Tech Tips

As many people are looking for ways to save money, they may be putting off the purchase of a new computer. Other people would like to get a new computer and pass along their current computer to their kids. Either way, many people would like to keep their current computers running a few years longer. The problem is their computer may be working quite slowly or experiencing other problems. Often people think they must purchase a new PC when their older computer reaches a certain age or starts experiencing problems. The reality is that many older computers, with a few minor upgrades and some minor maintenance, can be spruced up to work well again and last a few more years.

The first item that can greatly improve an older computer’s performance is additional RAM. Without getting too “techy”, the bare minimum I recommend for most computers (Mac or PC) is 512 MB of RAM. Less than this and I guarantee your computer is not running at maximum efficiency. Even 512 MB of RAM is on the borderline, so I really recommend at least 1 GB for average users, 2 GB if you are more of a “power user”. If your computer runs Windows Vista, you may even want to consider 3 or 4 GB of RAM. With a few exceptions, RAM is really not very expensive anymore, so I highly recommend you consider this upgrade.

The next item to consider if you’d like your computer to last a few more years is a hard drive replacement. As it is one of the few moving parts in a computer, your hard drive is the part most likely to fail. Unfortunately, this is also the part that contains all your data and software, so it is potentially the most catastrophic and traumatizing problem to encounter! Unless you have a full system backup, recovering from a hard drive crash can be expensive and very time-consuming. In my experience, hard drives begin to fail after about 3 to 5 years of normal use. So the smart thing to do is replace the hard drive BEFORE it fails, preserving your data and software settings. Additionally, you will usually get a much bigger and often faster hard drive than your old one.

Finally, most people neglect the general maintenance and upkeep of their computers. Others “overprotect” their computers with cumbersome and intrusive utilities that really do nothing except hamper their computer’s performance. Imagine if you did nothing to maintain your car. It would eventually begin to perform poorly, eventually completely giving out. Similarly, neglected computers don’t perform their best and oftentimes may fail sooner than they would have if properly maintained. While it is possible for people to perform maintenance tasks themselves, the reason most people don’t do them is they don’t have the time or inclination to do so. For this reason, I recommend that people let a technology professional perform the routine maintenance on their computers. Most qualified technology service companies will have some sort of routine maintenance plan available.

Of course, I provide these services as well. I recommend starting with my Computer Tune-Up, which provides the general maintenance tasks your computer needs, along with providing you an assessment of what your computer needs to perform at its best.

If you have any questions regarding this article, please let me know.

One of the more common concerns I hear from both parents and employers is how they can keep questionable content off the computer of their kids and employees. The most common way to do this is by the use of a content filtering system. The problem with content filtering systems are that they are generally difficult to implement, difficult to manage, and often costly. However, within the last year, a new content filtering service has become available that is relatively simple to implement, nearly no work to manage, and is completely free!

The service is called OpenDNS. Once configured, the service can content filter an entire network or a single computer. It can filter out over 30 categories of content, such as adult, gambling, phishing, and weapon sites. Setting up OpenDNS utilizes the existing domain name system that is part of every computer so it does not require any software to be installed. Since the content lists are maintained by OpenDNS, you do not need to download updates or otherwise perform any maintenance yourself.

I’ve set up this service for several of my clients and use it in my own store. So far it has lived up to its promise. As simple as the service is to describe and setup, it really does appear to be as powerful as it claims. The reason that OpenDNS is free to use is because they generate revenue by displaying ads when a user types an incorrect address or hits a site that is blocked by the content filter. At first this sounds somewhat concerning, but I’ve observed this in practice and in my opinion, it is very unintrusive.

Now be aware that content filtering using OpenDNS is not infallible. A technically savvy user could easily figure out how to work around OpenDNS if a computer’s settings are not locked down. There are ways to prevent savvy users from getting around OpenDNS, but be aware that those methods involve additional work or cost. These measures may certainly be worth the cost, and some computers may already be locked down, but I simply want to make people aware of the limitations.

