ITRealms:
Q, I am an upcoming photographer and I would love to use the mainstream suite of software available, but their prices are cut-throat for a start-up like myself. Do you have any idea how I can go about it? Thanks in advance. Adeyemi O.A: Hi Adeyemi, your question resonates with a lot of young entrepreneurs in this clime. It is common knowledge that software piracy is the greatest bane of the technology industry, and whether consciously or otherwise, consumers are being drawn on the wrong side of the law. Granted, the professional design software are very expensive from a young entrepreneur’s point of view, just imagine a start-up with practically no money paying 499 dollars for CorelDraw suite, or 699 dollars for the Adobe Creative Suite. While the price is no excuse; designers, developers, content creators and animators often overlook the open source alternatives to the professional software they use from day to day.It should be noted that the open source alternatives are no where near their proprietary counterparts in function and robustness, but they do get the basic job done, once you get a hang of it. Often times, the open source alternatives take time before they become practical alternatives, but the principle is clear, development of the software is open to developers across the globe.The website www.osalt.com chronicles the open source alternatives to majority of the productivity software we have across categories. Open source and free don’t always go together, and there are some open source software you have to pay to get technical support, usually called the enterprise version.While the open source software are not mainstream, they do produce a fine output; although, a learning curve may be required to adapt existing skills to get the most out of them. Licensing fees are out of the question and you get to learn about various ways to extend the functions built into them through the forum associated with the software. Updates and upgrades for open source software are delivered the same way proprietary versions are, but may be altered occasionally to keep it distinct.Open Source software also include Operating System software as well; the most popular ones being - Ubuntu, openSUSE, Linux Mint, Fedora, Chrome OS and Arch Linux. These are full-scale Operating System software that can compete favorably with their proprietary counterparts, including but not limited to - Microsoft Windows [XP, Vista, 7, 8], Apple MAC OS X [Leopard, Lion, Mountain Lion & Maverick], and RedHat Linux.The significant drag to the mainstream use of Open Source Operating System Software is the non-availability of application software, since developers and publishers do not readily develop software that run on the open source platforms partly due to the absence of incentives. However, wide acceptance of a software sometimes force developers to create cross-platform versions to increase the number of users globally.How does all the above help you, a photographer? Most Open Source operating system software come with basic graphic editing software pre-installed, with a repository of more complex software that will extend your functional capacity, usually for free. The best part, you get to rub minds with other users across the globe and you can share ideas, ask questions and make suggestions towards the improvement of the software. The documentation of each software is ongoing and is built from feedback submitted by users.Final word, you can install the familiar Operating System (Windows, MAC OS) on your Open Source operating system-powered computer by using virtualization technology. This allows you to install another operating system software inside your present operating system software to get functions or run software which may not be otherwise available.Q: My Blackberry Curve 4 was stolen at a wedding I attended last weekend. Is there anyway I can trace it, or better still, retrieve my information? Joyce G.A: Hello Joyce, so sorry about your phone. If you installed an app called Blackberry Protect on your device and activated it before it was stolen, there might be hope yet for your data. If your device is running OS7 (for example, Blackberry Operating System Software version 7) and you are not too tech savvy, you may have to spend between N3,000 - N5,000 to upgrade the operating system software of your device to OS7.1; it comes with the following additional features -*the Hotspot feature (which allows you to share the data connection on your device wirelessly with up to five other devices including but not limited to - Laptops, Tablets, Smart phones, WiFi-enabled TVs, WiFi-enabled printers)*the FM Radio (which has been missing in all of RIM’s devices up until recently, but still limited to the Curve 9220/9320 which is commonly known as Curve 6/7)*New Access Point Name (APN) engine which allows users to bypass the restrictions placed on Blackberry Protect by the pseudo-BIS packages offered by Nigerian telecoms operators.Alternatively, you can take your OS7 device to the Blackberry section of Slot Systems at Computer village, Ikeja, Lagos and they will upgrade your device to OS7.1 for FREE. You read correctly, the upgrade is FREE of charge, and there is no hidden agenda (maybe there is, but its not something that will take money out of your pocket, so, no worries there)From the benefits listed above, the pertinent one for now is the new APN engine that allows you to make use of the Blackberry protect with the Blackberry complete packages offered by all the networks. This saves you 50% off the subscription for the full Blackberry Internet Service (BIS).Why Blackberry protect? Once activated, it creates a back-up of your data (contacts, messages, memo, calendar, bookmarks) remotely (on RIM’s servers) and depending on the frequency you choose, it will perform the back-up in the background. In the event of a software crash, hardware fault, or loss of the device, you can get a new device and just login to Blackberry protect and get all your data from the last back-up on the old device to the new device. This reduces the lag between transition of devices, of moving data and setting up.What’s more, you have many more options with Blackberry Protect, in the event that your device is stolen. All you have to do is login to Blackberry Protect on a computer (http://us.blackberry.com/apps/blackberry-apps/protect.html). You will need a Blackberry ID which you used when setting up your device for the first time (usually, its your email address).Once you login, you can lock your stolen device, display a message on the screen, wipe the entire content of the device, check its location on a map (if it is GPS-enabled, and it is not underground or inside a building), and many more. This protects your data (which is more valuable than the device) and gives you total control, such that whoever stole the device or whoever bought the stolen device will not be able to use it (as you can choose to wipe the device daily, lock it daily, and display a nagging message on the screen) and all these are made possible via Blackberry Protect, and even if the device is turned off, as soon as it connects to the Blackberry servers, the command you set will be executed without delay.So, I suggest you get Blackberry protect installed and activated on your device today! Plus, you should have a password on your device at all times, you are better off that way. Your data is your life, you can do more to protect it and prevent it from getting into the wrong hands.On a final note, if your Blackberry device is powered by OS5 or OS6, you will have to subscribe for the full BIS packages offered by the telecoms companies in Nigeria in order to be able to use Blackberry Protect on your device.
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