In Depth: Get your money back on faulty tech presents
When a device goes wrong within six months of purchase, your first port of call should be the shop from where you bought it.
The problem is that shops have a habit of passing the buck and referring unhappy buyers back to the manufacturer. This is wrong!
So what do you do if you find yourself in this situation? Sue the company.
Don't be frightened by the prospect of taking action; it's really not that hard to do.
Small claims
As long as your claim is less than آ£5,000, you can make use of the Small Claims procedure in the County Court. This is a semi-informal court process that makes it straightforward for individuals to take on companies.
Not only is it cheap to instigate proceedings, but the other side can't recover legal costs from you if you lose as they would in a normal court. This means that proper legal representation by the other side is unlikely, as it's just too expensive for them.
This alone gives the individual consumer with a genuine grievance a great advantage when dealing with a company. If you want to take this route, the first thing to do is write to the company that you have a problem with, explaining the reasons for your dissatisfaction, what you would like in return and a reasonable timeframe for doing this.
You should also provide notice of your intention to take further action if it does not do as you've asked.
Don't forget to send any correspondence by recorded delivery and keep copies for inclusion in your claim. If this gets you nowhere, carry out your threat and issue proceedings.
The process is simple: the court will issue a claim on your behalf, and this will be sent to the other side. It will contain details of the dispute and the amount of money that you're claiming back from the company.
The details are contained in form 'N1', which you can download from the Court Services website.
This site contains a lot of useful information about making claims, so do spend some time increasing your knowledge about the process there.
The Lawpack site also has useful hints and tips about making a claim, and the Small Claims pages on the CAB website are very good too.
You will be liable for a court fee in order to issue a claim – the sliding scale starts at آ£30 and rises to آ£108 if your claim is آ£5,000 or above. Happily you can add the court fee to the amount that you're claiming, so you'll get it back if you win your case.
When the other side receives your claim they are required to respond within 14 days, either by admitting the claim or entering a defence. If they fail to respond, you should ask the court to enter a default judgement in your favour.
If the other side does submit a defence, a hearing date will then be set. Don't worry – this won't necessarily be held in a court, and wigs and gowns won't be required. Hearings in the small claims 'track' are informal, and strict rules of evidence don't apply.
If you like, you can ask a friend or 'lay representative' to sit with you for moral or legal support. The judge can adopt any method of dealing with the hearing that they consider to be fair.
You ('the claimant') will put forward your case; the other side will put forward their defence; and then the judge will ask questions of both sides. Once all of the arguments have been heard, the judge will decide if there is any cause for compensation.
The reasons for the judgement will normally be given to you there and then, although in complex cases there may well be a second hearing to attend.
As mentioned earlier, the small claims system treats costs slightly differently from the mainstream courts. If you win, then you'll be able to recover any fees in addition to the claim amount.
If you lose, then in most cases you'll only be liable for costs of administering the case, and not the value of the damages claimed.
 |  |
Read More ...
In Depth: Getting connected: a history of modems
Their arrival heralded a new age of communications and they played a major role in the explosion of the internet. We're talking, of course, about modems. Here we look back on the development of this remarkable device.
When the US Air Force needed a convenient way of transmitting hundreds of radar images to command centres during the Cold War in the late 1940s they turned to the telephone system as a solution.
Fortunately modems, already in action in Teletype since the 1920s, were the perfect tool for taking the digital radar images and converting them into analogue transmissions and then back again so that they could be sent across the network of telephone systems already in place.
FIRST MODEM: AT&T's 1958 modem. Not exactly your small, white unobtrusive box of today, is it? [Image credit: AT&T]
The modulator-demodulator, aka the modem, was enhanced by Bell Laboratories to improve upon the Teletype speed of approximately 150 bits per second (bps).
It was in 1962 that the first commercial modem, the Bell 103, was released by AT&T. Including full-duplex transmission, frequency-shift keying (FSK) and a speed of 300 bps (baud). These modems were designed to hold a telephone's receiver in a cradle with wire connections running from the cradle to the computer.
