The fact that Windows 8 has been highly unpopular with most folks who use a standard keyboard and mouse is not new news. Microsoft has been scolded time and time again by consumers on how unhappy they are with the way Windows 8 is designed. For old time Windows users, it made doing simple operations a major chore. Finding things like the control panel took a new learning curve for most. The ability to add third party start menus to the OS helped some, but the Metro interface was still there running in the background slowing down the computer. Because of all the dissatisfaction with Windows 8, many people are still staying with Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7. In fact, almost every one of our customers is looking for Windows 7 when buying a new computer. There is still a fare share of users that are still running Windows XP even after its official retirement in April. So far, there have been no known issues affecting the aging operating system. With all that said, there might actually be some light at the end of the tunnel for Microsoft users. Windows 9, which is expected to be released sometime next year, might actually be a step forward to some normalcy. It has been rumored that users that use a mouse and keyboard might actually be able to disable the Metro UI that is so controversial in Windows 8. If this actually comes about, it will be huge news for PC fans and it just might be the thing that needed to be done to get more folks to upgrade. I still have not heard much about the Start Menu being added back in but that is easily remedied with third party software if desired. With the ability to completely disable the Metro part of Windows, this should be a plus in both everyday computer operations as well as speed. I am sure there will be many other changes as well but it is too early to speculate on what they all might be. If you are a current Windows Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8 user, you just might want to hold tight. Windows...
Read MoreMost of the articles I write about in regards to spam and virus infections are usually related to the Windows operating system. It is true that these platforms are still getting their fair share of virus infections but there is a new game in town. Hackers are now hitting the Android platform headfirst and infections are becoming extremely common. In the past, there have been numerous attempts at attacking the Android platform but the attacks were never considered to be wide spread. That is not the case anymore. The problem with this new infection is that it comes from a simple text message. This simple text message that can be sent from someone you know that is infected will turn your phone into a miniature botnet sending out infected text messages to everybody in your address book. The bad news is that it does it relentlessly over and over again. By comparison, I-Phones and Windows phones are not as likely to get these infections and are not targeted as frequently. The App store at Apple is much more secure and is monitored more closely then the Google Play store. Google does try to quickly remove any infected apps that it finds on its system. Sometimes they are not found until the damage is done. In addition to the Malware that can send out spam text messages, there is also a version of the FBI virus going around that can attack Android phones. This Malware works in similar fashion to the PC version by locking down your phone with the FBI warning message. You would be surprised how many people think that this is a real warning and actually pay the ransom. That is what the crooks bank on. If you ever receive a warning on either your PC or Android device about one of these alerts do not attempt to pay the piper. It is most definitely a fake. This Malware is usually delivered through malicious websites that you visit with your smart phone. It is part of the Koler Ransomware family of infections that targets your phone. I assure you that the message is bogus but it will lock you out of your phone...
Read MoreIf you use Google as your main search tool you may have noticed some strange search results this past week. You may have found that many of your favorite sites are no longer listed. No you are not going crazy, you are looking at the end result of Panda 4. Once every couple of years Google engineers create new code that deciphers what results you see on your screen when you do a search. About 3 years ago, Google released an update called Panda 3 that turned the search results into mush. It took most of that time for everything to normalize and get decent search results again. The results were so bad that I personally switched to Bing for all my everyday searches. After this last update, it looks like I will be continuing to use Bing as basic searches are again turning up some undesirable results. If you are an E Bay shopper, chances are you are not going to find any items you want using Google. Google banished 80% of the organic search results for the online marketplace. They are not the only major companies that have been affected. Important sites such as ask.com, yellowpages.com and History.com have also been banished from the search results. Why does this happen? It is actually unknown whether these results are intentional or if it is just some unpredictable behavior that Google did not expect. After all, I like to see results from E Bay when I am doing searches for a product. If I can save a few bucks buying an item on E Bay that is always a good thing. The sites that had the most increase in rank from the new Panda release are essentially neither sites that I have never heard of nor sites that I would ever want to go to. One of those sites is shopstyle.com. Essentially, Google is killing off many of your favorite sites and nobody actually knows why. The only way this trend is going to stop is if people start using Bing or Yahoo to do their searching. Bing has already taken about 2% of the traffic away from Google but they still dominate with about 70% of...
Read MoreWith so much of our lives being highly dependent on digital storage, the issue of backing up data has become all the more important these days. Crafting a thorough backup plan is certainly a start and should be done ASAP. Just as important is ensuring that your backup plan isn’t vulnerable to hardware and software crashes. You can make your backup regimen nearly bulletproof by relying on the following tactics. Use Local NAS Machines The first step in ensuring that your backup plan isn’t for naught is to use local network-attached storage devices for regular backups. A heavy reliance on RAID will guarantee that hard drive failures don’t derail your best-laid plans. When setting up NAS devices on your home or office network, don’t skimp on components. Spending a little extra will ultimately buy you peace of mind. Employ Redundant Power Supplies Aside from motherboards, power supplies are the PC components most likely to fail on any given day. You can reduce the likelihood of failure to some degree by investing in high-quality power supplies. Regardless, every power supply fails sooner or later. If you don’t want to lose data due to hardware failure, consider a fail-safe component like a 1U redundant power supply for your office server. Sync Files to the Cloud In addition to local NAS precautions, it’s a good idea to use cloud storage services to back up important data. There’s hardly a shortage of solid cloud backup providers to choose from. With services like Dropbox, CrashPlan and Google Drive delivering exemplary backup at amazing rates, there’s no reason not to have your mission-critical data synced to the cloud in case of disaster. Go Retro with Optical It’s certainly true that mechanical hard drives, Flash memory and cloud storage have surpassed optical media like DVDs in terms of convenience and capacity. However, few backup options can trump optical disc storage when it comes to longevity. It’s definitely a good idea to back up important files to 4.7GB optical discs for emergency access at a moment’s notice when something inevitably goes awry. Locking It Down No doubt, keeping your data safe can be trying in this day and age. With constant malware...
Read MoreIf you are using one of the big box antivirus programs, you are paying too much money and slowing down your computer way too much! There are so many programs out there that are light on your system and many of them are free. The truth is, in order to boost competition; virus venders are putting everything but the kitchen sink in these programs. They are running anti-virus, anti Malware, firewalls that block way too much, anti theft, parental software and much more. Half of this you do not need on your system. If you have a router, you do not need a third party firewall as long as the hardware firewall in enabled. Virus programs such as Kaspersky can slow your computer down so much; the computer is not even usable. The computers are so slow that we often have a very hard time even getting the program removed. In fact, a good portion of computer calls that we get is because of anti-virus programs. You need something to protect your system but if the program does not allow you to do your work it is essentially worthless. We have seen many cases where big box anti-virus installs have literally made windows unbootable. I have personally had this happen with 2 computers running Total Defense. Personally, I like running a combination of Security Essentials and the paid version of Malwarebytes. This combination offers excellent protection and will not slow down your computer. If you are buying Windows 8 or 8.1, Security Essentials is already installed on your machine when you buy it. If you get your computer at a big box company, you will most likely find a trial version of Norton or McCaffee pre loaded. If you uninstall the trial and activate Windows Defender and then add Malwarebytes, you have an excellent defense against getting infected. I have seen many cases where computers have more then one antivirus program installed. This is not a good idea. You will now have two programs trying to compete with the same infection and all kinds of issues will unfold. In short, do not throw away your hard earned money on anti-virus programs. Use either Security Essentials...
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