Please note that this is merely a guideline as to the correct steps to be taken. Also, your computer needs to be on Windows 8 before starting.
Step 1:
Make sure you are logged in as the administrator.
Note: If you are unsure of any terms, see the "Explanation of Terms" link at the top of the page.
Step 2:
Go to Control Panel - System and Security - Windows Update and Check for Updates. Ensure that you are up to date. If not, download and install all updates, especially the Important ones, and allow your computer to Reboot as often as it takes.
Step 3:
Now, to install Windows 8.1, go to the Start Screen (you know, the place the computer starts up to), and open the Windows Store app.
Step 4:
With any luck, there should be a large tile present when you open the Windows Store wanting you to update to Windows 8.1 If so, click on it, and begin the download. You can continue working while this is downloading, and it will prompt you when the installation is about to begin. None of your documents or installed programmes will be affected by this update.
Allow the update to run, and after one or two reboots your computer should have updated to Windows 8.1.
Step 5:
Now that you have updated to Windows 8.1, you'll need to run Windows Updates again. Repeat Step 2 until there are no more updates to be installed.
FAQs:
Q: What if the update doesn't show up in the Windows Store?
A: Try the suggestions here.
Q: It's asking for an Administrator account, what do I do?
A: Make sure the account you are currently logged into has Administrator rights. If your account does have Administrator rights, then try using Windows Fixit from this link.
Q: It's still not working, now what?
A: You have two options. The first is to ask me in the comments. But, by far the better option is to go to Google and search for a solution for your problem. That way, you're learning something!
Friday, 18 July 2014
Tuesday, 15 July 2014
The Garth Brooks Fiasco
The proposed Garth Brooks concerts have been attracting a great many headlines over the past few weeks, for all the wrong reasons. 400,000 people have been left devastated by the unfortunate turn of events, whereby Brooks cancelled all 5 of the planned concerts. What caused this turn of events?
Aiken Productions were the ones organising the concerts. The original plans were for only two concerts, though an extra date was added due to demand, followed swiftly by a fourth and a fifth concert. The problem, however, was that the tickets were sold "subject to license," meaning that Dublin City Council had not actually approved of the extra dates, and could, and eventually, would, cancel the concerts. However, the application was dated 16th April 2014, while tickets went on sale around mid-January. In that case, regardless of how many concerts there would have been, either two or five, Dublin City Council could still stop the shows. The biggest problem in this situation was the fact that Aiken Productions could begin selling tickets three months before even applying for a license.
The GAA is also somewhat guilty. As shown when they stopped a sixth show due to a match fixture, they could have stopped the fourth and fifth shows from going ahead as well. This is especially important when you consider that the GAA own Croke Park, and would have been aware that the a maximum of three shows had been agreed with residents, and that these three slots had already been filled by One Direction. The fact that they allowed a total of eight potential gigs illustrates the lack of respect the GAA seemingly has for the residents around Croke Park, and for agreements made with said residents.
The residents have a good case against the concerts. The area in which they live becomes completely locked down during matches and gigs, restricting their freedom. There are also fears of disorderly or drunken behaviour and littering. Finally, the noise levels in the area would, at the very least, be very annoying. However, there is another side to the residents' case. Firstly, many businesses in the area would welcome the Garth Brooks concerts with open arms. Also, the residents don't seem to be united in their aims. They protested against the concerts when five concerts were announced, but when Brooks made the statement that it would be five or none, another group started a campaign for the concerts to go ahead. In my opinion, the residents who were against the concerts held the minority view, but still achieved their aims. If that is the case, then are we a democratic country? But I digress.
The Government then became involved. Our Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, ruled out emergency legislation that would allow the concerts to go ahead. In hindsight, this was probably the only thing that could have saved the concerts. The Minister for Tourism, Leo Varadkar, then said that he was willing to go so far as to travel to the US in order to resolve the situation. The sad truth is, though, this was a totally futile gesture, as if a resolution could not be obtained without travelling, there was little to be gained from Minister Varadkar going to the US, presumably putting the flight on expenses. Again, however, I digress.
