How Do I Safely Use a Free Email Account For Business?

You don't. At any point your account can go bye-bye and you have no legal recourse. All your saved documents in your email are gone. Your record of communication with your clients is gone. There is no encryption (unless you are using Gmail) so anything you send is a free-for-all ---especially over wireless! However, even with Gmail there is no guarantee that your data won't be lost. It could go bye bye tomorrow.

It's best to use email that has a guarantee. You've paid for it or your company has paid for it.  You probably have email accounts available through your internet service provider that you are not taking advantage of. I know Comcast gives 7 email accounts and Verizon gives, I believe 5.

Understanding Video Technologies

How do you know you have the right type of monitor for your computer? Not any cable will fit in any computer. The monitor has to match the connection type your computer has.

The most common is VGA. These are the blue-ended 15 pin cable connections. Most every computer has one of these and most every monitor has one of these. It's the lowest-quality and cheapest type available. You can get a flat screen LCD monitor in VGA for 100$ now! CRT's are even cheaper.

If you want to step up your viewing pleasure, you can opt for a DVI (digital video interface). There are three types:

• DVI-A A cable and device analog only connector
• DVI-D A cabble and device digital only connector
• DVI-I A cable connector that is a universal (digital OR analog)  connector

DVI cables vary in pin number but they have more than 15. :) The benefit from using DVI instead of VGA is increased resolution. Your video card must support DVI and your monitor must also support DVI. I was thinking about buying a monitor that is on sale, but I noticed it didn't support a DVI connection so I passed.

HDMI (High definition multimedia interface) is a step up from DVI because it also carries audio and is all digital! Image wise it is the same as DVI. The HDMI connector looks much different than a DVI or VGA connector. It is compatible with DVI so you can buy adapters that convert between the two types. 

• Type A has 19 pins
• Type B has 29 pins
• Type C has 19 pins for portable devices

Component Video is an analog technology, but a digital version is available in high-end hardware. It uses RCA connectors on your sound card. The three connectors are single-pin male connectors.

S-video is a 7 pin connection. The port will often be labeled with a little picture of a TV.

So how do you know which to buy? It depends on what you want to do with the monitor. If you just want to use the monitor just for your computer work and don't care about super mega great video, then a VGA is fine. Most people buy this for their home office computers. It makes sense because it's cheap.  If you are going to be hooking the monitor up with other devices such as a blue-ray player and watching movies, you have to decide if sound is important. If you need both sound and video to be super awesome, HDMI is the way to go. If you need picture to be awesome because you already have a great sound system hooked up to your computer, then DVI.  Before you buy components that will be part of a system, let your vendor know exactly what you have and what you want to do.

Or you can just buy a VGA for work! ;)

A Few More Dollars Makes a Big Difference

When you are purchasing computer hardware a few more dollars can make a big difference. Let's start with the motherboard (the big green board inside the computer to which everything is fastened). The type of motherboard that is most popular is the ATX (Advanced Technology Extended). It is used in most desktop PCs today. The newer version of this motherboard is the BTX which has much better thermal regulation. BTX is used in Gateway and Dell computers. Sure, an HP is cheaper, but is it worth a few more dollars to get a computer that won't overheat? I think so. The BTX  motherboard design puts all the big heat-producers in the line of the air flow system of the computer so it takes the heat out of your computer. Big improvement over the ATX which still amazingly dominates the market.

When you are trying to decide how much memory to get inside your computer, you have to ask how many slots are filled, how many slots are empty, how big are the memory modules you are getting, and if you want to upgrade later, do you have to take out any sticks or can you just add more memory. If you have to take out sticks and discard them, it's worth it to upgrade the memory now.

A good quality surge protector pays off in the long run! It saves your hard drive which costs a lot more than the 30$ you would pay for a Belkin surge protector. 

If buying a laptop, you need a well padded bag. Don't get the cheap end. You'll regret it when your computer gets banged up or worse yet the LCD screen cracks.

Frankly Speaking, It Might Be You.