BIT BY BIT: The Bell 103 modem that ran at 300 bits per second [Image credit: www.velocityguide.com]
To grab a bit of perspective on the actual speed of these modems, consider that a letter consists of eight bits. A speed of 300 bits meant that this modem could only send out around 30 letters a second.
It was also in the 1960s that Paul Taylor, building upon the work of James C Marsters and Robert Weitbrecht, developed the world's first telecommunications device for the deaf using an acoustic modem.
CONNECTED: The Miniprint 425 TDD telecommunications device for the deaf
The spread of bulletin board systems (BBS) meant that users were soon demanding greater speeds to transfer larger files and images and market demand led to the development of the V.22 or Bell 212 modem at 1200 baud.
ONLINE: Using a 1200 baud modem to access the BBS at one of Canada's largest universities [Image credit: dblackadder]
This modem delivered more characters and introduced a very simple data compression that worked well with text but didn't have great results with images.
Running along in the background was also some hefty legal action and competition as AT&T initially prevented customers from connecting devices from other companies to their telephone lines.
However, thanks to Tom Carter the Carterfone Decision of 1968 soon saw this unfair advantage taken away from AT&T.
"While we could visualize what should be possible and how it could change the shape of the communications industry, our first thought, however, was for self preservation... I approached a number of communications equipment manufacturers for financial support, but they were all afraid of jeopardizing current or potential Bell contracts," said Tom.
After he won the case the market was suddenly left wide open with companies like General Electric entering the field with glee.
Then, in 1977, Dale Heatherington and Dennis Hayes created the world's first PC modem, the 80-103A.
A modem that offered all the right features at exactly the right price point and connected directly to the phone, something that users had not had the luxury of experiencing until this point.
FIRST PC MODEM: Dale Heatherington with IMSAI 8080 computer and early 300 baud Hayes modem [Image credit: Dale Heatherington]
Usually you'd have to dial the phone manually or use a dialer plugged into the computer.
It was so successful that they started up DC Hayes Associates, later known as Hayes Microcomputer Products, and developed several landmark technologies including the Smartmodem and the Hayes Command set.
PIONEER: Dennis Hayes in 1976 [Image credit: Dale Heatherington]
The Smartmodem was remarkable because it could switch between data mode and command mode and it did this using a sequence known as the Hayes Command Set that incorporated a unique "guard time" to prevent the data being sent from confusing the modem itself.
The Hayes Command Set has remained one of the most popular although it has been substantially built upon since its inception to accommodate higher speeds and better technologies.
Faster rates
Soon after 2400 baud modems hit the market on V.22 BIS, they doubled transfer rates and came with new data compression standards and introduced V.42 the Auto Reliable Protocol.
Speed was noticeably faster and transmissions were substantially more error free along with better compression.
The short-lived 4800 baud modem followed in the 1990s beaten down by the 9600 baud modem that became available in 1991.
The latter used single sideband transmission so modems could use two channels on the phone line instead of one.
It was the development of echo cancellation that allowed for this breakthrough in speeds as modems were now able to determine whether the signals they were receiving were from themselves or from other modems and "cancel" their own signals to prevent confusion.
It took 14 years, from 1980 until 1994, for the speed of the modem to develop from 14.4Kpbs to 28.9Kbps but it was only two years later, in 1996, that Brent Townshend came up with the technology for the 56k modem.
SUPER-SPEED: The 56k modem created by US Robotics [Image credit: Xiaowei]
"We started with a very specific problem - how do we get higher speed data from the digital server to many analog links - and started working on it from that point of view," Towshend explained to Network World in 1997.
Townshend didn't go into the business of making modems; instead he merely took out the patented and licensed the technology for a substantial $2.50 per modem.
This has dropped to 22 US cents per soft modem today but it's not hard to imagine that he's swimming happily in a pool of money round about now.
Of course most of us are now enjoying the blistering speeds offered by ADSL but the dial-up modem still remains in circulation and its history is one of the most interesting to read.
It's fascinating that development was not as rapid as many modern technologies and that, for many years, people were happy with the snail-like speed of 300 baud.
The modem heralded a new age of communication and initiated the widespread use of the internet; achievements that we now take for granted but could not be conceived of as recently as the 1980s.
| |
Read More ...
