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XFER has been serving the Livonia area since 1994, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.
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Mike

Tip of the Week: How to Take Back Your Android Device from Bloatware

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Smartphones are filled with all sorts of nifty apps. In fact, some of the most useful applications come pre installed on the device. However, not all apps are worth your time. These unwanted applications are called “bloatware,” and can impede the device’s ability to perform to your specifications.

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Android Tip of the Week Bloatware
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Mike

Tip of the Week: How to Prevent Lollipop’s Bug From Breaking Your Alarm Clock

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If you own an Android device, you’re no-doubt aware that Google issued an upgrade to Android’s OS not too long ago. This update, dubbed Android 5.0 Lollipop, presents several aesthetic upgrades to devices which were running a previous Android OS. However, there were also some functionality changes, a few of which were less than desired; like the unexpected changes to Android’s alarm clock.

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App Android Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: Load Cached Pages in Google Chrome for Offline Browsing

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You might have experienced the frustration of reading an article online and having the Internet connection cut out on you. This is one of the most common problems while working with a shoddy WiFi connection. If this happens to you, you can view your browser’s cached pages in order to finish up what you were reading; so long as you’re not trying to view pages like Facebook, which update periodically throughout the day.

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Chrome Browser Website
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Mike

Tip of the Week: Freeze an Excel Row for Easier Spreadsheet Navigation

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Many office workers feel like they live in Microsoft Excel, spending hours using spreadsheets to enter data and crunch numbers. By taking advantage of tools like Excel’s freeze feature, workers can make the most of their time by navigating a spreadsheet more efficiently.

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Excel Microsoft Office User Tips
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Mike

Tip of the Week: See What’s Taking Up All of Your Google Drive Storage

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Heavy users of Google Drive may experience the issue of running low on storage space. The easiest way to resolve this problem is to give Google money and upgrade your account. Before taking this step, there are a few tricks you can do to free up Google Drive space by locating and getting rid of unneeded files.

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Google Hosted Solutions Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: 3 New Tricks to Teach Your Old Computer Mouse

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The computer mouse has been a staple in the modern office for many years. Despite its proven usefulness, it’s now threatened by the growing adaptation of touchscreen devices in the workplace. Are you considering trading in your trusty mouse? Before you do, consider these three mouse scroll wheel tricks that make your boring old mouse more useful.

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Productivity User Tips Mouse
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Mike

Tip of the Week: 3 Tricks to Get the Most Power Out of Your Android Device

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Smartphones are exceptionally useful tools capable of enhancing your productivity, even while out of the office, but this comes at a steep cost. If your phone’s battery isn’t optimized to handle the workload, the multitude of apps will quickly drain it and you’ll be left with a dead device.

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Best Practices Lithium-ion Battery Android
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Mike

Tip of the Week: 4 Ways to Cut Down On Your Mobile Data Usage

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As the world pushes toward a more mobile era, so too does the workplace embrace Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) with open arms. As such, workers will need some type of network connection in order to access mission-critical corporate data. Therefore, if they can’t connect to a WiFi network, they’ll default to their cell provider’s mobile data plan.

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Mobile Devices Save Money Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: 5 Ways to Dramatically Reduce Workplace Stress

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"Work smarter, not harder.” When you’re at your wit’s end, it’s annoying to be told this by a relaxed, know-it-all coworker. However, this productivity axiom holds up. Following this rule will allow you to get much more done, in a much shorter amount of time, and in a much more relaxed manner. Here are five productivity tips to help you “work smarter, not harder.”

Or, don’t follow these tips. Keep doing things the hard way and stress yourself out. The choice is yours.

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Workplace Tips Tip of the Week Managing Stress
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Mike

Tip of the Week: 3 Options to Consider Before Trashing Your Old Technology

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It’s often the case that people excitedly upgrade to new technology without giving much thought about what to do with their old tech. In an upgrade situation like this, you’ve got a few options for dealing with your old technology that are good for the environment, socially responsible, and may even provide you with some cash.

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Technology Upgrade Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: How to Know When You Need a Consultant

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Have you ever felt like you aren’t sure how to proceed, or how to get yourself out of a rut? You surely don’t want your competitors to know about your weak points, but you feel so much pressure that you might think twice about asking for tips of the trade. After all, a hand once in a while can make all of the difference. This is when you might consider outsourcing a consultant.

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Efficiency Tip of the Week Consultant
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Mike

Tip of the Week: How to Set Up User Permissions For Google Chrome

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Are you looking for a way to manage Internet use on a single computer that’s being used by multiple people? To help you keep your browsing history and settings intact and keep unwanted users from accessing the web, Google has a free add-on available for Chrome created for just this very purpose.

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Microsoft Android Google Chrome Browser
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Mike

Tip of the Week: How to Find the Perfect Outsourced IT Company for Your Needs

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A growing company tends to experience a lot of IT pains. This is because growth usually goes hand-in-hand with an expanding IT infrastructure, and your in-house IT staff might not be able to keep up with the increased workload. This is especially painful if your budget isn’t as flexible as you’d like. You decide that it’s in your best interest to outsource your IT, but where should you start looking?

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Managed Service Provider IT Services Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: 5 Ways to Put the Power Back In Your PowerPoint Presentations

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Presentations are a necessary, albeit time-consuming, responsibility that you have as a business owner. Thankfully, there are simple tools like Microsoft PowerPoint available to help make your job a little easier. Unfortunately, it’s very easy to make a boring or less-than-great presentation, which can hamper the audience’s ability to let the message sink in. Here are five ways to make sure that your next PowerPoint is as effective as possible.

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Microsoft Office PowerPoint Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: How to Integrate 2-Step Verification with Your Google Account

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It seems like you can’t go a week without hearing about some new security vulnerability or massive data breach. Naturally, this leads the average computer user to feel nervous, especially when dealing with sensitive information. With only a password standing between you and your account, hackers can easily access it if you’re careless. Two-factor authentication is the key to maximizing your online security.

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Security Google Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: Achieve Maximum Productivity for Your Team with These 5 Technologies

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You pay your employees to come to the office and perform their daily duties, but how much of that time is actually being spent working? Every wasted minute cuts into your daily profits, which can waste countless minutes. If you want to get the most out of your team, there are several technology strategies that the modern business can take advantage of to maximize productivity.

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Business Management Productivity Efficiency
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Mike

Tip of the Week: 5 Ways to Prevent Getting Burned By Your Job

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Occupational burnout is a real risk for the busy business owner. Wikipedia defines it as, “Characterized by short-term exhaustion, lack of enthusiasm and motivation, feeling drained, and also may have the dimension of frustration and/or negative emotion and cynical behavior, and as a result reduced professional efficacy.” Can you relate? How can you prevent occupational burnout?

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Best Practices Workplace Tips Tip of the Week
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Mike

Tip of the Week: Use Windows Media Player to Sync Your PC’s Files to Android

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So you’ve got yourself a new Android device and you want to transfer all of your favorite media from your PC onto the device. How do you go about doing this? While there all several different ways you can transfer your files, one of the easiest ways is to take advantage of a program that’s already installed on your PC: Windows Media Player.

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Microsoft Android Windows Media Player
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Mike

Tip of the Week: Avoid These 3 Common Grammar Errors

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We live in an age where everything we do is auto-corrected through our word processor or email client. This makes it particularly easy to make grammar errors, especially when you’re in a pinch and you need to send out a reminder or an email within moments. If your business isn’t careful to avoid these mistakes, you could potentially be seen as unprofessional in your industry.

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Communication Tip of the Week Marketing
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Mike

Tip of the Week: How to Get the Most Out of Google Now

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Android smartphones are everywhere. As a result, Google Now, Android’s personal assistant application, is everywhere. The application integrates with a user’s Gmail account to provide information, directions, and perform functions.

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Tip of the Week Google Android
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