Tech Tip

Using Your Cell Phone as Your Primary Phone Line

2010-08-05T23:10:00.000-07:00

Using your cell phone as you primary phone line is becoming increasily more common. As long as you can get adequate reception in your home and don't make too many international phone calls you could make it work. Yes it can be cheaper than paying 2phone bills as well. Just make sure you include enough minutes in your plan to cover all of your calls and make sure you have free long distance.

Too Many Browser Toolbars?

2010-08-05T23:06:00.000-07:00

Do you have too many toolbars in your browswer? Multiple tool bars slow down your browsing, clutter up your screen and duplicate functionality. Many of the programs that you install will ask you to install a toolbar with them. Always select no when asked. If you already have toolbars you don't need turn them off or go into the control panel and uninstall them. Your internet browsing will be faster and more enjoyable.

Microsoft Updates

2010-08-03T09:18:00.000-07:00

Microsoft produces software updates and patches for it's operating systems and office software. These update are free and can be manually or automatically downloaded from Microsoft. Vista and Windows 7 automatically download and install their updates. Remember to set your PC to download and install its updates and patches or you are at risk for an infection.

Can a Large Monitor Increase Productivity?

2010-08-03T09:09:00.000-07:00

Do you have a large computer monitor? It has been proven that larger monitors can actually increase productivity. Studies have shown that people performing certain tasks complete them quicker on a larger monitor. From personal experience I can say that using a program like Microsoft Outlook on a 20" monitor is significantly more efficient than using an older 17 or 19 inch.

Going on Vacation?

2010-08-03T09:05:00.000-07:00

Are you going on vacation this summer? When you return let your computer update itself for a while before you start using it. Windows updates come out each week and your antivirus and spyware updates need to download and install themselves. Several have probably come out while you were gone. It is good for you to let your computer update itself especially before you start sending and receiving email.

Hackers and Flash Drives

2010-08-03T09:01:00.000-07:00

Hackers are getting into American businesses by dropping memory sticks in parking lots of companies. When an employee finds one and puts it into a company PC that machine can now be infected and send out private information about the company to someone else. Be very careful about anything you insert into your PC. Don't use a memory stick unless you know what is on it.

Phishing

2010-08-03T08:28:00.000-07:00

Have you been phishing lately? I am not talking about using hooks and bait. One of the most common scams out there in the computer world is called phishing. Spammers will send you a harmless looking email that will take you to a site that will ask you for personal information. eBay, Amazon.com or your bank will never send you an email asking you to renew or give out personal information.

Passwords

2010-07-26T12:21:00.001-07:00

How do you remember all of you passwords? Most people who use computers have multiple sites they have to log into. It is dangerous to use the same password everywhere because if someone guesses it they can get into anything you have. To help you remember all of the passwords you have to use try using a program. Programs like Keypad from Search Secret are excellent and will auto enter passwords for you on differnet site.

Adding RAM to your PC

2010-07-26T12:16:00.000-07:00

Want to speed up your PC? Add more RAM. It's the electronic part of your computer where programs run when they are loaded from your hard drive. Load your PC with as much as it will hold. Even if you don't use it all today your programs in the future may need it. To do this go to a web site like www.crutial.com. It will scan your PC and tell you how much you have and how much your PC will hold. You can order directly from their site.

Malware Tips!

2010-07-22T09:11:00.000-07:00

Are you running an anti-malware program on your PC? If not you could be subject to programs that could slow your computer down and may compromise your personal information. There are many free programs like Malware bytes, Ad-aware, Spybot Search and Destroy. These programs will search your whole hard drive and remove programs that have been downloaded by your web browser. It won't hurt your PC to run several of these programs installed at the same time.

Email Blast

2010-07-22T09:07:00.000-07:00

Attention Business Owners! Are you communicating with your customers enough? A simple and inexpensive way to keep your name in front of them is to use an email blast. Companies like Constant Contacts make software that allow you to write one email and blast it out to everyone on your list. Your customers will probably read these because they come from somebody they do business with. Set up a business newsletter with Constant Contact or program like it. You'll be glad you did.

Upgrade Your Virus Software

2010-07-20T19:09:00.000-07:00

Are you using a free anti virus software on your computer? Many of these programs are good, but they are not always enough protection. Many anti-virus manufacturers offer free version of their programs, but for a small annual fee you can upgrade to their professional version that offers much more protection. The professional version guard against malware better that come from web sites. Upgrade your virus protection. You'll be glad you did.