In Depth: 12 really cool reasons to get OS X Snow Leopard
There's much more to Snow Leopard than just a few tweaks. Apple set out – as they put it themselves – to "build a better Leopard", and it shows in every streamlined action and snappy response time.
What that means for you, the user, is that you get some of your precious time back: time that you're not spending waiting for an application to launch or a spring-loaded folder to open. That in turn means less frustration: Snow Leopard (and Mac OS X in general) is about technology that respects the user by keeping out of their way.
What about Apple's other claims? For instance, does Snow Leopard really save your disk space? The iMac we're using had 152.06GB on its hard disk before we installed the new OS.
And afterwards? It's currently showing 145.14GB used: a saving of 6.92GB. And that's as near as dammit to Apple's claimed 7GB saving, we reckon.
Extra support
One of the other aspects of Macs that we don't think gets nearly enough attention is their continued support for people with disabilities.
From its early days, Mac OS had features such as Sticky Keys to help those who have difficulties using the keyboard. The Universal Access System Preferences pane now offers a wide range of support technologies built in to Mac OS X, and Snow Leopard incorporates the drivers for more than 40 models of Braille display.
If you use your Mac at home, Snow Leopard now has built-in support for Microsoft's Exchange Server mail, calendars and contact lists.
What does that mean? Well, if you've been trying to cajole your work's IT department into letting you bring your MacBook into the office, they've now run out of excuses! They'll find system requirements for Exchange on Apple's site.
All in all, then, we would say that it's worth upgrading to Snow Leopard – for those of you who can. If you have a PowerPC Mac, Leopard is still supported, and will be updated for a while yet. What follows is a summary of some of the features of Snow Leopard that we're enjoying. And we're pretty sure you'll enjoy them too.
1. Safari – so good
Alright, we know – Safari 4.0 has actually been out for quite a while now, but for some of you, this might be the first time you've seen it. Certainly Snow Leopard's default browser has much to recommend it: rendering of pages is fast, accurate and mostly error-free.
It's even one of the most standards-compliant browsers out there, and passes the Web Standards Project's stringent Acid 3 Test with flying colours (visit acidtests.org for more details).
2. Where in the world…
Take a look at the Time Zone tab in System Preferences > Date & Time. You'll probably find it's now a much more accurate reflection of wherever you are at present. That's because Snow Leopard rather helpfully uses the same Core Location technology as the iPhone and iPod touch to work out your exact location.
And if you're the globe trotting type, no longer will you need to remember to reset the time zone after a journey – Snow Leopard does that automatically too.
3. Printer support
Mac OS X has always been a good citizen when it comes to supporting a large number of printers. And now it's even more helpful than ever before. It will look for local printers on installation, and even checks for their latest drivers over the internet.
The underlying technology behind Snow Leopard's printer support is called CUPS (which stands for Common Unix Printing System) and it's also a brand-new feature this time around.
4. Watch your language
The International System Preferences pane has received a makeover too. Now called Language & Text, it's a point of reference for all system-related uses of text. Here's where you set your Mac to use British-English spelling, and also set up keyboard shortcuts for symbols and phrases.
For instance, already enabled for you is the shortcut that converts '(c)' into آ©. You can also use it to turn simple combinations of letters into words or phrases: for instance 'MF' could become 'MacFormat'.
5. Taking a shortcut
Remake or remodel could be the watchwords for Snow Leopard with Keyboard being another of the Preferences panes receiving an overhaul.
Once you've launched it, choose the Keyboard Shortcuts tab and you'll see what we mean. Now properly codified, Keyboard Shortcuts offers you – the user – the chance to add, remove or modify the keyboard shortcuts you want.
For instance, if there's an application you want to launch with the touch of a key, go ahead. Want to change the default keys for Exposأ©? No problem.
6. For the record
Ever had to explain one of the finer points of Mac OS X to a Mac newbie over the phone? Well, now you don't have to, thanks to QuickTime X (you could always ignore your phone of course, but that would be rude).
In QuickTime Player X, go to File > New Screen Recording, use the pulldown menu to choose your sound and quality settings, choose a place to save your movie, and record yourself explaining the problem with full visuals. You could even post your tutorial masterpiece to YouTube (go to Share > YouTube…).
