WebUser – 21 August 2019

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Air your views, write to us [email protected] 21 Aug - 3 Sept 2019 73

I ha ve been usingWindows 10 for
two years andfound itto be fast,
reliable and easyto use. I wonder if
the problems that some of its users
encounter are moreto do with their
hardware than the operating system
itself. Perhaps they don’t have enough
memory or their hard drives have
seen better days.
I know Microsoft gets a lot of bad
press for rolling out updates before
they’reready, but ifmy trouble-free
experience is anythingto go by, people
shouldn’t be put off upgrading from
Windows 7 just because of afew
horrorstories.
That said, I hope MrThomson
managedto recover from his update
problems, and has more luck with
Windows 10 in future.
Brian Rickman, via email

Overcharging your phone is
a fire hazard
Mike Cole is correct to question the
need to leave gadgets chargedto 100%
overnight (‘Don’t chargeyour devices
overnight’, Inbox, Issue 481). However,
he didn’t mention the otherreasons
for disconnecting devices from the
mains once they are fully charged.
Not only is unnecessary charginga
waste of electricity and therefore bad
for the environment, but it is also a fire
hazard. If the charger or the
device’s batteryoverheats
and malfunctions, it
could start an electrical
fire and potentially
causevery serious
damageto your
home orworse.
To quote theLondon
Fire Brigade’swebsite
(www.london-fire.gov.uk):
“Don’t leave itemscontinuously
on charge after the chargecycle is
complete – it’s best notto leave yo ur
phone plugged inovernight,for example.
Batteries can present a fire risk when
overcharged.”This is especially true if
you use a charger that didn’tcome with
your phone, such as oneyou bought on
holiday, because it may not meet UK
safetyregulations.
Is it really worth running the risk of an
electrical fire becauseyou’re too lazyto
unplugyour phone or laptop when it’s
fully charged?The ans wer is no.
Miriam Simmons, via email

D

O YOU THINK USING AFULL

STOP IN MESSAGES LOOKS

RUDE (bit.ly/rude482)?

I alw ays use correct punctuation, but

my friends and I are so old that it’s not

seen as rude. It’s a slippery slope and

once peoplestart using incorrect

punctuation it will slip into allforms of

writtencommunication.

Rich Grove

I must be seen asvery rude. I always

use correct punctuation.

Marie Davies

Maybe I’m pedantic, but punctuation

is important, as is the use of proper

words, not abbreviations.People who

can’t spell or usecorrect punctuation

are diminished inmy view.

Harvey Skipsey

This is the age of disrespect.People

shouldn’texpect manners orcourtes y.

If people don’t punctuate co rrectly,

this is perceived as a lack of carefor

the recipient(or deliberate rudeness).

However, most people don’t care.

Lance Parkington

I alw ays use correct punctuation

and capitalsfor proper names.The

standard among the kids these days is

atrocious, they can’teven spell.

Geoffrey Boow

Nah. As long as I get the gist of what’s

said, I’ll let it slide. Life’stoo shortto

concernmyself withstuff like that.

Lee Dodgson

Most people have bigger thingsto

worry about than whether or notyou

use a fullstop at the end of messages.

Sarah Beasely

I thinkoverusingexclamation marks

can seem ruder. It looks pushy.

SimonBatchelor

W

ILLYOU CHOOSE GOOGLE

WHEN OFFERED A CHOICE

OF ANDROID SEARCH ENGINES

(bit.ly/choice482)?

It’s like being trapped in a one-sided,

slightly bitterrelationship. Ikeep

tryingto leave Google but, damn it,

it alw ays has the best answers.

Caroline Chapman@cantstopthesgnl

I’ve got Google set asmy homepage,

as well as onmy mobile!

Brian Brown

I didn’teven knowYahoo still hada

search engine! Other than Bing, I can’t

name another search engine besides

Google so,yes, I’ll choose Google.

Nat Grove

Google isn’t a search engine that I use.

Google tracksyou everywhere.

Anthony Robinson

Google is so ingrained with Android

that I doubt anything else will provide

a better option.

John Graham

H

OWMUCH TIME DOYOU

LOSE TO “TECHNICAL

ISSUES” WITHYOUR

BROADBAND (bit.ly/

technical482)?

Generally none, but sadly thisweek

I lost about 10 hours as Openreach

has botched its orderingsystem

and Zen can’t processmy order.

Until I’m set up withZen, I’ll just

have to make conversation withmy

missus.

Alan McClean

I reported an incidentto the Post

Office whenmy broadbandwent

down. Ittook them aweek to reply.

Andrew Jackson@aj44brown

Too much time withVirg in Media, it’s

absolutely shocking. Do not use!

Paul Feakins

I’m withVirg in Media, andrarely ha ve

a problem.

Christopher Chesters

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