I hate to say this, but the problem with your repeated infections might be you. If you have a reputable antivirus and adware program and aren't using Internet Explorer for your browsing, then the problem problem is your browsing habits.

Don't say, "But I don't do anything." If the computer sat there with no one touching it, it would not get infected. You are doing something to get the repeated infections.

Maybe this is what you are doing?

• Can't wait to see the latest celebrity video? If it wants to install a "plugin" and you do it without checking it out, you are at risk of getting infected.
• Using MSN as your homepage? Not a good idea. I use it just to see if I'll get clickjacked. You shouldn't though.
• I hate to mention this, but visiting porn sites is a guaranteed way to mess up your computer. Just don't do it.
• Patronizing online gambling sites? Filled with crapware! Take up chess! :)
• Too cheap to pay for music? Limewire and Kazaa are hazardous. Amazon has great deals on albums and Walmart.com has $.79 tracks.
• Are you gullible to rumors? So and so has died or whatever the latest FALSE rumor is, you just can't resist? Curiousity killed the cat and it will kill your computer too.
• Someone sent you an e-card? Do you think it would be rude not to open it? Well it's rude to send one from FUNCARDS. Fun cards aren't fun for whoever has to clean up your infection. Safe cards trump fun cards any day of the week. I published the safe e-cards in a previous article. See the list in that article or pay for e-cards.
• Need every media player in existance? Chances are you don't need them. Stick with real player and windows media player. Steer clear of the others unless you absolutely need them and thoroughly check them out.

Ok, so hopefully in the future you will be more cautious. My philosophy when browsing is be very, very scared.  It's safer. If you still want to be reckless when browsing, at least back up all your important data so when your computer does crash, you'll be covered. Hope this helps.

What is Scareware?

It's malware that scares you into installing it. They tell you that your computer may be infected and you need them to help you clean it up. They'll say things like your financial data and your personal information is at risk and they can help you clean it up.  Often, the software is totally bogus and the goal is to infect you. Sometimes it's to peddle their (lame) product. If it were such a hot product, they wouldn't have to stoop to such levels to sell software.

Often scareware products will disable your internet to frustrate you into buying their product. They change your proxy settings so that the only website you can get to is theirs so you can buy their product. How low is THAT? Pretty darn low.

Once you install the scareware, you're infected. Scareware infections can vary from relatively easy to uh oh hard to remove. I've taken care of them in less than an hour, but occasionally it renders a computer helpless and in need of a reinstall of Windows.

Best way to avoid scareware:

• Use Firefox with the adblock plus add-on.
• Research everything that pops up before you install it.
• Run your scans regularly. That way you know you are clean and won't fall for scareware.
• Be skeptical about any product you've never heard of.

Also, remember curiousity killed the cat! Kanye West wasn't in a fatal car crash. The news headlines would be filled with it. It seems celebrity deaths are a popular medium these days for malware attacks; the most popular celebrities are still with us and you would have heard about them. Strangers offering to enlighten you about Jennifer Anniston's untimely demise are cyber criminals. If someone you know sends you an attachment, generally you were expecting it or you can trust them somewhat not to mess up your computer. If someone you don't know sends you an .exe file, it probably is an attack.

How to Deal With a Multi-Globberate ISP

You're little. They make that abundantly clear. You are nothing compared to their national dominance over the ISP consumer and business market. It doesn't matter if your company is small or big, you are little compared to them.

"You just put this ticket in today." Well, yes, and we've been down all day. "Four hours is the time we have to respond."  That is half a business day! How many dollars are lost because of those four hours? Oh, that's right. You don't care.

You have to call in the big guns. Like:

•  Call your account rep or customer service and complain.
• Ask how you file a presidential complaint.
• Ask to speak to a manager
• Ask to be transferred to the technician
• Escalate your ticket online as soon as your are allowed to.
• Repeat what they say putting "You mean to tell me" in front of it.  (Learned this from Kim!)
• Don't get annoyed waiting on hold forever. Use web interfaces to put in tickets and update tickets.
• Be persistant. Call back often until your problem is resolved. Let them know you still have a problem.