Garth Brooks himself made the statement that it would be five concerts or none. Someone made the comment last night on the News, I can't remember quite who, but essentially he claimed that Brooks was being selfish and childish for not accepting the three concerts that had been licensed. That may be so, but on the other hand, Brooks was showing his commitment to all his fans with the statement. It is quite odd though, when you consider that originally only two concerts had been planned, it then escalated to five, but then when only three were licensed Brooks refused to only do three gigs, despite it being more than had been planned in the beginning. In a statement today, Brooks cancelled the gigs, finally bring closure to this fiasco.
Honestly I believe that all parties are at fault to some extent. I only feel sorry for all the people who bought tickets for the concerts, some of them camping for several days in preparation. In this sorry story, they are the real victims. From now on, any artist of Garth Brooks' stature will be highly cautious in any plans to come to Ireland, based on how this debacle was handled. As has already been noted several times, the Irish economy will suffer somewhat, as a result of losing €50 million in revenue. Our international reputation, particularly that of our being a welcoming people is also likely to suffer, as we hardly showed ourselves to be very welcoming to Garth Brooks.
If you have any comments, feel free to leave them below.
Aiken Productions were the ones organising the concerts. The original plans were for only two concerts, though an extra date was added due to demand, followed swiftly by a fourth and a fifth concert. The problem, however, was that the tickets were sold "subject to license," meaning that Dublin City Council had not actually approved of the extra dates, and could, and eventually, would, cancel the concerts. However, the application was dated 16th April 2014, while tickets went on sale around mid-January. In that case, regardless of how many concerts there would have been, either two or five, Dublin City Council could still stop the shows. The biggest problem in this situation was the fact that Aiken Productions could begin selling tickets three months before even applying for a license.
The GAA is also somewhat guilty. As shown when they stopped a sixth show due to a match fixture, they could have stopped the fourth and fifth shows from going ahead as well. This is especially important when you consider that the GAA own Croke Park, and would have been aware that the a maximum of three shows had been agreed with residents, and that these three slots had already been filled by One Direction. The fact that they allowed a total of eight potential gigs illustrates the lack of respect the GAA seemingly has for the residents around Croke Park, and for agreements made with said residents.
The residents have a good case against the concerts. The area in which they live becomes completely locked down during matches and gigs, restricting their freedom. There are also fears of disorderly or drunken behaviour and littering. Finally, the noise levels in the area would, at the very least, be very annoying. However, there is another side to the residents' case. Firstly, many businesses in the area would welcome the Garth Brooks concerts with open arms. Also, the residents don't seem to be united in their aims. They protested against the concerts when five concerts were announced, but when Brooks made the statement that it would be five or none, another group started a campaign for the concerts to go ahead. In my opinion, the residents who were against the concerts held the minority view, but still achieved their aims. If that is the case, then are we a democratic country? But I digress.
The Government then became involved. Our Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, ruled out emergency legislation that would allow the concerts to go ahead. In hindsight, this was probably the only thing that could have saved the concerts. The Minister for Tourism, Leo Varadkar, then said that he was willing to go so far as to travel to the US in order to resolve the situation. The sad truth is, though, this was a totally futile gesture, as if a resolution could not be obtained without travelling, there was little to be gained from Minister Varadkar going to the US, presumably putting the flight on expenses. Again, however, I digress.
Garth Brooks himself made the statement that it would be five concerts or none. Someone made the comment last night on the News, I can't remember quite who, but essentially he claimed that Brooks was being selfish and childish for not accepting the three concerts that had been licensed. That may be so, but on the other hand, Brooks was showing his commitment to all his fans with the statement. It is quite odd though, when you consider that originally only two concerts had been planned, it then escalated to five, but then when only three were licensed Brooks refused to only do three gigs, despite it being more than had been planned in the beginning. In a statement today, Brooks cancelled the gigs, finally bring closure to this fiasco.
Honestly I believe that all parties are at fault to some extent. I only feel sorry for all the people who bought tickets for the concerts, some of them camping for several days in preparation. In this sorry story, they are the real victims. From now on, any artist of Garth Brooks' stature will be highly cautious in any plans to come to Ireland, based on how this debacle was handled. As has already been noted several times, the Irish economy will suffer somewhat, as a result of losing €50 million in revenue. Our international reputation, particularly that of our being a welcoming people is also likely to suffer, as we hardly showed ourselves to be very welcoming to Garth Brooks.
