Office Closure

The office will be closed from Monday December 23 2019 and will reopen on Monday January 6 2020 at 9.30am.

Security Warning – Windows 7 End of Life

Cedric Wyndham

In mid-January 2020 extended support for Windows 7 will end.  That means Microsoft will issue no more security updates.  Relying only on third party anti-virus software will be a significant reduction in the security of your system.  And if you are using the default security software that was part of Windows 7, that gives you even less protection.

So an upgrade to Windows 10 is recommended.  But more issues have to be looked at than I can deal with in this brief notice.  Ways of doing this upgrade include:-

• contact the club’s iHelp desk for guidance and assistance (Ph 9276 4088, E. <ihelp@melbpc.org.au>), or
• make contact with a Hardware SIG (see the club web-page for details of where and when they meet. But make sure you talk to a convener before the meeting – if you just turn up they probably won’t be prepared for the job), or
• you may have children or relatives or friends who can help you, or
• ask a few questions on Yammer.

Some initial things to look at are whether you upgrade your existing computer or replace it.  Is the existing computer’s hardware good enough to run Windows 10?  Do Windows 10 drivers exist for your peripheral hardware (printers, scanners, etc)?  Will your existing software (Apps) run on Windows 10?  If a laptop was sold with Windows 7 the battery is probably near end-of-life, another point that might justify a replacement instead of an upgrade.  And so on.