Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How do I get an e-mail address that takes the form myname@mybusiness.com, and is it expensive?

Q. Can I work from home and have access to the information on computers at my office?

Q. How much do you charge to develop a web site?

Q. I already have a web site but it seems very slow. Is there anything I can do?

Q. My computer keeps crashing - what should I do?

Q. I can't seem to find any software to do want I want - could you write some for me?

Q. My computer seems slower than it used to - what should I do?

Q. How do I get an e-mail address that takes the form myname@mybusiness.com, and is it expensive?

It is relatively inexpensive to purchase your own domain name and set it up for use with email. If your surname or business name is quite uncommon there is a chance that a domain name is still available but even if it isn't you can work around this by purchasing a similar domain. For example if your surname is Twine and Twine.co.uk and Twine.com are unavailable then you could try some of the following:

You could also look for other domain extensions like .net and .org but as they are less common people are less likely to remember them.

It is possible to purchase a domain name and set up multiple e-mail accounts for around £50 per year.

There are many sites on the Web that offer to search for domain names for you but there have also been many reports of these sites logging the names you search for and then purchasing them before you get a chance. Our advice is to only use the search facilities that are located on the Web Sites of the organisations that control the domain name registration. To search for a .co.uk domain use www.nominet.org.uk/ and for .com, .net and .org use www.corenic.org/.

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Q. Can I work from home and have access to the information on computers at my office?

There are various options open to you when you require access to a remote computer. The best method of connectivity is dependant on what type of data you need access to, how long you need to be connected and which software applications you run. Other considerations include security, speed and software licencing.

If you would like to know more about the possibilities of remote access and home-working then please contact us to discuss your requirements.

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Q. How much do you charge to develop a web site?

We do not quote for any web site development until we have a good idea of what you are looking to achieve from your site. You may require a small site that could even be just a single page and can be used as an enhancement to your business cards. This option requires only a small amount of effort, is the most economical and is designed to get you onto the first rung of the Internet ladder. As you progress up the steps you can add functions such as:

• request forms
• animation
• E-commerce (the ability to sell products on-line)
• site searching (to allow visitors to search quickly for information on your site)
• databases
• bulletin boards
• password protected pages
• the ability to give your customers access to (for example) the status of orders they have placed. This can include order they have not placed over the web.

Following our initial free consultation we usually have sufficient information to enable us to provide a detailed analysis of your requirements together with the costs involved in the various stages of development. Most projects can be quoted on a fixed-price basis so you are aware of the costs from the very start of the project.

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Q. I already have a web site but it seems very slow. Is there anything I can do?

There are various possible explanations for why a site, or a particular page, takes a long time to download. It is not unusual for us to look analyse a site and be able to suggest a dozen or so ways that the download time could be reduced. Ideas may include reducing graphics file sizes, cutting out any redundant code and re-coding areas in a more efficient manner. Other possibilities include hosting the site with a better supplier and altering the site navigation to reduce the amount of data required after each 'click'.

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Q. My computer keeps crashing - what should I do?

Computers are very useful, when they work. It can be very frustrating when you experience problems with your machine or the software you have installed on it. Most PC suppliers now offer technical help but it can take hours to get through on the telephone and, in some cases, call costs are high.

Assuming your PC is functioning enough to enable have Internet access, or you have access via another machine, then very often you can find the answers to your problems on the Web. Most hardware and software manufacturers have a web site with a Technical Support section. This will usually take the form of a 'Knowledge Base' where you can search and see if the problem you are experiencing has been reported by someone else. If you're lucky there will be a fix available be it a manual work around or a downloadable program to fix the software.

Examples of good places to start looking for solutions to the problems you experience are:

1. The Microsoft MSDN Search

If you are having problems with Windows, Office, Word, Excel etc. then this is a good place to start.

For instance, if you were having problems when using Internet Explorer and the Back and Forward buttons on the toolbar become unavailable (greyed out) then following would explain the problem:

2. Search Engines like Google

Google is one of the best search engines on the Web. You can use it to search for a discussion site that may list your problem. When searching use keywords relevant to your problem like 'Adobe Photoshop print problem' or 'Microsoft Excel Graph Bug'

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Q. I can't seem to find any software to do want I want - could you write some for me?

Certainly we can. Recent bespoke systems systems we have developed include a mailshot database that linked into Microsoft Word and an issue tracking system.

One of our current projects is a Microsoft Access database application which is used to record and analyse data about child behaviour in schools.

We are happy to quote for any system you may require and you may find that the cost of developing an application to meet your exact requirements is not as costly as you might imagine.

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Q. My computer seems slower than it used to - what should I do?

There are a number of reasons why this might be the case:

1. Have you have loaded new software, or even a new version of existing software? More often than not later versions of software require faster processors and more memory. A hardware upgrade may be the only solution but extra memory can be relatively inexpensive if you shop around.

2. You may be running low on disk space. If any of your disks are more than 75% full you could experience performance problems. This is especially true of the C: drive. It may be possible to free up space by deleting unwanted files or folders, emptying the recycle bin or deleting any temporary files. Be very careful when deleting any files as if you delete a file that you require you can cause problems that are far more serious than those you are trying to solve!

3. You may need to de-fragment your disk. Over time the individual files on a computer can become split into sections and spread over various areas of the hard disk. This increases the time taken to retrieve the file. To fix the problem search for 'defrag' in the Windows on-line help (Start - Help) and follow the instructions.

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