If you have any comments, feel free to leave them below.
Saturday, 12 July 2014
Quick Review: OPPO Find 7a
OPPO may not ring many bells for most of you, but this Chinese manufacturer has been making pretty big waves in the Android world. Normally known for mid- to high-end audio systems and blu-ray players. OPPO's latest offering, the Find 7, comes in two variants, the Find 7 and the Find 7a. The Find 7a has been available for a few months,and the Find 7 has come onto the market in the last month or so. The only differences between the two devices come in the specs, where the Find 7 outclasses the Find 7a pretty much everywhere. I got the Find 7a a while ago, and I've been playing around with it to get a better idea of what it's like to live with.
In Ireland, the Find 7a costs a total of €399 shipped, and they include a free UK plug adapter. In case you're interested, the Find 7 costs €479.
I have been switching between the stock ROM and the Paranoid Android (PA) custom ROM on this device. The good news is that it is relatively easy to get the custom ROM installed providing you know your way around ADB and Fastboot. Either way, you're getting a pretty solid ROM, although I've spent more time with PA than with the stock ColorOS ROM.
The camera is excellent, easily capable of Cover-Photo standard snaps with no particular settings enabled. In terms of modes, you get HDR and a 50MP mode, where the camera takes multiple pictures and uses technical witchcraft to make your picture either more vivid or sharper respectively. Selfie lovers will also be delighted with this phone's 5MP front facing camera.
Gestures are where this phone really comes through. Gestures can be used either through a pull-down from the status (by default on the left-hand side), or, most excitingly, with the screen turned off! You can configure these gestures to open any app you have installed, or to toggle a certain number of settings.
The performance is solid, with the only slowdowns or lags caused by OPPO's ColorOS. Even with that, it does not lag when taking pictures, or when listening to music. The battery, however, is not as reliable. In use, the battery is excellent, especially compared to the Nexus 5's less-than-stellar battery consumption. However, its standby time is atrocious. Many other reviewers have also complained about the poor standby time. I can vouch for their complaints, even on a custom ROM. With WiFi and phone signal turned on, the battery can drop anything up to 20% overnight. The drain is far more acceptable when you put the phone in aeroplane mode, ranging from 2% to 5%.
My problems with the phone begin with the capacitive hardware keys. The placing of the back button on the opposite side to Google's standards causes far too many headaches, especially for a leftie like me. The power key, on my device anyway, had a huge amount of play in it, literally being able to tilt fully on the underlying button. The software helped compensate for this by allowing me to double-tap the screen to wake the device, and double-tap the home capacitive key to lock the device again. However, this is a cure for a problem that shouldn't exist in the first place. The battery life, as I have mentioned above, is also quite a deal-breaker. OPPO's fast charger balances this however, by allowing you to charge the device to around 75% from empty in about 30 minutes. I didn't time the charger, but I can report that their claims are not unrealistic, as the battery can make significant gains in very little time.
So, in conclusion I give this phone a 3.5/5 score. The large vibrant screen and generally solid performance, occasional stumbles aside, coupled with the sensational camera make this phone a force to be reckoned with, even amongst the competition from the likes of Samsung, HTC and LG. However, its unreliable battery, weak power button and unconventional capacitive navigation keys let it down big time. However, OPPO has been able to lighten the impact of these flaws by compensating with the Double-Tap to Wake and Sleep, and the fast charger.
In Ireland, the Find 7a costs a total of €399 shipped, and they include a free UK plug adapter. In case you're interested, the Find 7 costs €479.
I have been switching between the stock ROM and the Paranoid Android (PA) custom ROM on this device. The good news is that it is relatively easy to get the custom ROM installed providing you know your way around ADB and Fastboot. Either way, you're getting a pretty solid ROM, although I've spent more time with PA than with the stock ColorOS ROM.
The camera is excellent, easily capable of Cover-Photo standard snaps with no particular settings enabled. In terms of modes, you get HDR and a 50MP mode, where the camera takes multiple pictures and uses technical witchcraft to make your picture either more vivid or sharper respectively. Selfie lovers will also be delighted with this phone's 5MP front facing camera.
