Tech Tips

New Diagnostic Software Tests for Previously Difficult to Determine Battery Failures
If you own or know anyone who owns a MacBook or MacBook Pro laptop that is still covered by standard warranty or AppleCare Protection Plan, The Tech Spot is now offering to test the batteries in these laptops for free. A new diagnostic software tool provided by Apple can definitively detect bad batteries in these laptops. If still under warranty, users can have their failed batteries replaced at no charge.

Previously, MacBook or MacBook Pro owners who believed their batteries were malfunctioning had a difficult time proving their batteries were actually problematic as compared to batteries which were simply “consumed”. With the new diagnostic software, Apple Authorized Service Providers, such as The Tech Spot, can quickly and easily determine if a battery qualifies for a warranty replacement.

Contact The Tech Spot by replying to this e-mail or call us at 618-288-7321 as soon as possible if you own a MacBook or MacBook Pro. This diagnostic test can only be performed at an Apple Authorized Service Provider and for a failed battery to qualify for replacement, the laptop or battery must still be within warranty and not used beyond what Apple considers “consumed”. As many of these laptops are probably approaching these limits, it would be in the owners’ best interest to have this test performed sooner than later.

More and more people are protecting their computers and sensitive electronics with high quality surge protectors and battery back up units. This is a good trend, and it makes sense that this is happening as society becomes more educated about technology and the cost of quality power protection continues to fall. However, many people, while doing a good job at protecting their technology in their homes and businesses, completely neglect to protect their technology while they are traveling. I know several people who have had their electronics zapped while in hotel rooms! Fortunately, it is quite easy to protect your technology while on the road.

Since it would be impractical to travel with a battery backup, our focus must be on portable surge protectors. Most people travel with laptops, cell phones, and other small electronics. While I do recommend battery backups for devices with hard drives in them, since a laptop has its own battery, it is not as critical to protect a laptop with a battery backup. The battery in your laptop will generally ensure that your laptop is working with consistent power. So it is OK to only protect your electronics with a surge protector while traveling. The trick to to make it convenient enough for you to consistently use the power protection.

Most people think of surge protectors as the stereotypical long strip. However, there are many shapes of surge protectors now, many designed for portability. I personally carry around a single outlet surge protector, cost about $15. I use this any time I plug my laptop in to any unprotected outlet. When I travel more extensively, I have a 6-outlet surge protector that I plug in my laptop, cell phone, and other electronics. I don’t remember how much this surge protector cost, but I’m sure it was less than $20.

While it’s never a good time to have your technology damaged, when you are traveling it can be devastating. By using these simple and low-cost devices, you can protect your technology while away from the safety of your home or business.

Please let me know if you have further questions about protecting your electronics and I’ll be happy to answer them.

It amazes me how many people still do not have a good understanding of how valuable their data is. Many people will spend an inordinate amount of time agonizing over the purchase price of their technology, but spend almost no time or money securing their data. The ironic part of this is that usually the amount they are agonizing over is small compared to what their data is worth or the cost involved in recovering data. Which brings to light a very important detail that many people miss concerning their computer’s warranty.

I know of no computer or storage device warranty that covers the data that is stored on them. The reason for this is simple. Data can be priceless. At the very least many times more valuable than the computers they are stored on. Technology companies could not be in business if they were expected to cover the cost of the data that their machines stored. Additionally, the cost of recovering data from a failed machine, if at all possible, can range into thousands of dollars.

The problem is that many people think that their hardware warranties cover *everything*. So when the hard drive in their computer fails, they don’t worry too much because they think they’ll get their computer repaired and back exactly the way it was. Unfortunately, this is not usually the case with hard drive failures. Sure, their computer will be fixed at no cost, but it will not contain any of the data that was stored on the failed hard drive. Since computer and hard drive manufacturers do not warrant the data or the cost involved in recovery, any costs involved in recovering data fall upon the user. And again, these costs can range into thousands of dollars in some cases.

When looked at in this light, the initial purchase price of either a computer or backup system is almost irrelevant. So unless the data on your computer is of no value to you, please make sure to incorporate the cost of a backup system into any new computer purchases. Or if you are currently without a backup system, stop what you are doing and call your technology consultant right now. It doesn’t matter if you “only” use your computer for personal reasons. More and more individuals are keeping extremely valuable data on their computers such as irreplaceable digital photos or financial data.