Annoying Things Techs Do (and Why!)

• Ask what were you doing when the problem occured. We use the scientific method to solve problems we try to eliminate all the possiblities to get to the root of the problem.
• Refuse to give you a short password. They are too easy to hack. It's harder if they are at least eight characters long and it's even harder to crack if you throw in upper and lower case and numbers with it. A good tech will never give you a password with less than 6 characters and I always give 8 with a combination of numbers and letters.
• Scold you for emailing a password. If you are sending your emails over a wireless router especially you are taking a big risk. We don't want your passwords intercepted. Your life will start to get ugly if they are! Emailing passwords is dangerous. Don't ever do it.
• Ask you to verify your home address and phone number. If I don't know your voice and you call me and ask to change your password, I'm going to ask for this to verify you are who you say you are. Simple as that. If you don't want to do this, then have your manager call and transfer me to you.
• Leave if you're on the phone. Often we have other people waiting after you. We have to make good use of our time.
• Ask what you have done already to try to resolve the problem. This is not asked to be annoying. We just don't want to repeat what you've done. It wastes your time and ours.
• Repeat things. I know I am way guilty of this, but sometimes it takes several times before something seems to "sink in."
• Remind you to back up your data. Data recovery prices are four figures. Few people can afford that kind of labor.  If you are really lazy about backing up, pay for Carbonite. They'll do it for you!

About Static Electricity- Shocking, But True

Static electricity (Technical term--triboelectrification)  is not electricity that is static; it's out of control electricity!

Microprocessor chips can fry at 10-30 Volts. That's incredibly low voltage.
Humans don't even feel a static electricity charge til about 1500 Volts, but often they are over 10000 volts.

How you can prevent frying your chips:

• Use a humidifier during winter months.
• Don't touch your tower first after dragging your feet across the computer (especially first thing in the morning going to check your email with your mug of coffee!)
• Always store spare parts in static-free containers or bags.
• Try to put your computer up off the floor a little so you don't have to vacuum around it.
• Never use a swifter to get the dust inside your computer; instead use canned air.

Caution: Never open the case of a monitor; only a trained electrician should do that.

10 Myths People Believe About Computers.

1. Hardware is becoming obsolete the minute you take it home. Actually, it's before you take it home. Processor generations are in development two years before they are released. Whatever you bring home is on the way out. Still you have to buy a computer. 
2. If I have virus and spyware protection I won't get infected. They don't prevent infection. They just detect and remove it. Browsing habits and email habits are what get you infected. Your attitude towards those need to be adjusted to not get infected.
3. If I have a power strip I am protected against electrical surges. Power strips don't provide protection against surges; only surge protectors with guaranteed dollar amounts do.
4. If I unplug all my electrical equipment during a lightning storm I am safe. Electricity can still get in thru the cable and zap everything.
5. I need an internet security suite.  Most of them are bloatware. They slow down your computer too much, cost too much, and block things you need.
6. I need Microsoft Office. Not everyone needs it. Try to live without it first: http://www.openoffice.org/
7. It's ok to clean my LCD with glass cleaner. Pay for the wipes. Glass cleaner will ruin it.
8. My computer should last more than 6 years. EOL=end of life. After 6 years, replace it; it's at EOL.
9. Inkjet printers are cheaper than laser printers. Sure the initial cost of an inkjet printer is less, but you have to look at total cost of operation. Inkjet cartridges dry out and they are expensive. Evaluate your needs and printing habits before you buy a printer.
10. I don't need to do anything to the hardware unless it fails. You need to keep the power supply fan free of dust.  The whole computer needs to be kept clean.

Do You Know What a CMOS Battery is?

Here's an interesting one. All of a user's certificates were expired. She couldn't get into any SSL sites, but could get into sites that were not needing SSL certificates. She mentioned she changed the battery and time for her computer was off. The year and date were off too.

What happened was when she lost power for the system by taking the laptop battery out, her CMOS  also lost its settings because her CMOS bettery was dead and set her time and date was set back to the original date for the system. CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) battery give power to the system holding the date and system settings when the computer is powered off.  How long a CMOS battery lasts, varies. It depends on how long the motherboard has been lying around before it is placed in a system.