Gestures are where this phone really comes through. Gestures can be used either through a pull-down from the status (by default on the left-hand side), or, most excitingly, with the screen turned off! You can configure these gestures to open any app you have installed, or to toggle a certain number of settings.
The performance is solid, with the only slowdowns or lags caused by OPPO's ColorOS. Even with that, it does not lag when taking pictures, or when listening to music. The battery, however, is not as reliable. In use, the battery is excellent, especially compared to the Nexus 5's less-than-stellar battery consumption. However, its standby time is atrocious. Many other reviewers have also complained about the poor standby time. I can vouch for their complaints, even on a custom ROM. With WiFi and phone signal turned on, the battery can drop anything up to 20% overnight. The drain is far more acceptable when you put the phone in aeroplane mode, ranging from 2% to 5%.
My problems with the phone begin with the capacitive hardware keys. The placing of the back button on the opposite side to Google's standards causes far too many headaches, especially for a leftie like me. The power key, on my device anyway, had a huge amount of play in it, literally being able to tilt fully on the underlying button. The software helped compensate for this by allowing me to double-tap the screen to wake the device, and double-tap the home capacitive key to lock the device again. However, this is a cure for a problem that shouldn't exist in the first place. The battery life, as I have mentioned above, is also quite a deal-breaker. OPPO's fast charger balances this however, by allowing you to charge the device to around 75% from empty in about 30 minutes. I didn't time the charger, but I can report that their claims are not unrealistic, as the battery can make significant gains in very little time.
So, in conclusion I give this phone a 3.5/5 score. The large vibrant screen and generally solid performance, occasional stumbles aside, coupled with the sensational camera make this phone a force to be reckoned with, even amongst the competition from the likes of Samsung, HTC and LG. However, its unreliable battery, weak power button and unconventional capacitive navigation keys let it down big time. However, OPPO has been able to lighten the impact of these flaws by compensating with the Double-Tap to Wake and Sleep, and the fast charger.
Wednesday, 2 July 2014
Quick App Review: Today Calendar Pro
Hi guys, sorry about the delay since the last post. Hopefully I'll be able to resume regular weekly updates from now on.
Right, Today Calendar Pro. As you can probably guess from the title, this is a calender app. A couple of months back, one of my favourite developers, a guy called Jack Underwood, decided to revamp and modernise the AOSP (Android Open Source Project) Calender app.
In short, he completely rewrote the interface, which now features Cards UI, and lots of revamped and modern updates to the UI. It also, unlike the Google Calender app, features Android 4.4's translucent status and navbars, although they are turned off by default.
The app also features two calender widgets, with Agenda and Month views. These were once a separate app on the Play Store called Today Widgets, but the developer has bundled these in with Today Calender. The widgets are pretty customisable, with controls for transparency, and a choice of light and dark themes, among other things.
Those of you with iDevices probably take it for granted that the date changes on the calender app on the homescreen. Believe it or not, that's not actually a feature of Android really. Or at least, it wasn't, until lately. Underwood worked with the developers of the popular 3rd-party launcher Nova Launcher, to develop an API (Application Programming Interface) allowing an app to have dynamic icons. Long story short, now the app shows the current date both on the homescreen and in the app drawer on certain launchers.
The app isn't free, although there is a free 14-day trial, with a link below. The full version costs €2.49, and it's well worth it. A well-deserved 5 stars.
Links:
Today Calender Pro
Today Calender (Free 14-Day Trial)
Nova Launcher
Right, Today Calendar Pro. As you can probably guess from the title, this is a calender app. A couple of months back, one of my favourite developers, a guy called Jack Underwood, decided to revamp and modernise the AOSP (Android Open Source Project) Calender app.
In short, he completely rewrote the interface, which now features Cards UI, and lots of revamped and modern updates to the UI. It also, unlike the Google Calender app, features Android 4.4's translucent status and navbars, although they are turned off by default.
The app also features two calender widgets, with Agenda and Month views. These were once a separate app on the Play Store called Today Widgets, but the developer has bundled these in with Today Calender. The widgets are pretty customisable, with controls for transparency, and a choice of light and dark themes, among other things.