7. Exclusive preview
And the updated features just keep on rolling in – including Preview, which proudly continues with its onward march towards being one of the most useful applications bundled with Mac OS X. Its handling of text selection from PDFs is absolutely superb now, and it will even grab text that is arranged in columns.
Annotations have also seen something of an improvement in this version too. If you click on the Annotate toolbar button you'll see that a full toolbar appears at the bottom of the application window.
You'll find that this makes it much easier to select and use multiple tools, further speeding up your work and increasing your efficiency.
8. Disk-onsolate…
Do you remember the bad old days, when you'd try to eject a disk from your Mac's desktop, only to be told that it couldn't be ejected because it was '…in use by another application'? Extremely frustrating. But which application was actually using it?
Snow Leopard now works out which application is currently using the disk in question. It will then present the information in the 'disk in use' dialogue before advising you to quit the application and try it again.
9. Pair remote
Using the General tab of the Security System Preferences pane you can also choose to pair your Apple Remote with your Mac so that another remote in the vicinity doesn't trigger Front Row, either by accident or design: simply click Pair…, and follow the on-screen instructions.
You can also disable all remotes: handy if you're in an open location and your Mac might pick up signals from others.
10. Firewall
To prevent unauthorised servers contacting your Mac, go to System Preferences > Security > Firewall, and hit Start (you might need to authenticate first; click the padlock icon and enter an administrator password).
To enable incoming connections for certain apps click Advanced…, then add the app you want by clicking +, finding the app and clicking Add.
11. Control remotes
Using the General tab of the Security System Preferences pane you can pair your Apple Remote with your Mac so that another remote in the vicinity doesn't trigger Front Row: simply click Pair…, and follow the on-screen instructions.
You can also disable all remotes: handy if you're in an open location and your Mac might pick up signals from others.
12. How does that grab you?
To make a screenshot hit Shift+Cmd+3 to grab the whole screen, Shift+Cmd+4 to grab a window. Not so long ago, you'd have to wade through images named Picture 1, Picture 2, and so on, to find the right one.
Well, not any more: Snow Leopard adds the date and time to screenshot file names, making it easy to find the one you need.
| |
Read More ...
Will Apple iSlate tablet have a tactile keyboard?
Potential details of Apple's new tablet, what it will be called, and the way in which we will interact with it may have come to the public domain, with a patent application hinting at tactile feedback for a flat device's virtual keyboard.
The iSlate name comes from Apple briefly being outed as the owners of the domain, with MacRumour's story looked at in some detail by TechCrunch.
Perhaps more interestingly is the hardware hints given in a patent.
One of the key complaints about touchscreen devices has been the lack of feedback when tapping away at a screen.
With reports that 'you'll be surprised with the way you interact with the new tablet' the arrival of more patents is inevitably going to attract major interest.
Dissected
The always excellent Apple Insider has a detailed dissection of the patent, which uses what Apple terms an 'articulating frame' to produce bumps under the screen that help you find the right keys.
When you are finished with the keyboard, the bumps will disappear, retracting into the device.
"The articulating frame may provide key edge ridges that define the boundaries of the key regions or may provide tactile feedback mechanisms within the key regions," the application states.
"The articulating frame may also be configured to cause concave depressions similar to mechanical key caps in the surface.
"Preferably, each key edge comprises one to four distinct bars or Braille-like dots.When constructed in conjunction with a capacitive multi-touch surface, the key edge ridges should separated to accommodate the routing of the drive electrodes, which may take the form of rows, columns, or other configurations."
Game changer?
It's certainly potentially a major change for touchscreens – which have seen other developments, like the much maligned BlackBerry Bold's clickscreen – fall by the wayside.
With the whole world now poised for the Apple announcement at the end of January, we'll all have to wait and see if it's actually the iTablet, and whether the whole host of mooted developments will be present.
| |
Read More ...
TechRadar's most popular posts of 2009
As we approach the end of the year we're taking a look back to reveal the stories that had you clicking.
