Saturday, August 30, 2014

#1 Chromebook - Common Questions. Part 1

Hello, everyone! How are you doing?

 As you can tell, from reading the title, this post is about Chromebooks!
Once you become the proud owner of a Chromebook, you probably have some questions. Here's a list of 3 common questions:
  • What can I download?
  • How do I connect a printer to my Chromebook?
  • How secure is this Chromebook thingy?

                       

                       Let's get started!


                                       What Can I Download?

Excellent question!
The only thing that you can download, at the time of me writing this Blog, is some things that come from the Chrome WebStore. 
Apps and Extensions.
And of these Apps and Extensions, only certain ones are compatible with a Chromebook.

Let's say you want to download a game that came from the Chrome WebStore. After you do so, you go to the File app - because that's where it would most likely be - you click on it, and it looks something like this: 

If it says that, then the file type is not supported. That means you can not play the game!
Only certain file types are supported.
Here's a list of them: 

Supported file types
The following file formats are supported on Chromebooks:
  • Microsoft Office files: .doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .ppt (read-only), .pptx (read-only). Learn more about viewing and editing Office documents.
  • Media: .3gp, .avi, .mov, .mp4, .m4v, .m4a, .mp3, .mkv, .ogv, .ogm, .ogg, .oga, .webm, .wav
  • Images: .bmp, .gif, .jpg, .jpeg, .png, .webp
  • Compressed files: .zip, .rar
  • Other: .txt, .pdf
Only those types can be run on a Chromebook.

 Please note that Chromebooks can't install apps from Google Play. Google Play is only compatible with Android devices at the present time.
Next question!

                        How do I connect a Printer to my Chromebook?

 Another brilliant question!
To connect a printer to your Chromebook, follow the instructions below:

 If you want to connect a Cloud Ready printer, follow the manufacturer's instructions.
To do just that, click here

 To connect a classic printer to a your Chromebook, you'll have to enable Google Cloud Print connector using Windows or Mac computers that's connected to the printer. 
Google Chrome will have to be installed on the computer. If you're using Windows XP, it would be recommended to have Microsoft XML Paper Specification Pack installed (keep in mind there are also Chrome/Cloud Print compatible computers that DO NOT need to be connected to another computer and will work naively with ChromeOS and Cloud Print. The could be wireless of on your network or on another network!).

Once you've done that, follow yet more steps stated below!

  • Turn the printer on.
  • Log in to your user account on the Windows or Mac computer.
  • Open up Chrome.
  • Click on the menu button on the browser toolbar (three horizontal lines).
  • Select settings.
  • Then Show Advanced settings. 
  • Find  Google Cloud Print. Click add printers.
  • If needed, sign in using your Google account.
Source: Google Help Page. 
Final question!

                               How safe is this Chromebook Thingy?

 Wow! What good questions!
Well, Chromebooks are so safe, that no one has been able to claim this 3 million dollar offer to hack the OS. 
As stated in the first question, Chromebooks can only download certain file types. Well, that'll knock out a lot malicious programs because some of them won't be able to be installed because Chromebooks can only download certain types of files!
Also, Chromebooks don't have Java installed and Java is a big way for your OS to get hacked.
In simple terms, Chromebooks are a anti-virus. No need for Mcafee or Norton.
This video should help to understand Chromebooks security in more detail.
   Now, you can/may see pop ups; or might have a browser hijack. 
Don't panic! All browsers have browser hijackes and/or pop ups.
All you have to do is Reset Browser Settings.
To reset browser settings, click the three horizontal lined menu Chrome menu and select Settings, once again. 
Then, Show Advanced Settings, then Reset Browser Settings.
Simple, right?


Well, that'll wrap it up for now! Hope you learned something!

Click the links below to learn more!

- What can I download?
- How do I connect a Printer to my Chromebook?

- How safe is this Chromebook thingy?
For more info, go to the Google Help page and Google Product Forums to learn all you can about Chromebooks!

Good bye for now!! :)


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