 |
|
 |
Keeping an eye on the technologies
important to your small business
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Computers That Fix Themselves?
How To: Get Your Windows to Fix Itself
by Randy Moody
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
As technology moves ever forward, the possibilities increase for truly self-healing devices. We dream of a future where there are cars that fix themselves, home appliances that fix themselves, even computers that fix themselves. Well, we can dream, can’t we? Even though many of our dreams may never come true, some are closer than we think! Take that one about self-fixing computers for example. No, you’re right. We’re not even close. But each new release of Microsoft’s Windows operating systems bring us much closer to a Windows that can fix itself, and that’s a huge advance!
|
Windows XP (both Home and Professional) has several recovery features you need to know about – features that can bring your computer back from the dead!
|
|
Read more about the four recovery features built into Windows XP here
|
|
|
|
|
|
It's the Least You Can Do
How To: Make Sure Your Computer is Protected
by Randy Moody
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 We arm our homes with alarm systems. We check the locks twice before we leave, just in case. We lock our cars. They honk to let us know they’re protected. We see our doctor and our dentist regularly for check ups and learn to recognize the warning signs of the ailments for which we are most at risk. We take our umbrellas on cloudy days and bundle our kids up on snowy ones. And we leave our computers on, connected to the Internet, without being aware of the danger they’re in, or what we can do to protect them!
More
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stoppin’ the Poppin’
How To: Stop Those Annoying Pop-Up Ads
by Randy Moody
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 You’re driving your car on an unfamiliar stretch of road. You’re cruising along, doing fine and enjoying the ride. Suddenly, without warning, you round a bend and there is a barrage of light and sound. Neon signs are flashing everywhere. Music is blaring, voices are shouting at you, all clamoring for your attention, barking out warnings, telling you all the things that are wrong with you and demanding that you fix them – their way! All saying, “Over here! Look at me! Pay attention to what I’m telling you!” Claiming to have the answers to everything thing you need, want or could ask for. Sounds like a scene out of some hideous dream, doesn’t it?
Often, it seems, surfing the Internet can become that same kind of experience. Popup advertisements, pop-under ads...
More
|
|
|
|
|
|
Moving In to Your New Computer
by Randy Moody
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 It’s finally arrived! The day you’ve been dreaming of. Your new computer has come. It’s set up on your desk, loaded with all the power and features you’ve been wanting and needing – waiting to rip through millions of calculations in nanoseconds! To do in minutes what’s been taking you hours. A happy glow descends upon you as you picture yourself out on the links or out on the lake – enjoying all your spare time. You can’t wait…But there’s just one hitch. All your programs and data are still on your old clunker. Just how is all that stuff going to get off the Titanic and onto the Starship Enterprise?
More |
|
|
|
|
|
Online Backup: An Idea Who's Time Has Come
by Jeff Cate
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Today, almost any business has access to affordable high-speed Internet access. This revolutionary technology has opened the door for many productivity improvements such as easy-to-use worldwide communication systems and the ability to allow secure access to company networks and resources from the road and at home. Now, many companies see the high-speed Internet as an attractive alternative to the historically troublesome, but mission-critical task of regularly backing up important business data.
(Continue)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Upgrading Windows 98 to Windows XP
A chronicle of my attempt to upgrade a three-year old Windows 98 PC to Windows XP Professional.
by Jeff Cate
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 In the last issue of the PC Serv Technology Briefing, I wrote an article titled "Windows XP: Should You Care?". Apparently, after reading the article several of you decided that you do care and asked me to follow-up with an article discussing the process of upgrading an existing computer from Windows 98 to Windows XP.
(Continue) |
|
|
|
|
|
Windows XP: Should You Care?
Windows XP is anything but a flop
by Jeff Cate
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 October 25th, 2001... Does that date mean anything to you? If you are like the vast majority of small-business people, when asked, you would not be able to identify any significant event that occurred on that day. Guess what? Microsoft was hoping that it would have turned out otherwise.
October 25th was the day that Microsoft’s newest PC operating system, Windows XP, hit the market. In Microsoft’s press releases prior to that date, the company touted the launch as the biggest technology event since the launch of Windows 95. But this time the famed marketing machine out in Redmond, Washington, was unable to capture the attention of the masses and the launch went mostly unnoticed by John Q. Public.
Just because the marketing of Windows XP as a new product was a flop doesn’t necessarily mean that the business-case for using Windows XP is a flop.
(Continue)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Computer Virus Half-Truths:
What You Don't Know Can Hurt You!
by Randy Moody
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
As consultants, we hear them all the time. Clear statements about viruses made with conviction and deep sincerity ─ but only half true. And the half that's not true is dangerous enough to give a false sense of security. Have you heard them out of your mouth? Or thought them? Do you know why they're not quite true? Let's find out.
"I have anti-virus software on my system, so I'm protected."
...Right??
(Continue)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tired of Lockups, Illegal Operations, Blue Screens, Etc.?
What are these and what causes them to happen?
by Jeff Cate
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Have you ever had one of the following happen when working on your computer that runs Microsoft Windows?:
- Suddenly, while trying to get something important done you get an error message like:
Explorer caused an invalid page fault in module Kernel32.dll
Your system freezes up, you can't save what you were working on, and all you can do to get going again is hit the reset button or turn the computer off and on. You lose whatever you were working on and have to waste precious minutes getting the computer started again.
- You've just installed a new, must-have, program from CD or from a download. After the installation, you double-click on the program's icon to open it up and the first thing you see is a completely "blue" screen with cryptic information written in white letters.
The "blue screen" says that there has been an error and that you can hit "continue" to keep working. When you do that, your desktop never comes back or it comes back but you can't do anything with it. Once again you are forced to turn off the power to the computer and restart the system.
What are these and what causes them to happen?
(Continue)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Wireless Office Networks - Ready for Prime Time
by Jeff Cate
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Wireless technology is everywhere these days. Virtually everyone uses a mobile phone and many people are starting to use these wonders to connect to the Internet and read email. The same kind of technology that makes all of this possible as we roam around town is now available, affordable and reliable for use in the networks that drive our offices.
(Continue)
|
|
|
|
|
|
We Are Not the Software Police...
(But the Software Police ARE Out There!)
by Kevin Pine
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FBI? CIA? NTSB?
No, the BSA.
And I'm not talking about the Boy Scouts of America, either. The Business Software Alliance is made up of representatives from top software companies like Microsoft, Symantec, Adobe, and Apple. The BSA is the software police, and they are determined to pursue all organizations that are using illegal software. - (Continue)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bundled Communication Services: A Better Way To Connect
by Jeff Cate
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
No area of technology seems to be moving faster than connectivity. Connectivity to what? To the Internet, to branch offices, between homes and the main office, between mobile phones and the Internet, and the list goes on and on. DSL, T1, Frame Relay, WAP, CO, Router, TCP/IP, CLEC – just a few of the terms often heard in conversations about connectivity. Is there any way to simplify all of this for the layperson?
(Continue)
|
|
|
|
|
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