Adding RAM

2010-06-08T05:55:00.000-07:00

Want to speed up your PC? Add more Ram. It is the electronic part of your computer where programs run when they are loaded from your hard drive. Load your PC with as much as it will hold. Even if you don't use it all today your programs in the future may need it. To do this go to a web site like crucial.com - it will scan your PC and tell you how much you have and how much your PC will hold. You can order it directly from their site.

Malware Removal

2010-06-08T05:49:00.000-07:00

Are you running an anti-malware program on your PC? If not, you could be subject to programs that could slow your PC down and may compromise your personal information. There are many free programs like Malwarebytes, Add-aware, Spybots Search and Destroy. These programs will scan your whole hard drive and remove programs that have been downloaded by your web browser. It won't hurt your PC to run several of these programs installed at the same time.

Email eBlasts

2010-06-01T05:37:00.000-07:00

Attention Business Owners! Are you communicating with your customers enough? A simple and inexpensive way to keep your name in front of them is using an email blast. Companies like constant contact make software that allow you to write one email and blast it out to everyone on your list. Your customers will probably read these because they come from somebody they do business with. Set up an email newsletter with Constant Contacts or a program like it. You'll be glad you did.

Free Antivirus

2010-05-28T10:38:00.000-07:00

Are you using a free anti-virus program on your computer? Many of these programs are good but not always enough protection. Many Anti-virus manufacturers offer free versions of their programs but for a small annual free you can upgrade to a professional version that offers much more protection. Professional versions guard against viruses and malware better that come from web sites. Upgrade your virus protection - you will be glad you did.

Twitter

2010-05-19T17:35:00.000-07:00

Twitter ... was is it? Twitter is a social networking site that is known for being the quickest, shortest way to post messages via the web. These messages are known as tweets. Tweets are text messages up to 140 characters long and display as soon as they are typed on the users Twitter page. If you want to know what someone is doing right now you can join their Twitter page.

Online Backup

2010-05-19T17:28:00.000-07:00

Are you backing up your home computer? Many people attach an external hard drive and configure some type of back up, but what if you had a house fire or your PC and external hard drive were stolen? To be safe use an online backup system like Carbonite or Mozy. These programs are very cheap at about $50 a year and automatically upload an unlimited amount of data to a remote location that is easy to retrieve.

Too Digital

2010-05-17T17:21:00.000-07:00

Computers are great tools for communication but they should not be the only communication that you have with your friends. Emails, Text, Facebook, MySpace Posts, Twitter notifications are all great but they are still pretty impersonal. Nothing takes the place of a visit or personal phone call once in a while. Don't become too digital in your personal life. Keep in touch with your closest friends and relatives the old fashion way. Visit sometime.

File Names

2010-05-16T19:17:00.000-07:00

When saving documents in your word processor be sure and use descriptive file names. Windows is a great search feature but it only works if you use a name you think to search for. Six months from now are you going to remember what is in the file called letter.doc? You can use up to 256 characters for a file name so instead of "letter.doc" call the file "letter to ABC customer about April 2010 shipment.doc".

Surge Protectors

2010-05-13T17:05:00.000-07:00

Did you know that Central Florida is one of the lighting capitals of the world? Back up batteries and surge protectors can save your pc during storms and power outages. It's easy to burn out a power supply or network card when lighting hits near your office or home. Get a good surge protector that is also a battery backup so you can shut down your pc correctly when you lose power.

Heat and Dust

2010-05-12T07:45:00.001-07:00

Heat and dust are a big deal for computers. You need to open up your PC every once and a while and blow out the dust. To do this just unplug everything from you PC and take the side cover off. Take it outside and blow it out with a can of compressed air. Don't forget to also blow out the power supply. Be sure to do this outside!

Startup Programs

2010-05-12T07:37:00.000-07:00

Did you know that you can automatically start programs when Windows starts up? This can save you time having Windows automatically opening up the programs for you that you use everyday like Outlook, Word and Internet Explorer. To do this in XP just right click on the Start Button then click on Open - Double Click on the Programs then Startup. Now drag any icon from the Desktop into this window. A program listed here will automatically load the next time you start Windows.

Entering Credit Card Information Online

2010-05-03T11:06:00.000-07:00

Anytime you are entering credit card information on a web site check to make sure you are entering on a secure site. Look at the address bar it should say "https" not "http". The address bar may also be green. If the address bar is red or if the "s" is missing or you get an SSL certificate warning don't enter your credit card information you may be on a malicious site.

Phishing Sites

2010-04-27T13:55:00.001-07:00

Be sure and look at the address bar anytime you are entering important data or passwords into your web browser. Be sure you are at the right web site. Many Phishing sites as they are called will try and direct you to a dummy site to try to capture your data. Phishing sites will look like the real thing but they cannot hide their address (PayPile is not the same as PayPal.

Multiple Emails

2010-04-27T13:50:00.000-07:00

Did you know you can forward multiple email address to a single address so you only have to check one mail box. This could be a great time saver and keep you from having to look mulitple places to get to your information. Just look at the setting area of your email and set a forwarding to a single address that you can check easily.

SPAM Email and Secondary Email Account

2010-04-26T05:51:00.000-07:00

If you don't want SPAM in your email don't give out your email address and don't sign up for anything online. Create a second free email address somewhere and use that one for order things. A second address is a good way to keep junk mail from filling up your work email with SPAM. Your IT department at work will love you for not filling up their mail server with Junk.

Public Computer Usage

2010-04-26T05:47:00.000-07:00

Did you know anything that you open or send on a public computer or work computer is the property of your employer or the owner of that computer. Be careful at work even personal emails, chat or web browsing sessions sent from a work computer can be seen by your employer. A good rule of thumb is - If it is privite or sensitive keep it at home.

Posts on Social Networking Sites

2010-04-04T19:33:00.001-07:00

Be careful what you post on facebook and other social networking site. Parents, schools and even your employer can see that. Some employers will check out your Facebook site and use that information in the hiring process. Whenever you post online assume that almost anyone can see it. Don’t ever post anything up that you wouldn’t want someone to see.

Home Wireless Network

2010-04-04T19:32:00.001-07:00

When you set up a home wireless network always change the default SSID or the name of your network so your neighbors don’t know it is you. Also, and this is very important, change the default password and put a WEP or WPA encryption code on it. If your neighbors start using your internet connection you might be held liable for what they do. It will also slow down your home or office internet down by using your bandwidth.

Looking for a Small Affordable Laptop?

2010-04-02T20:12:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for a light and small laptop check out one of the new Netbooks – they are cheap and have a long battery life. They should not be your main machine as many do not have CD Rom Drives to save on space but they are great as long as you just want to read email and browse the web. Long battery life is the great thing about these new netbooks. A nice Netbook can be a great second computer and something to do while you are waiting in the doctor's waiting room.

Purchasing a New Laptop?

2010-04-01T19:44:00.000-07:00

When you need to purchase a new laptop really think about what you are going to use it for. Do you need Power or is Size the most important thing? Don’t buy something cheap because this is a machine that you will use for several years and you cannot add a larger screen. A larger hard drive is also very time consuming and hard to add. Choose wisely when you get a laptop and always get the extended warranty. We see many laptops die right at the end of the basic warranty.

2010-03-31T20:00:00.001-07:00

Are you always opening certain Web Sites or documents when you first start up your computer? Did you know you can put a shortcut on your desktop for that document or web site? To do this just right click on your desktop, click on New and Shortcut. Now browse to the document and click on it or you can type in the web address like www.540wfla.com. Then click on Next and give the shortcut a name. You can call it anything like "daily report".

Opening files in the desired program

2010-03-29T21:38:00.000-07:00

Whenever you click on a certain file type does it always open with the wrong program? Did you know you can easily change the program that opens a certain file type on your computer. In XP click on My Computer, then Tools, then Folder Options, then File Types. From this screen find the files type and then choose the program you want to use to open it.

Increase Font Size

2010-03-15T10:18:00.000-07:00

Is that web page hard to see because of the font size? In Internet Explorer 8 to increase the font size all you have to do is hold down the control key and press the plus key. This will increase the size of the font and pictures on the screen. To bring it back down just press control and minus.

Did you know you can also do this in Word and almost any Microsoft program buy holding down Control and scrolling your mouse.

Flash Drives

2010-03-15T10:17:00.000-07:00

Do you use a flash or thumb drive? These are the little memory sticks that you can plug into your computer and store files on.

Hey remember to back those up!
People often forget this and if the flash drive gets damaged or lost then they may lose valuable information. Create a folder on your PC called Flash drive and keep a copy of your data on there too.