Those of you with iDevices probably take it for granted that the date changes on the calender app on the homescreen. Believe it or not, that's not actually a feature of Android really. Or at least, it wasn't, until lately. Underwood worked with the developers of the popular 3rd-party launcher Nova Launcher, to develop an API (Application Programming Interface) allowing an app to have dynamic icons. Long story short, now the app shows the current date both on the homescreen and in the app drawer on certain launchers.
The app isn't free, although there is a free 14-day trial, with a link below. The full version costs €2.49, and it's well worth it. A well-deserved 5 stars.
Links:
Today Calender Pro
Today Calender (Free 14-Day Trial)
Nova Launcher
Wednesday, 28 May 2014
No Post for a while
Sorry it's taken me so long to update this, I've been up to my eyes in schoolwork. I have exams in a few weeks, and I'm afraid there won't be any new posts until out sometime towards the middle of June. Sorry again guys. Normal service will be resumed in a few weeks' time.
Saturday, 19 April 2014
No Post This Week
Hi guys,
Some personal stuff has come up, and as a result, there's no new post this week. Hopefully, normal service will be resumed either next week or the week after.
Thanks.
Some personal stuff has come up, and as a result, there's no new post this week. Hopefully, normal service will be resumed either next week or the week after.
Thanks.
Sunday, 13 April 2014
Quick Review: Chromecast
We all know the feeling. You've found a great new song on YouTube. You want to show your brother, sister, or friend. You have a great TV in your sitting room, but you have to show them this new song on your laptop or phone, and it doesn't sound half as good as it did when you had your headphones blaring. That's where Google's Chromecast comes in.
It's a £30 dongle for your TV, with virtually zero setup. Quite literally, it's plug-and-play. Once you've plugged it into your television and connected it to your Wi-Fi network, you simply go to a Chromecast-enabled app on your Android or iOS device, and tap the 'Cast' icon in the app. Here in Ireland, we have access to a few Chromecast-enabled apps, with the biggest being YouTube, Netflix and Google Play Music. Naturally, in other countries there is a much larger selection of available services.
To be perfectly honest, there's little to fault the Chromecast on, especially when you consider the price. It is competing with devices such as the Apple TV (~€100) and the Roku streaming stick (~£80), and, although it isn't quite as robust as those products, considering that it doesn't have a navigable UI, among other things, the Chromecast has a lot of the same functionality, for a fraction of the cost.
The Chromecast has no built-in support for local media, such as memory sticks or hard drives. There are a few workarounds for this, such as playing the video through Chrome on PC, or apps such as AllCast on Android. However, there can be issues with unusual codecs or formats, so something I'd love to see is video players such as VLC Media Player implementing Chromecast support on desktop platforms.
This is the perfect device for anyone who doesn't have an Internet-enabled television, and doesn't want to splash out on one. In truth, that's more or less what's you have when you have a TV with a Chromecast plugged into it.
Links:
Chromecast on Amazon.co.uk
Chromecast Apps
It's a £30 dongle for your TV, with virtually zero setup. Quite literally, it's plug-and-play. Once you've plugged it into your television and connected it to your Wi-Fi network, you simply go to a Chromecast-enabled app on your Android or iOS device, and tap the 'Cast' icon in the app. Here in Ireland, we have access to a few Chromecast-enabled apps, with the biggest being YouTube, Netflix and Google Play Music. Naturally, in other countries there is a much larger selection of available services.
To be perfectly honest, there's little to fault the Chromecast on, especially when you consider the price. It is competing with devices such as the Apple TV (~€100) and the Roku streaming stick (~£80), and, although it isn't quite as robust as those products, considering that it doesn't have a navigable UI, among other things, the Chromecast has a lot of the same functionality, for a fraction of the cost.
The Chromecast has no built-in support for local media, such as memory sticks or hard drives. There are a few workarounds for this, such as playing the video through Chrome on PC, or apps such as AllCast on Android. However, there can be issues with unusual codecs or formats, so something I'd love to see is video players such as VLC Media Player implementing Chromecast support on desktop platforms.
This is the perfect device for anyone who doesn't have an Internet-enabled television, and doesn't want to splash out on one. In truth, that's more or less what's you have when you have a TV with a Chromecast plugged into it.
Links:
Chromecast on Amazon.co.uk
Chromecast Apps
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