Marcel Brown Technology Services and the company’s retail store, The Tech Spot, was recently voted as the #1 Computer Sales and Service company in their area! For more great technology advice, contact Marcel or The Tech Spot today!

Many Models Suffer from Manufacturing Flaw; Update Available to Reduce Likelihood of Failure; Warranty Extension for Affected Units
A serious hardware problem with a large number of HP & Compaq laptops sold during the last 2 – 3 years has been identified by the manufacturer. HP has released system updates designed to reduce the likelihood of failure for those models. Owners of models that are showing symptoms of the failure are eligible to have an additional year added to their standard warranty and have their laptops repaired at no cost.

We at The Tech Spot have seen several of these laptops in the last month showing symptoms of this manufacturing flaw. We advise owners of these laptops to have them evaluated immediately. We can perform this evaluation as part of our Computer Tune-Up Service.

The manufacturing flaw can cause damage to the laptop’s wireless networking and video systems. In severe cases, it can cause the laptop to not boot. Laptops affected include the HP Pavilion dv2000/dv6000/dv9000, Compaq Presario v3000/v6000, and Compaq Presario F500 models. In our testing, we believe other models may be affected by this flaw that HP has not yet publicly acknowledged. Given the high number of laptops we have seen lately, we also believe that these models were very popular and many people could be affected by this flaw.

As part of our Computer Tune-Up Service, The Tech Spot will evaluate HP & Compaq laptops to see if they are an affected model and install any applicable updates. If your laptop is showing symptoms of this flaw, we can also diagnose the symptoms to confirm that the laptop has this flaw.

Contact The Tech Spot by e-mail at info@techspotstore.com or call us at 618-288-7321 immediately if you own or think you own one of the affected laptops. The sooner the update can be applied, the more likely your laptop will not be affected. Also, if your laptop is affected by the flaw, you must contact HP within 2 years of your purchase date to have the laptop repaired under extended warranty.

Please forward this message on to any HP/Compaq laptop owners you may know. As mentioned before, we believe this laptop was very popular and many people may own one of these laptops.

As we get closer to the DTV transition date, I thought I would offer some advice on choosing the right size HDTV for your particular viewing arrangement. Alternately, if you’ve already purchased an HDTV, you can use this info to rearrange your sitting area to take best advantage of your screen size. It is possible to get an HDTV that is too big for your room!

In general, due to the higher resolution and quality of HDTV technology, it is possible to sit closer to a large screen without noticing the scan lines that form the picture. However, when watching non-high definition broadcasts, the increased detail of HDTV can actually magnify the imperfections inherent in these lower quality sources. So for the next few years, as we continue to transition to high definition broadcasts and source mediums, we are all caught in a bit of a catch-22. However, the following guidelines should give you a good idea on what the optimum viewing arrangement would be for a particular size HDTV.

The following chart (thanks to Crutchfield.com) shows the screen size followed by a viewing distance range. The higher quality the source (Blu-Ray, HD broadcasts, upconverted DVD, etc.), the closer the ideal viewing distance would be in that range. The lower-quality the source (VHS, non-HD broadcast, non-upconverted DVD, etc.), the further the ideal viewing distance would be in that range.

30 inches: 3.75 – 6.25 feet
34 inches: 4.25 – 7 feet
42 inches: 5.25 – 8.75 feet
50 inches: 6.25 – 10.5 feet
56 inches: 7 – 11 feet
62 inches: 7.75 – 13 feet
70 inches: 8.75 – 14.75 feet
Now also consider that many higher-quality HDTV’s will do a good job of upconverting lower-quality sources to look better. So depending on your own viewing arrangement and preferences, use this chart as a guideline to purchase an HDTV or rearrange your viewing area.

Marcel Brown Technology Services and the company’s retail store, The Tech Spot, was recently voted as the #1 Computer Sales and Service company in their area! For more great technology advice, contact Marcel or The Tech Spot today!