Email Limitation in Outlook

2010-03-11T06:49:00.000-08:00

Did you know that there is a size limit when using Outlook Express? Old emails will disappear when the limit is reached so you need to Archive old emails. This applies to sent items and deleted items, not just the inbox.

For more information on how to archive your email just click on help on the Toolbar and type in Archive.

Speed Up Internet Access

2010-03-10T06:54:00.000-08:00

Do you want to speed up your access to the Internet? Did you know that your Internet Explorer could be slowing you down? Don’t install unnecessary tool bars. And uninstall the ones that you are not using. You can do this in control panel.

Set your home page to a site you use the most – like CNN or Google.

Speed Up Your PC!

2010-03-09T06:40:00.000-08:00

Do you want to speed up your PC? There is a great utility under accessories, system tools called disk cleanup. Run it at least once per month to clean out files that you don’t need.

After you run disk cleanup then run Disk Defragmenter. This compacts your data and uses space left behind by deleted files.

AUDIO

Antivirus Software

2010-03-08T08:18:00.001-08:00

Do you have antivirus software on your PC? You would be surprised how many people don’t. Most new PCs come with some kind of Antivirus but it usually expires within 60 to 90 days. Get a good Antivirus software program on your PC and keep it updated.

AVG and PC Tools both have good free AV programs.

Set your machine to run a full virus scan at least once per week and check it to see if it found anything.

AUDIO

Don't lose your data!

2010-03-06T07:48:00.000-08:00

Are you backing up the data on your PC? Are you sure if your computer crashed today that you would get all of your data back? If you are backing up to an external hard drive - I will tell you that you are only partially protected. You need to be backing up your data online. Try Carbonite or Mozy. For a small annual fee you can back up an unlimited amount of data from your PC.

Businesses infected with Malware - Up 70%

2010-03-06T07:40:00.000-08:00

Did you know that last year more than 1/3 of businesses were infected with Malware or software that installs malicious programs on their computers. That is approximately a 70% rise in 2009. Here are some tips: Avoid clicking on unknown links or responding to solicitations. Web pages that tell you you are infected are likely waiting to infect your computer. Please be suspicious of emails telling you to go to specific web sites.

8 Ways MS Exchange & Hosted Exchange will Keep you Organized!

2010-03-02T14:04:00.000-08:00

8 Ways MS Exchange & Hosted Exchange will Keep you Organized - Save You Time - And Your Business Money!

Exchange is an all around solution that includes electronic mail, calendaring, contacts and tasks. All your information is stored on the hosted server online, with which all your devices (Desktops, Notebooks and Mobile phones) keep in sync, so that a change occurring on one of them is automatically synced and reflected on all the others!

1. Schedule meetings with your co-workers within moments by viewing everyone's busy and free times and picking the time that will work for everyone.

2. You won't loose your emails.

3. Work Anytime, Anywhere with hosted email: Get full access to all of your e-mail folders, contacts, calendars, and files from any Microsoft Outlook or browser, from anywhere, anytime!

4. Keep Up to date: Any changes made to your emails, contacts, calendar and files in any medium, such as MS Outlook or browser access, are kept up to date when accessed via any other medium.

5. Mobile Access: Carry your contacts, calendar, notes and task list on the road with your smartphone.

6. Work Offline: Do email, change contacts, schedule meetings and modify files from Public Folders while disconnected from the Internet, such as while flying or on the train, etc. Outlook can keep an offline copy of everything in Outlook; any changes made in offline mode are synchronized.

7. SPAM Filters (client and server-side): Unwanted emails cause hours of lost productivity. The SPAM software will filter out the unwanted messages before they get to your mailbox, saving you time and aggravation.

8. Save Money: Save thousands of dollars by not having to purchase licenses for Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. You no longer have to worry about keeping up with the latest version of the software; we automatically update the software on the servers.

2010-03-02T14:02:00.003-08:00

Windows 7: Built-in ISO Support

A new feature of Windows 7 is it's built-in ability to burn .ISO files to a CD or DVD. ISO files are digital copies of regular CD or DVD's. This file can then be stored on your local computer, a removable or network drive.

Before Windows 7, you had to install a separate tool for converting these files back into a CD or DVD. To access this new feature, double-click on any .ISO file, and you will be prompted to burn the ISO image to a disc.