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Secure Home Wireless Network

Protecting users from the dangers of the internet who connect via Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs) and Wi-Fi requires several layers of security.

First of all, users should choose a strong administrator password for their router. This ensures that anyone directly accessing the router’s configuration settings will be challenged. If a user gains access over these important settings they can essentially hack into your computer, which is not good… Most routers default passwords are generally weak, if there is one at all. Most routers have an option to reset to default factory settings, in case you forget your password. A strong password helps to ensure that your private information is safe.

Another way of protecting yourself is by disabling remote administration on your router. Remote administration settings allow internet users to connect to connect to and change router settings. Unless you have a very specific need for this option to be turned on, it is a good idea to disable this option. You can alter these settings through your router’s admin panel, which you should be able to find under Start > Programs.

Lastly, users can protect themselves by changing their default SSID or Service Set Identifier. The SSID is the name of your network. Most routers have a default name such as “Linksys” or “Netgear”. You should change this name to a robust combination of letters and numbers. Your SSID should never contain any personal information such as your name or address.

Follow these steps to change your SSID.

By employing these layers of security, you can be sure that your network will be protected from outside threats.

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Control Applications That Launch At Startup

Having too many programs running on your computer can drain system resources and reduce productivity. There are a few ways to reduce the number of programs that launch at start up. The methods listed here are general and for the most part will work from Windows 98 to Windows Vista. Keep in mind that disabling programs that start with you computer will affect the functionality of your computer. You need to be clear on what programs you use for what as making these changes could affect functionality that you are used to.

The first thing to do is to start the computer and then look in the system tray – that’s the area right to the left of your clock. If you see things in there – and you don’t know what they are – not to mention there are too many to count, then it may be time to change what launches at startup. Most of the icons there will have a menu accessible from the system try by right clicking on the icon and searching for an ‘Options’ menu or something similar. Typically you’ll be able to find a way to disable the program from automatically starting with Windows. This is different for every program and outside the scope of this discussion. However, by addressing each one of these icons, what the program is, and altering its settings you can prevent many of them from loading at start up.

The next place to look is the folder called ’startup’. This is accessible from your start menu. As you mouse over the folder called ‘Startup’ it’s possible that you will see some icons there. If you right click on these icons, and select delete, they will not be launched at startup any more. Conversely if you’d like something to start that’s not here, you can put a shortcut to the program here by dragging the shortcut onto the start menu and releasing the icon when you’ve got it over the ‘Startup’ folder.

The next option is a bit trickier and so proceed with caution:

- Click the Start Button

- Select ‘Run’

- In the box type ‘msconfig’ without the quotes

- Click OK

You’ll see a panel – click on the tab called ‘Startup’. There will be a list of programs here that run at start up. Un-check the ones that you don’t want to have run at start up. Please remember that if you don’t understand what you’re doing, you might affect your computer in a way that you wouldn’t expect. That being said, it’s very easy to find out what these programs are with a tiny bit of research online. You’ll see the names of the programs ending with “.exe” if you do internet searches for all of these you can find out if you really want them running or not. Just click ‘OK’ when you are done.

At this point, restart the computer and see the results of your labor. These steps should give you some direction to removing a lot of the programs that run at startup and consume system resources. As cautioned above, if you don’t know what something is, don’t disable it – first find out what it’s for, then proceed accordingly.

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Recycle Old Printer

So your printer has kicked the bucket and you want to be green and recycle that old printer instead of sending it to the landfill? 

Most major manufacturers offer recycling and trade-in programs for their old equipment. The best thing to do is to google for your “recycle xxxx printer” where xxxx is the name of the printer manufacturer.

Here are some quick links for popular brands:

HP

Dell

Lexmark

Epson 

If your old printer works, but you don’t want it anymore because you got a newer model or you just hate it and never want to see it again, you can donate it to your local Goodwill or Salvation Army or to a local school.

What should you NOT do with your old printer? Please do not throw it out in the regular trash.

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What Is Adware?

Over time, surfing on the internet you may lead you to download adware.  This article defines what adware is and some instructions on how to remove it.

Adware is software which is supported by advertisements. The advertisements often offset development costs and allow the user to download the software at little or no cost.

Adware will often open advertisement pop-ups and other forms of ads when you are using the software. The most usual adware programs are toolbars that can be downloaded and installed on our desktop or our Web browser.

The most inoffensive of adware simply shows ads in the form of banners or pop-up windows, but adware may also be packaged with other software that has less than respectable intentions.

Adware which carries other applications is known as spyware which may capture keystrokes, erase files, or track sensitive user information.

When downloading a toolbar or other advertising supported software, make sure that it comes from a reputable company. Regardless of who distributes the software, read the terms of use and all other documentation very carefully.

There are many software applications that fight against spyware, some of the well known applications are:

Ad-Aware by Lavasoft

Spyware Terminator

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There are also several online sites that have an updated list of all of the toolbars and other software that comes with adware and spyware. It is a good idea to do a little investigation before installing ad based software onto your computer.

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Computer Virus Prevention

We posted an article about how to check if your computer is protected from viruses.  Having anti-virus software installed on your computer is a big part of virus protection, but there are some things you can do to keep things “clean”.

Here are some tips and advice to proactively prevent virus from infecting your computer:

- Do not open any files attached to an email from an unknown, suspicious or untrustworthy source, no matter how enticing it may seem.

- Switch on macro protection in Microsoft Office applications like Word and Excel.  You can find your macro settings under the Tools tab in both applications.  To change the settings:

• Open Microsoft Word or Excel
• Click on the Tools tab at the top
• Click on Options
• Click on the Security tab in the Options window
• Click on the Macros Security button
• Select a setting that is “Medium” or above for the best protection 

- You don’t have to use the anti-virus program that came with your new computer but if you decide to stick with it, don’t forget to subscribe once the free trial period is over so that you stay up-to-date.

- Only use one anti-virus program at a time. Uninstall one anti-virus program before you install another.

- Providing you update virus signatures regularly, as a general rule, you don’t need to buy every single new release of the anti-virus software to stay protected.

- Free online scans are useful diagnostic tools but they are not a substitute for a proper anti-virus program that is installed on your PC. Prevention is better than cure.

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Is My Computer Protected From Viruses?

Do you need to find out if your computer is protected against viruses? We can show where you can go for this information.

Nearly everyone has a virus protection program of some sort on their computer. To see if your Windows computer has it:

- Click Start

- Highlight Settings

- Select Control Panel

- In the window that opens, double-click the icon for “Security Center”

- If the “Virus Protection” section says “On”, then you have antivirus software running

- Click the downward pointing arrow-like symbol next to “ON” to learn which program it is. There may even be a link to the manufacturer’s web site.

If you have another Microsoft operating system that older than XP, follow these instructions:

-Click Start

- Highlight Search

- Search your hard drive for any of the more popular Anti-virus software company like Norton or McAfee

- Type either of these names into the search box and see if you have any files even trial versions of this software.

A good and safe place to go to check your computer to see if you have virus protection on your computer is here: http://onecare.live.com/site/en-us/default.htm. It is a secure and easy way to find out what you have or don’t have protecting your computer.

By following these steps, you can discover if your computer has antivirus software installed.

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AMD And Vista Issues

Are you having a problem installing AMD’s Cool and Quiet drivers on Windows Vista? This post has instructions on how to install it easily.

AMD’s Cool and Quiet technology allows your computer to go into a low power state when it doesn’t need to be using full power to run its processor. It’s a great way to make your computer more “green”.

With Windows XP, AMD provide drivers for the installation. For Vista, there appears to be no drivers available, at least publicly.

The solution to the issue is that the drivers are built into Vista.

To find a driver:

Go to Control Panel

Click on System

Click on Power Options

Pick a plan (any plan)

Click Change Plan Settings – For instance, beneath High Performance, click the blue text.

The first page you see shows you how the computer will behave when plugged in and when on battery power.

Click Change Advanced Power Settings and a dialog box will appear.

Scroll down in the list box until you see Processor Power Management

Click the little icon next to it

Here, you can set the minimum and maximum power states for the CPU while on battery, and while plugged in. Setting ranges will allow you to save battery power and electricity need to run your processor.

With the built-in drivers in Vista, it is easy to be more energy efficient.

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Buying A Printer For Small Business

If you are thinking of buying a printer for your small business, there are a few things to consider before making the purchase. 

Most printers today fit into one of three categories: Inkjet, Laser, or Multifunction machines.  Each type of printer is better suited for different needs.  This post will examine the strengths of each type of printer to give you a better understanding of which one is best for you.

Inkjet Printers

Basic inkjet printers are great for printing text and the occasional photo. Most mix cyan, magenta, and yellow ink in order to reproduce the whole color spectrum. The colored ink can come from one ink cartridge or from separate cartridges for each color. Separate cartridges are convenient because printers don’t use all colors at the same rate, so when you run out of one you don’t have to replace all the others as you would with an all-in-one color cartridge. Inkjets usually have a separate black ink cartridge for text and grayscale printing. Portable inkjet printers that you can take along with your laptop are also available.

