Windows 10 Free Upgrade Ending July 29th

By | Helpful Guide, Tech Alert, Windows 10 | No Comments

Just a friendly reminder to Baltimore families and businesses:

The free upgrade to Windows 10 (with Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 eligible) ends July 29th. You can expect the licensing cost for Windows 10 Home to be $119.99 and the business oriented Pro version to cost $199.99.

Whether or not you should upgrade depends on a variety of things. Only machines running Windows 7 and later are eligible for the upgrade. Unless you’ve disabled Windows Update, you’ve likely received the nag window promoting the free upgrade to Windows 10. If you’ve seen this, you’re machine is eligible to run Windows 10. For the most part, you can expect Windows 10 to run well, possibly better than your current operating system. If you haven’t been notified of eligibility, your machine might still be capable of running Windows 10. Read More

Bringing Psychology & Humanity to Computer Repair

By | Poindexter News | No Comments

“Getting machines to work is an essential part of the job, but so is making the customer feel better. And tech geeks are famous for not being very good at that.” – Laura Sydell, NPR’s All tech Considered

Hi Baltimore. I stumbled across an older NPR article that I wanted to share with you because I think it nicely sums up something I’ve thought about for a long time. Why IT services have a problem and why I hope Poindexter is the solution. The article is pretty short and you can read it here: A Good IT Person Needs to be Half Technologist, Half Psychologist. Read More

poindexter discusses what array of things to consider when deciding between an Apple or Windows computer

Should I get an Apple or a Windows PC?

By | Apple, Helpful Guide, Windows 10 | No Comments

We get this one a lot. Like, a lot a lot, and there’s no easy answer. Sure, Apple, Hewlett Packard, and Dell, to name a few, all make computers. They have processors, RAM, non-volatile storage (hard drives), a case, a keyboard… you know. Computer stuff. But the similarities end the moment we stop drawing broad comparisons about the underlying machine stuff. Windows PCs vary significantly by manufacturer; Apple computers vary less, but offer less choice.

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poindexter investigates teslacrypt, the newest and most dangerous form of ransomware

Help! All of my files are now .mp3?!

By | Uncategorized | No Comments

One fateful morning, our client woke their office computer from sleep and noticed something odd. All (or most) of their files were being treated like audio files, specifically .mp3 files. This client is using Windows 7, running Norton Internet Security, and does not keep a regular backup (vulnerable operating system, inadequate anti-virus, and no disaster recovery plan).

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Baltimore Blizzard Tech Survival Tips

By | Helpful Guide, Tech Alert | No Comments

It’s official: Baltimore just got whammied with record amounts of snow, trapping many in their homes and prohibiting all but the most essential travel. While we rest in between bouts of frantic snow shoveling, let’s take some time to answer frequently asked questions about wintry tech and proffer up some advice to help you stay informed and well protected.

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fraud tech support costs americans time and money, here's how to spot and stop it

Fraud Tech Support

By | Helpful Guide, Malware Alert, Tech Alert | No Comments

If you’d rather have an inexpensive, professional computer repair, Poindexter is always available to help. We serve the Hampden area, Baltimore, and have helped countless folks recover from internet fraud of all kinds. If you, a parent, or grand parent has been the victim of internet or tech support fraud, contact Poindexter for personal help from an industry professional. We’ll get this squared away for you, promise.

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poindexter loves cyanogenmod, the custom android rom

Android’s Have a Long, Feature Rich Life

By | Android, Helpful Guide | No Comments

Are you fed up with your old, slow, buggy Android phone or tablet, but money is too tight to upgrade? Maybe you just want the freshest version of Android and are tired of waiting for your cell phone company to send an upgrade your way. Heck, maybe you just want your phone to be free of that annoying carrier software that you can’t uninstall. Let Poindexter breath new life into your Android phone with a custom rom.

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