In many job roles you will be expected to use a PC or a laptop to complete tasks. Certain tasks may require the use on in house software or there may be strict guidelines that need to be adhered too in terms of software. For other tasks you may be able to choose what software you use to assist you as long as the end result is the same. Even down to managing your time or keeping notes, there is a wide range of software that you can use.

When deciding on what software to use within your job, you firstly need to ensure that it is secure and that you have the right to use it for business purposes. Selecting the correct software may be tricky and often it is a bit of a game of trial and error to find the correct one. Don’t be afraid to ask other colleagues what they use or to ask for free trials of software before you ask if it can be bought.

When it comes to buying software for your PC or Laptop, you may struggle to find a cheaper deal than showing direct with the manufacturers. Often new releases of programs are all sold round about the same price regardless of where you get it from. If you are looking for older versions of software then you may be able to get a better deal by searching online. When buying software online you need to be careful that it is genuine and that it is exactly what it says it is and in the condition stated. If it is on a CD for example, you need to ensure that the CD runs. You may also get tricked in to buying non genuine software that is being marketed as genuine products.

If you find a price online for software that is a lot cheaper than most other places then you may need to question as to if it is genuine and going to work.

Macs are predominantly the best for design work. Apple Macs are renowned for their design features and easy use when it comes to creating visuals, business cards, posters or any on or offline designs.

Often the only reason a web designer does not use an Apple Mac for their design work is due to cost. For a middle of the range new Apple Mac you will be looking to spend in excess of £1000, and although they are good, the price tag is often out of the reach for some designers.

There are many other ways to get your hands on a cheaper Mac. You can opt to buy a second hand one for a few hundred pounds but be aware that you may not have any warranty unless you purchase one from a shop or that states it is covered under warranty.

Leasing is becoming very popular amongst Mac users, allowing you to have the newest model for a relatively low weekly cost. As with many leasing plans, you may have the option to upgrade to the newer model in a couple of years or even to make a small payment and keep the equipment.

When you create a website you need to consider the layout carefully. Consider what you want your visitors to do, such as make an enquiry or buy a product and then make it as easy as possible for them to do so. Sometimes, you may not know what is working until you have had the website up and running for a while, or it may be that you find you are having a lot of traffic to the site but no conversions.

A B testing is a way of creating a duplicate version of a page and showing it to a percentage of your customers. Google offers this testing method and you can chose a ratio for how many times one version is shown compared to the other.

Ideally you want to keep some similarities between the sites as changing too much can mean that you don’t really know which elements work and which don’t. Once you have set up the A B testing you will need to set up conversions so you can track which version performs the best.

Windows are rolling out their new software and software updates quicker than they ever have done previously, but this does come with its own issues. It appears that sometimes the software they release has not been tested thoroughly and therefore causes many issues for users especially in the early days. Microsoft are by no means the only company to be guilty of this with Apple often doing a similar thing.

Windows 10 is now out and with free updates from Windows 7 and 8 allowed, many users have already upgraded to the supposed new and improved platform. I recently upgraded my own laptop but very quickly took advantage of the roll back to previous version that was available.

Unfortunately it appeared that there were still far too many bugs that needed to be ironed out in the software to allow it to function properly and with certain software not being compatible just caused more issues than I could cope with. Hopefully over the coming months these will be fixed, but for now, I for one am staying put.