If you are interested in content filtering one computer, a few computers, or a whole network of computers, please let me know. We can discuss OpenDNS and other content filtering systems to make sure you find a system that works best for your situation.

As laptops continue to become more and more prevalent, they have increasingly become a target for thieves looking to score a quick and pricey haul. It’s not hard to find statistics showing how staggering widespread laptop theft is. Or how few stolen laptops are ever recovered. While the cost of the laptops themselves can be a painful enough loss, many people don’t realize just how valuable their data can be until it has fallen into the wrong hands. In order to help laptop owners hold on to their precious investments, here are a few tips and tools to prevent your laptop from being stolen – or recover it if you do lose it.

The first rule is to simply use common sense. Don’t leave your laptop lying around in public – ever. Personally, every time I take my laptop out, I imagine it as a $2000 bundle of money. I would never leave a bundle of money sitting out unsecured, so why would I do that with my laptop? I would hope that most people think like this as well, but it seems that the vast majority of laptop thefts are crimes of opportunity. Too many people simply leave their laptops sitting in the open out of their sight. If I’m in a public place, my laptop or laptop bag is never more than a few feet away. If I leave my laptop in my car, it always goes in the trunk, out of plain sight. I am perhaps overly paranoid about keeping my laptop close to me, but I guarantee that no one will ever swipe my laptop from me because I neglected it. If you too are diligent about keeping your laptop in your possession, then you will likely never have it stolen either.

The second rule is physical security. If you are in a situation where you must leave your laptop out of your sight in a unsecured or unfamiliar environment, then do what you must to lock your laptop to something secure. For example, when I’ve traveled and left my laptop in my hotel room, I take along and use a laptop cable lock. Similar in idea to bicycle chain locks, laptop cable locks connect to a physically reinforced security port found on almost all laptops. Once connected to the security port, the cable is designed to be looped around a permanent object such as a heavy table so that the laptop is secured in place. While most laptop cable locks can be cut with 14″ bolt cutters, they will deter the casual “snatch and grab” theft and will stand up to small handheld wire cutters.

Finally, if all else fails and your laptop is stolen, all hope is not lost – if you have installed laptop recovery software, that is. Software like LoJack for Laptops actually keeps contact with a “recovery center”, communicating what Internet address the laptop is connected to at any given time. When a laptop is lost the owner contacts the recovery center who then begins monitoring what address the laptop is reporting. Using this information they can track down what Internet provider is assigned the address. Working with the Internet provider and law enforcement, the lost laptop can be tracked down and recovered from the thief or whomever is in possession of the laptop at the time. LoJack for laptops is only $49.99 for one year of service, or $99.99 for 3 years.

A recent story in the news highlighted how technology can be used to recover stolen laptops. Using the built-in functions of an Apple MacBook along with the optional .Mac service, the theft victim was able to remotely control her laptop and take a picture of one of the thieves! This picture helped law enforcement capture the thieves and return the laptop to its rightful owner.

So by using some common sense and a few useful products, your laptop can stay on your lap. If you have any questions about securing your laptop, please let me know.

As the market prepares for the inevitable HDTV blitz this year and next, one very important consideration consumers should be aware of is the choice of a high definition disc player. Many people are not aware that their standard DVD player is not a high definition device. While the picture quality of a DVD player should be better on a HDTV than a standard definition (SD) TV, it is actually possible for the picture quality of a DVD player to look fairly poor on an HDTV. This is especially true when using older DVD players or HDTVs. While most newer HDTVs have technology that improves the picture quality of SD sources, many people will notice that their old DVD player doesn’t look as good as a true HD source. So to get the most out of your new HDTV, you should consider an HD disc player.

As some may have been aware, until very recently a “format war” existed between two competing high definition disc formats. One format was named HD-DVD, the other named Blu-Ray. In January, the Blu-Ray format gained the exclusive support of all 6 major movie studios, effectively becoming the successor to DVD. By February all HD-DVD manufacturers cancelled further production and by now, retailers have cleared or are clearing their inventories of HD-DVD players and movies. