Alert: Woolworths Customer Satisfaction Survey!

I just noticed a Woolworths customer satisfaction survey email pop into my inbox. Please note this scam designed to obtain your credit card information.

What concerns me about scams aimed at loyalty reward programs is that many people on these programs aren’t as computer savvy and can easily be tricked.

If you know people on loyalty reward programs such as Woolworths rewards let them know about potential scams and to take care.

Kelvin Eldridge
Call 0415 910 703 if you require computer support.
Supporting residents and businesses in Templestowe, Doncaster,

Eltham and the surrounding area.

Free WiFi at Melbourne airport

Waiting at Melbourne airport for a plane can be a very unexciting time. Personally I've always felt the airport should provide free wireless Internet access for travellers.

In the past I've never found free WiFi at the airport so today I was surprised to find free WiFi. Clients wanting to know where I found free Internet access are welcome to contact me.


Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 if you require help with your computer.
No problem too small.

Computer repair Doncaster - Having a problem with your computer?

Are you looking for a local person to assist you with your computer related problem? If you require assistance call Kelvin Eldridge on 0415 910 703 for a computer repair in Doncaster. Kelvin is local (based in Templestowe) and does not charge residents and  businesses in Doncaster a call-out fee or charges for travel. Kelvin also offers a money back guarantee to ensure customers are satisfied.

Kelvin has over thirty years of experience solving computer related problems and helping individuals and businesses with their computer systems.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Watch out for energy retailers offering large discounts

A friend approached me the other day promoting electricity from their network marketing group. They offered 3% discount plus another 12% for paying on time. A total of 15%. Sounds pretty good. I’d just noticed an offer for 14% discount from an energy retailer. Even my current energy retailer when I called is now prepared to offer 12% off electricity and 10% off gas, but only if I sign up on a long term contract. All seemingly great discounts.

The bottom line however is you can offer a great discount if your energy charges and service to property charge are higher to start with. What you need to do is to compare what you are actually paying against each offer and keep in mind many of the offers will be better than you are currently paying. Most people by habit don’t negotiate better rates with their current provider so almost any offer will be better than what they are currently paying.

The big charge often missed for many is the daily charge to the property. This can easily be $200-$400 a year and can be reduced by up to a third by shopping around. So make sure you compare your electricity usage plus the charge to your property.

For the daily charge to the property just check your current bill and multiply by 365 for the days in a year. Make sure you include GST. Then for your usage you need to check out if you are paying one rate or two. I use the Energy Cost Calculator to quickly determine the cost over a year. My usage this latest bill was around 7.5kWh per day. So in the calculator I’d enter 7,500 for the watts, enter the rate in cents including GST and 1 for the number of hours. The 7,500 is because 7.5kW the kW is kilowatt and thus we need to multiple be 1,000 to get the number of watts. The one is because it is 7.5kWh per day. We could devide 7500 by 24 to get the  figure for one hour and then enter that number and 24 hours for the time, but it is easier to just assume all the energy was used in one hour for the day. This simplifies the calculation. The Energy Cost Calculator will then show you your daily cost and a yearly figure.

If the energy retailer is offering a discount then discount their rate and use that rate in the Energy Cost Calculator. Also note that some retailers offer the discount only on usage and not on the service fee to the property.

Repeat this process for each energy retailer and then compare the total amounts you’d pay against your actual bill.

I did this same exercise recently and will soon change from Red Energy to a different provider. The saving will be around $175 a year. Our usage is quite low compared to many so for others the saving would be much greater. I haven’t changed yet, but when I compared the offer I found to the offer from my friend’s network marketing group, if I used his group I’d be about $80 worse off. (He does know about the retailer I found.) Be careful of those selling energy services and also friends promoting network marketing schemes. Energy retailers just want your business. Sadly friends in network marketing groups seem to just want their commission (or to sign you up) and if they do know of a better deal, will often neglect to mention it. Make sure you do the calculation yourself.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 if you require computer support.
Providing support in Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

MyAnswers: Does the PayPal Here credit card scanner work with the Apple iPhone 3GS?

The following MyAnswers solution 2239 is now available:

Does the PayPal Here credit card scanner work with the Apple iPhone 3GS?

Click here to obtain the solution.

Click here for related solutions.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.MyAnswers.biz
(An Online Connections service.)

Microsoft Office 2013 lucky for some, but unlucky for many

Microsoft Office 2013 is just around the corner, but this time it comes with a bit of surprise for many.

First if you have Windows XP you won’t be able to install Office 2013. If what I’ve read is correct and you have Windows Vista, you won’t be able to install Office 2013 either. That’s over 50% of Microsoft’s current users.

If you do run an older computer and want to install Office 2013, you’ll need to fork out for an upgrade of the operating system to Windows 8. If you wait until after January 31^st 2013 you’ll end up paying full price for the upgrade. Consider upgrading between October 26^th and January 31^st, or at least purchasing the upgrade during this time for later installation.

But wait, there’s a catch

If your Windows XP computer was built before 2005 there’s a good chance your Pentium 4 computer won’t be able to install Windows 8. By my estimates that will be a problem for perhaps up to 70-100 million Windows XP users.

Microsoft won’t win any friends by neglecting its current users, but of course the retailers will love the sales it generates. I suspect we’ll see a considerable number of disenchanted Microsoft users reconsidering their loyalty and a spike in sales of Apple computers. Microsoft will only have themselves to blame.

 

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 if you require computer support and live

In Doncaster, Templestowe, Eltham or the surrounding area.