Photographers will probably want an inkjet photo printer, which usually adds light cyan and light magenta to the color mix for deeper, brighter hues. A built-in camera dock or flash memory card reader make these printers especially handy for printing photos directly from your digital camera. Many photo printers also have small LCD screens for previewing the picture before printing. Most photographers would probably want to make sure the printer is capable of borderless printing, so the picture goes all the way to the edge of the photo paper.

Laser Printers 

Laser printers save time and money when printing large volumes. They print faster than inkjet printers, and laser toner usually costs less per page compared to ink cartridges. Color laser printers produce sharp, vivid colors. They are typically more expensive than black and white laser printers though. Personal laser printers have a smaller capacity than large professional printers. However, they still print quickly and are perfect for a home office or small business. If you need a printer for a large office, a network laser printer would be ideal, with a large paper capacity and fast printing. Many network laser printers have a built-in print server. They also have a connector port for connecting to a local area network. Most models offer expandable memory and optional extra storage trays. Higher-end printers offer several output trays with a collator and stapler.    

Multifunction Printer 

Printers that not only print by also fax, copy, and scan are known as multifunction printers.  These printers can be very handy since they can do the job of a number of separate machines. These all in one printers probably won’t do a single task as well as a machine dedicated to that task would, but saving space is more important than optimum performance for many people. Multifunction printers can be either laser or inkjet.

Conclusion 

No matter what model, price range, and type of printmaking technology you purchase, it is important to make sure you know what you want to do with it first. You will naturally choose a different printer for high-volume document printing than if you are trying to print out just your digital pictures for a family photo album. Likewise, you wouldn’t choose the same printer to create brochures as you would to make forge-proof I.D. cards for your small business employees. Whether you would like to stick with ink or are tamper-proof toner, make sure that you’ve got the right printer (and printer paper!) for the job.

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Back Up Data On Your Computer

Backing up files on your computer is an important step in ensuring you do not lose precious information.  A question we received asked if it is better to use an online data backup or an external hard drive to back up data. The short answer to this question is: if you really care about your keeping your documents and data, use both!

External hard drives are a very quick and affordable way to backup your critical data. But, just like the hard drive in your computer, an external hard drive can fail, get stolen, or ruined in an accident or natural disaster (think tsunamis, volcano eruptions, locust plagues). Online backup services are very affordable these days and can protect your data from a lot of the physical dangers…but they have their own list of downsides.

External Hard Drives

Here are some questions you will want to consider when choosing an external hard drive:

1. What is the capacity of the drive? These days you can get 100s of gigabytes for under $100.

2. What is the reliability of the drive? Check consumer review sites (amazon.com, epinions.com, cnet.com) to see how others feel about the drive you are considering.

3. How will the drive connect to your computer? USB 2.0 and Firewire are the standards here.

4. Will the drive require power or is it powered by the USB port? Compact, high capacity self-powered USB drives are quite inexpensive.

Online Backup Services

When choosing an online backup service, here are some critical things to consider:

1. Does the service offer encryption of your data? If the data is at all sensitive, you should look for a service that encrypts your data when it is being transmitted as well as while it is stored. 

2. Is the online backup company stable? Do some research on the company and make sure you feel comfortable that they are not a fly-by-night operation that is going to disappear or fail, leaving you without your backups.

3. Is the backup system cross-platform? If Mac and Windows compatibility is important to you, make sure you check into this.

4.  How fast is your internet connection? If you don’t have a reasonably fast high speed internet connection and you have a lot of data that changes often, you will likely have problems because you won’t have sufficient bandwidth to transmit the data to the backup service.

You can find comparisons of online backup services online — just do a quick google search. Here are some popular companies that you may want to consider:

safecopybackup.com

mozy.com

trackmyfiles.com

backblaze.com

spideroak.com

This list is by no means exhaustive — you should search online and weigh the best offerings against each other.

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Whatever choice you make, backing up data is a good computing practice.  Once you have answered the questions above, making the choice that is right for you should be easier.

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Vista and VPN Issues

If you use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) and are experiencing a problem connecting, then Microsoft’s Windows Vista may be the issue.

This problem has been known since 2007 but there are still user experiencing difficulties with their VPN after a Vista upgrade. The problem doesn’t stem from user error or a bad installation. It’s an issue with Vista and there is a patch that you need to download to fix it.

Click on this link and follow the instruction on how to fix Vista and allow you to connect to your VPN.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/930163

If you are about to upgrade to Windows Vista and you currently work remotely using a VPN, you may want to talk to your systems administrator about this issue before moving forward. You could install Vista without talking to anybody and not be able to connect on purpose, but it would probably be better if you were able to work than not.

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