Unsurprisingly, Windows 7 garnered huge interest, with our pre-release coverage helping you decide whether it was worth buying, and the clicks to our Windows 7 tips and troubleshooting articles suggesting that lots of you did go on to buy the new operating system.
Sky on Xbox also proved popular as did our top 10 round-ups of phones, graphics cards and LCD TVs.
Read on for TechRadar's 10 most-read stories of 2009:
18 cool things Windows 7 does that Vista doesn't
From Windows 3.1 to Windows Vista, the Windows operating system has taken many giant leaps. And while Vista received a lukewarm reception from some users, Windows 7 is likely to be remembered for addressing those criticisms. Here's some great things Windows 7 does that Vista doesn't...
7 reasons why the Sony Ericsson Satio can challenge the iPhone
The Sony Ericsson Satio is the phone everyone has been waiting for from Sony Ericsson, the one to put the company back on the map and halt its slide down the worldwide sales charts. However, UK and Ireland MD Nathan Vautier has claimed that the Phone can even outstrip the iPhone, so after spending a great deal of time with the phone to bring you our in-depth hands on with the Sony Ericsson Satio, we had a sit down and tried to work out his reasoning.
Sky on Xbox: All your questions answered
Representing Sky's move onto a gaming console for the first time, for Sky satellite subscribers the Xbox brings true on demand to their television and for other people the chance to get movies, entertainment and sports onto their television without a satellite installation. So TechRadar has pinned down the likes of Sky's Director of On Demand Griff Parry, Xbox's Jerry Johnson and Neil Thompson and Adrian Pilkington of BSkyB to ask just what the service is.
62 Windows 7 tips, tricks and secrets
Windows 7 is out and if you've either just installed it or bought a new PC running Windows 7, then we're here to help you get the most from it. Read on for 62 ways in which Windows 7 will make a real difference to your PC.
95 websites you should totally bookmark today
How do you ask Google for some brilliant sites, sites which will feed your mind, soul or just let you waste time in style? If you're in that kind of mood, you're in the right place. Our experts have put their thinking caps on and come up with a list of their favourite sites. So, do yourself a favour: forget Google for a while and put your trust in us.
Windows compared: Windows 7 vs Vista vs XP
Deciding which operating system is best for you has become decidedly trickier with the arrival of Windows 7. Is the newcomer just Vista with a facelift? Or has Microsoft learned from its mistakes and delivered a product that will restore its battered reputation? Perhaps you should forget about Vista and Windows 7 altogether, opting for the mature XP instead? So which is best - Windows XP, Vista or Windows 7? Read on to find out what we've uncovered.
22 common Windows 7 problems solved
We like Windows 7: it's faster than Vista, makes better use of your system resources, is packed with interesting features, and looks great, too. But that doesn't mean it's perfect, of course. If you've moved to Windows 7 recently then you might have noticed various upgrade problems, interface issues and features that seem to have disappeared entirely, among many other complications with the new system. Here's how to fix 22 of the common problems...
Top 10 best 32-inch LCD TVs in the world today
Most living rooms can't physically take a TV much bigger than 32-inch, making this size by far the most popular in the UK. But within the 32-inch division, there's plenty of choice. A basic HD-ready set can be found for less than آ£300 if you search hard, though it's just as easy to spend over آ£2,000. There's only one certainty at this size, though – your new telly will be an LCD TV. Here's our round-up of 10 you should consider...
Top 10 best graphics cards in the world today
Today, AMD's Radeon cards are market leading. And even though the prices aren't quite as attractive as last time around, the ATI Radeon HD 5970 currently holds the title of fastest graphics card in the world. What's more, ATI has already released a whole range of DirectX 11 compatible cards, while Nvidia is still to release even one. The result of all this is that the current top 10 is a lot more competitive than ever before. And here it is…
10 best mobile phones in the world today
The phone industry is now so humungous it's worth over $24bn in India alone. Some stats suggest that the global mobile industry will be worth $200bn by 2012 – that's $33 for every human being on the planet. And what's driving this recession-beating performance? It's the technology, stupid! So here we have our 10 favourite mobile phones of the current crop...
| |
Read More ...
No comments:
Post a Comment