Welcome to the Geek Choice Blog

For those of you familiar with Microsoft’s Windows Operating System, you’re well aware of how critical it is to keep your system updated with the latest patches released by Microsoft. In addition to steeling you against any security breaches, these updates have been shown to significantly improve the performance of the operating system.

Once a feature that many either ignored or reluctantly used, Windows Update has seen significant gains in its design since the transition to Windows Vista and the recently unveiled Windows 7.

This important feature is now accessible via the search bar located in the Start menu.

As you’ll see, the new Windows Update process has been streamlined, making it easier to manage and assign those updates where needed.

With this Windows Update manager, you can also view all of the updates for MS Products, saving you the time of checking them individually.

If you find yourself questioning just what you’re installing on your computer, you can click the link specified below, which will bring you to a more detailed explanation.

In the past, the installation of some updates has conflicted with the use of certain applications, which can lead to the instability of your system.  Should such a conflict occur, the incompatible update can be removed by simply selecting it from the Uninstall window.

For what you need, many of the updates will be unnecessary, yet you’ll still find them included in the list of updates to install. For those updates you consider needless, right-clicking on them will summon a window from which you’re able to select “Hide updates.”

Keeping your Windows Updates current is just one of a number of ways for you to ensure that your system is properly functioning.

If you have any questions about what else can be done, feel free to give us a call.

As any veteran of Microsoft’s Windows Operating System knows, the ALT-TAB function is a convenient way to immediately switch from one application to another, underscoring Windows’ multi-tasking properties.

Like many features within Windows, while extremely functional, it doesn’t exactly lend itself to the overall appearance of the Windows platform. More important, the function can lead to frustration, with many people unsure of what “window” they’re switching to.

However, for users of the latest versions of Windows (XP, Vista, and the recently unveiled Windows 7), a helpful and considerably more attractive utility would seem to supplant that rather basic command we’ve grown accustomed to using. Offering the same functionality, this tool takes the core feature of ALT-TAB and augments it to an impressive degree.

Instead of giving you a mere row comprised of the applications to select from, VistaSwitcher provides a sizable window, granting you a beautifully realized preview of what’s available. Use it just as you would “ALT-TAB,” by pressing those very two keys to bring up the preview area.

VistaSwitcher also enables the following:

• By using the “S” key after you’ve pressed “ALT-TAB,” you can option more than one window for previewing, giving you a number of hot keys with which to manipulate their grouping – C for cascade, V for Vertical, and H for Horizontal.

• When pressing “CTRL-ALT-TAB,” you’ll be able to alternate between open windows within a single application. For instance, as someone who works on multiple writing projects at a time, hopping from one document to the next can quickly become tedious. With this utility, assuming all my documents are worked upon in one application (i.e., Microsoft Word), I’m granted the ability to easily switch from one window to the next in much the same way I would between multiple applications.

If you’d rather go with familiarity, you can always stay with the standard “ALT-TAB” function. But for those of you looking to wring just a bit more from this oft-used function, VistaSwitcher is a great way to spruce up your use of Windows.

You can download VistaSwitcher here.