Rather than writing my own Tech Tip for this month, I read an article that I found very interesting and would like to share with all of you. Take a few minutes and read “12 Easy Ways to Cut Your Company’s Tech Costs Now”. Before you do, though, understand that this article is primarily aimed at mid-sized companies and up. However a few of the tips can be relevant to small business and home users, especially tip #10 and #12. Thanks to bMighty.com for this article

It’s that time of year … the leaves are falling, the days are shorter … and it’s time to update your anti-virus software! Just as I declared last year, November is Anti-Virus Update month. As most anti-virus vendors release their new versions early in the fall, by November enough time has passed for major problems to have been found and corrected. If you own a Windows computer, this year especially is important to make sure you have an updated anti-virus software.

I have observed this summer a fairly profound outbreak of a certain type of malicious software that masquerades itself as anti-virus software. For various technical reasons, these malicious softwares were able to circumvent most anti-virus programs. Things seemed to have gotten better towards the fall, but as anti-virus vendors continue to improve their software, most of the updates to catch new virus variants will be devoted to the newest versions of their software. So as malicious software like this summer’s outbreak continues to find new ways of infecting our computers, it is crucial to keep up-to-date to protect yourself.

As before, we still recommend Trend Micro Internet Security over Norton or McAfee’s products. We still find Trend Micro to be less resource hungry and less intrusive upon the user than the other products. Don’t miss our money saving offer elsewhere in our newsletter to get 50% off the cost of Trend Micro.

Marcel Brown Technology Services and the company’s retail store, The Tech Spot, was recently voted as the #1 Computer Sales and Service company in their area!

Before I begin this tip, let me just reiterate the importance of having a good, tested backup. With a good backup you will be able to recover from almost any data disaster. Of course everybody reading this has a good, tested backup, right?. So this tip won’t really mean much to you, right, right? But please read on in case you run into a friend who doesn’t have a good backup.

If you ever accidentally delete an important file, the most important thing you can do is to immediately stop using your computer and get it to a qualified technical professional. The sooner you stop using your computer, the more likely it will be that your data can be recovered. This is because in most circumstances, when a computer deletes a file, it doesn’t actually delete (or wipe) the data off the hard drive. It simply removes the reference to where the file was stored on the hard drive. In essence, the computer is freeing up the spot on the hard drive were your file was stored to be used again later.

If you continue to use your computer, the odds increase that the computer will overwrite the spot on the hard drive where your deleted data was stored. Once this spot is overwritten with new data, the odds of recovery virtually drop to zero. Only highly specialized and expensive (thousands of dollars expensive) data recovery facilities with highly specialized and expensive equipment have any chance of recovering overwritten data and even then the odds aren’t great. But if you stop using the computer immediately, there is a good chance that your data is still in perfect condition on your hard drive. Most competent technology professionals will be able to recover deleted but not-yet-overwritten data without too much difficulty. Yes, you may still spend $200 to $300 for this service, but it’s better than a few thousand dollars, or worse, losing priceless data. But I can’t reiterate enough that if you have a backup of your file, then you could recover your own file very quickly and save yourself the aggravation.

So to remember this tip, just think stop, drop, and roll. If you accidentally delete an important file, stop what you are doing, drop the computer in your car, and roll it over to your technology professional! Yes, it’s a bit cheesy, but you’ll probably remember it now, right?

Contact Marcel if you have any technology questions.

The Tech Spot will have a booth at the Metro East Humane Society’s Wag-n-Walk, September 14th, 2008.
Of all the things in a household that can bring disaster upon computer equipment, pets are probably the most likely to do so. Let’s face it, no matter how smart you think your pet is, they just can’t understand how sensitive and fragile computer equipment can be, not to mention how valuable the data stored on your computer is. Most people can’t keep their pets completely away from their computers, so I offer the following tips as a way to keep your computer safe from your pet’s potentially harmful actions.