What can you do to prevent this problem? Nothing. When you start to notice your time and date aren't holding, replace the battery. It isn't green to proactively change the battery.  When it dies, take the battery out and take it to a drug store, electronics store, or department store so that you get the right battery. Most computers use a standard 2032 type battery.

About Wet Keyboards

First step is to disconnect from the system!

Keyboards that get wet (even soaked) should be shaken to remove as much water as possible. Then stand the keyboard on it's end for 2 days at least to be sure it completely dries out. Do NOT USE any heat source to dry it out (ie blowdryer, heater, etc). After two days, connect it to your system to see if it is still working.

If the licquid was sugary, clean as much as possible with cotton swabs dipped in 50/50 alcohol/distilled water.

If the wet keyboard is on a laptop, remove the battery and unplug. Take a q-tip around the edges of the keys (or the edge of a shamwow) to absorb the standing licquid. Then, take it to a professional right away.

Data Lost... What Can I Do Now?

800,000 data-sensitive devices—including USB drives, hard drives, laptops and mobile devices are lost or stolen each year. (according to Ponemon research institute.)

What do you do if yours is lost/stolen?

• change all passwords
• monitor all accounts
• consider deleting email accounts  and opening new ones
• review all information posted on social networking sites to see if it can be combined with whatever was on your device to steal your identity.

What do you do before your information is lost/stolen:

• password protect all laptops and disable the guest account.
• use encryption on flash drives (some flash drives come with security programs... use them!)
• use encrypted email and don't save the password to your account
• consider leaving your laptop at home on vacation. Take a break! If you HAVE to check email, use a net cafe.
• attach your flash drive to something you will not forget (such as keys or purse).
• if you have to leave electronic equipment in the car, lock it in the trunk rather than in the cabin of the vehicle.
• never place a list of all your passwords on your flash drive.

Be paranoid. Be thinking "What if I lost this?" Place sensitive material in smart places-like a hard drive that never leaves your house.

Don't Print PDF's to an HP LJ 1020

This issue has been around quite awhile. You can't print PDF's to a LJ 1020. You'll hose your print spooler (the Windows program that is responsible for printing). It's a documented problem. It's so well known that Microsoft has a fix for it. Microsoft isn't the one who should be releasing the fix though. HP knew it was a problem so they should have fixed their driver program. Everyone prints  PDFs. It's like a big part of what people print.

Does HP feel so secure in their printer monopoly that they can not issue a needed fix? When you are purchasing a printer, look at all the options. Just because HP is the cheapest option does not mean it's the best. You have to look at customer service and print quality. Look at price per page and how much toner is going to cost.

Just don't print pdfs to a lj1020. If you have one, put a no PDF sign on it to remind yourself never to print pdfs to it.

Don't Ignore Freezing

Freezing up is a sign that a computer has problems.

• Scan for viruses and adware. It could be infected. Make sure you update definitions first before you run scans.
• Check the amount of free space on your hard drive. An overstuffed C drive can cause GPF's (general protection faults). Run CCleaner to remove a bunch of trash you don't need from your computer.
• Clean up your registry with a TRUSTED registry cleaner if you have installed and uninstalled lots of programs. http://www.registry-clean-up.net/ This one is easy and reputable, but it's not free.
• Make sure all your files are backed up in case your hard drive crashes.

Archived Sent Mail is Important Too!

Everyone always thinks to archive their inboxes and contacts, but what about archiving your sent mail? You can specify certain Outlook folders to archive to a specific file name. Choose a name that includes the time period: for example Aug2Dec2010sent.pst is six months of sent mail in 2010 August through December.  Save the folder in more than one place in case your computer crashes. That way when your client comes back to you and says that you promised them something in an email, you can find the email and say definitively that you didn't with an email!

A second backup is extra insurance you'll always be able to find the item. I suggest one local copy: a flash drive, second hard drive or CD and one online copy: Google Docs, Dropboks, etc.