Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • Guide for Maximizing Computer Productivity

    ***DRAFT***  FOR REFERENCE ONLY Pending edits, additions and approval. The following guide is a generic recommendation for computer use and maintenance.  It’s goal is to maximize a computers productivity in a business environment.  Where possible, it should be accompanied by an “Acceptable Use Policy” and enforced by management. Use a monitored Antivirus program. AV is…

  • Get Internet Explorer back on Windows 10

    The single biggest complaint I hear about Windows 10 is that the default browser is now Edge.  You can actually change this pretty easily if you use only a computer or two.  Unfortunately, this is a user profile setting and must be done for each user on each computer.  That being said, let’s get started.…

  • Windows XP End of Life Implications

    If you are still using Windows XP, here are some important tips for use after the end of life on April 8, 2014.  You may need to upgrade or replace the computer if you need to continue it’s use.  If you do not need the computer, it should be turned off, disconnected and retired. Antivirus…

  • Excel Sort Dates by Month and Day

    Today I have been given the task of sorting a spreadsheet with about 20,000 rows by birthdate or anniversary.  The sort needs to be by month and day, ignoring the year for CRM.  The simple formula I used was TEXT(CELL,”mm/dd”).  The problem was that many (thousands) of the dates were in unrecognizable formats such as…

  • Excel Combine Duplicate Rows

    I have a need to look for duplicate entries in an Excel worksheet and delete the ones with outdated or incomplete data.  This has proven to be a bit more difficult than I thought it would be.  I will be working on a better solution for this based on demand.  The AbleBits add on did…

  • Excel Formula to Format Phone Numbers

    This is a formula for use by users that are familiar with using formulas in Excel.  If you are not such a user, be careful and backup before you start. We need to convert a column of variously formatted phone numbers to a common format.  This can be difficult if the source has several formats…

  • Email Service Options with TranSoft Labs

    To determine what email service you need, we have to ask a few questions.  After thinking about and answering the following questions, we can discuss the options more easily. Do you want a permanent email address? The only way to guarantee a permanent email address is to own an internet domain and pay the annual…

  • Setup Trillian to Replace Skype and Hotmail Instant Messenger

    Some of you hate the loss of features and configuration of the Skype replacement for Hotmail Instant Messenger.  Here is how to set up our suggested replacement. Download and install Trillian.  You will need to set up an account with Trillian but the free one will work just fine.  You can get it here: https://www.trillian.im/…

  • Add TSL Hosted Email to Outlook.com

    Some of you are using or would like to use Outlook.com due to it’s enhanced feature set and access anywhere and sync to phone including contacts.  The following is an abbreviated list of steps for setting it up.  Microsoft has a verification procedure that may need to be completed before you can make your email the…

  • Opening Excel sheet shows grey screen

    The screen was blank because the sheet had been saved in a position off the screen.  To see the sheet, go to Veiw, Arrange All, or Window Arrange.  Press OK and you should see it.

Got any book recommendations?