure your backups are working, and you have an up to date copy offsite somewhere secure. Storms don’t just bring electrical surges, they bring lots of wind and water. A flooded office server is just as useless as a quick-fried one, so that offsite backup might come in handy.

Personally I think summer storms can be exciting things, but take a few quick precautions this summer to make sure things don’t get a little too exciting.