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Come
by for coffee and answers to your computer questions. From the beginning computer user to the
small business professional, dj computers can help you develop a
solution that is customized to your individual needs and
budget. Here is just a portion of the type of systems we offer:
- Student systems for all age groups loaded with
various educational resources. At various times
through trade- ins and donations we offer student
version PC's free to the public. Call for
availability.
- Currently we are committed to selling ASUS brand
notebooks because of quality, features, innovation
and design. We work directly with ASUS for great
pricing and customizing certain models. They also
have THE best warranty in the business.
- Mirosoft Windows and Ubuntu Linux desktop and
notebook systems. Assistance providing as much
information as you want to know about your choices
of operating systems and software.
- Gaming systems with the latest and greatest
hardware and optimized for speed and graphics. Built
by a perfectionist and designed around your budget.
- We stock a great assortment of quality system cases that will really express your personality
- What dj does best is building your family the
easiest to use most trouble free computer possible.
We "guarantee" it. Ask how
- Business & personal systems that are loaded with just what you need; not preloaded with trialware,spyware
and bloatware that simply slow your system down.
- Small office/home office wired and wireless
network solutions, total security from Internet
attacks, and backup solutions that will even take
care of itself without you ever thinking about it.
it
- Open source is the future, with certain Linux
distributions closing in on ease of use on
mainstream
desktop and notebook systems. Also with the increasing cost and not necessarily better
Microsoft vision, this is a very good time to
educate yourself on these alternatives. dj computers
has decided for ourselves to get behind the Ubuntu
version and educate ourselves and others as to it's
benefits and/or drawbacks to handling your
particular computing needs.
I ran across this article that defines one of the big
reasons why so many people feel a new dj computers
system is more productive and fun to use from the very
beginning.
Personal Technology
April 05, 2007
Using Even New PCs
Is Ruined by a Tangle
Of Trial Programs, Ads
By
Walter
S.
Mossberg
When you buy a gleaming, new personal
computer, the first thing you want to do is to try out
its cool new features and make it your own. You want to
savor how quickly it starts up and runs, and arrange the
desktop icons to suit your tastes and habits.
But as I rediscovered recently, often
what you're forced to do instead is to spend hours as a
digital maintenance man wading through annoying and
confusing chores.
I have set up many computers over the
years, so I wasn't shocked that the out-of-box
experience was less than ideal. Still, I was struck by
just how irritating it was to get going with the new
Sony Vaio SZ laptop I bought about 10 days ago. It was
the first new Windows machine I'd bought in a few years,
because I had been waiting for Microsoft's new Windows
Vista operating system. I was amazed that the initial
experience is still a big hassle.
I'm not even referring to the most
time-consuming setup processes -- transferring all your
files and settings, reinstalling your favorite programs
and learning the new features.
Vista
has actually made moving files and settings easier, and
it isn't different enough from Windows XP to make for a
steep learning curve.
Instead, I'm talking about two main
problems. One is the plethora of teaser software and
advertisements for products that must be cleared and
uninstalled to make way for your own stuff. The second
is the confusing welter of security programs you have to
master and update, even on a virgin machine.
I'm also referring to how slowly a new
Windows Vista machine starts and restarts, even if you
haven't yet loaded or launched any of your own software.
I am not singling out Sony here. I
would have had a similar experience if I had chosen,
say, a Hewlett-Packard laptop. Most major PC makers
feature the security programs and trial software and
offers I encountered on my new Sony. They are not part
of Vista itself.
The problem is a lack of respect for
the consumer. The manufacturers don't act as if the
computer belongs to you. They act as if it is a
billboard for restricted trial versions of software and
ads for Web sites and services that they can sell to
third-party companies who want you to buy these
products.
I'm distinguishing these programs,
sometimes called "craplets," from the full-featured,
built-in Sony software meant to enhance the computer, or
from entire, useful programs Microsoft builds into
Windows, such as music and photo organizers.
On my new Sony, there were two dozen
trial programs and free offers. The desktop alone
contained four icons representing come-ons for various
America Online services, and two for Microsoft. The
start menu and program menu had more items that I
neither chose nor wanted. Napster, a music service I
don't use, was lodged at the lower right of the screen.
The worst was a desktop icon called
"Watch Hit Movies Now!" This turned out to be four
full-length films from Sony's movie studios, which the
company had preloaded onto my computer at the cost of
more than four gigabytes of precious hard-disk space.
But they aren't a gift. If you want to play them, you
have to pay Sony.
Then there was the security-software
mess. I signed up for a 60-day free trial of Symantec
software that Sony offered. This required multiple
rounds of scary warnings, scans and updates -- on the
first day of using a new machine. Plus, when I tried to
use a feature that stopped some unwanted programs from
loading, I was forced to launch a second, somewhat
redundant, security program from Microsoft.
On top of this, Sony informed me it
had 21 different software updates available for my brand
new laptop.
I also was shocked at how long this
machine took to restart and to do a cold start after
being completely shut down. Restarting took over three
minutes, and a cold start took more than two minutes.
That suggests the computer is loading a bunch of stuff I
neither know about nor want. By contrast, a brand new
Apple MacBook laptop, under the same test conditions,
restarted in 34 seconds and did a cold start in 29
seconds.
I asked Sony about all this, and the
company, while acknowledging it is paid to bundle the
trial programs, said the programs are carefully selected
and "provide benefits to many consumers," up to 30% of
whom act on the offers. Sony said the preloaded movies
are "a key differentiator for our products in the
marketplace, which we have found that many VAIO
customers greatly appreciate."
Sony also said the boot-up times I
recorded are "not at all uncommon with Vista-loaded PCs"
and are faster than on some competing computer brands.
It defended the 21 updates on the grounds that Vista is so new that, in many cases, compatible software
wasn't available when the computer shipped.
Still, I wish computer makers would
stop loading all these trial programs and offers on
computers and that security precautions could be much
less disruptive and more automatic. The first day of
owning an expensive new gadget should be a pleasure, not
a hassle.
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