Cables that have been chewed or clawed are probably the most common form of computer pet damage. Cats, dogs, ferrets, and even rabbits just seem to be drawn to those dangling, swaying temptations. When possible, reducing the number of exposed cables is ideal. Replacing wired keyboards and mice with wireless versions obviously eliminates the problem at the source. Choosing all-in-one machines such as an iMac or even a laptop also reduces the number of cables required to operate a computer. But if reducing the number of cables isn’t practical, the next best thing is to organize them so they are either hidden or not as tempting to your pets. The first way to accomplish this is to route them along your desk so they are as hidden as possible. The next thing to do is organize them so they aren’t tangled up in a “rat’s nest”. Cats especially seem attracted to messy wires. If you can bundle and tie them together, this also provides a less tantalizing target. Finally, sleeves and tubing are available for you to conceal and protect your cables from gnawing little teeth.

Another fairly common danger pets pose is their bad habit of knocking down things such as speakers, printers, or even monitors. The first step is to take care of the cable temptations as described above. If they aren’t playing with cables, it’s harder for pets to pull things down. Second, in a household with pets (especially cats), it is not a good idea to have things placed in places they can easily be knocked down. If you have your printer on a shelf, don’t be surprised if you come home one day to find it not-so-neatly disassembled on your floor. The same thing applies to monitors and speakers on a desk. Don’t place in them on the edge of a desk where they have nothing to prevent them from being knocked off. Cats also have a habit of swatting at things with pretty blinking lights such as Internet modems and routers. If you can shelter these things so they aren’t such easy targets, then you may help save them from pet-induced death.

Speaking of pets knocking things over, DO NOT leave liquids or other potentially computer-damanging things around your computer equipment. While you may be careful enough to not knock over a cup of coffee onto your laptop (you are, aren’t you?), your pets certainly are not. Have you ever had a glass of water cost you over one thousand dollars? I know clients that have.

Finally, as many of you may be familiar with, pet hair can get everywhere in a home. But it seems that pet hair’s favorite home is inside your computer. Simply put, pet hair is very, very bad for your computer. First, it acts as an insulator, trapping heat in your computer. Second, it clogs fans, reducing the ability of your computer to keep cool. All that heat trapped in your computer can lead to component failure, in the worst cases leading to data loss. The first step is to keep the area around your computer as free as possible of pet hair. If possible, discourage your pets from hanging around or sleeping near your computer. Regardless, make sure you vacuum the area around your computer regularly, especially if you have long-haired pets. Finally, make sure you have the inside of your computer cleaned out every few months. We perform this service as part of our Computer Tune-Up, which we can do in-store at The Tech Spot or at your location as well.

Hair can also get inside your keyboard. The simple solution to keep your keyboard free of pet hair (as well as dirt, crumbs, and other nasty things) is a silicone keyboard cover, such as those made by KB Covers (http://www.kbcovers.com). Very simple in design, keyboard covers simply lay over your keyboard, keeping out those nasty things that can cause keyboards to malfunction or fail prematurely, yet allow you to type without interference. We carry KB Covers at The Tech Spot, if you would like to see them in action.

By following these tips, you should help keep your computer safe from your pets, as well as keeping your pets safe from harming themselves.

Contact Marcel if you have any technology questions.

Is it possible for your computer to ruin your life? Apparently so. I recently read an article describing a situation where in fact this did happen. A man’s work laptop was discovered to have pornographic material. He claimed he had no idea the material was on the computer. He was fired and had criminal charges brought against him. It was later proven that the computer given to him by his employer was not properly protected and all the material was downloaded to his computer by spyware. Charges were dropped and he is now suing his employer. But the damage was done as his reputation has been ruined.

You should take a moment to read the article, titled “Malware Destroyed a Man’s Life“.

I’ve noticed that malware has become increasingly stubborn and efficient lately. Windows computers without the latest virus and spyware protection are very susceptible to being compromised. If you are not sure of the status of your protection, do yourself a favor and have your computer checked for spyware and viruses. Make sure that your malware protection is recent and up-to-date. Do not let you or your family be vulnerable to malicious software when it could be easily prevented. Or if you own a business, you are putting yourself at risk if you don’t protect the computers your employees use.

Let the story about this poor man’s plight serve as a wake up call. Computers and technology are a far too critical part of our lives and businesses to take them for granted anymore. If you aren’t having preventative maintenance done to your or your company’s computers, you are setting yourself up for major problems.

Contact Marcel if you have any questions about malware or computer maintenance.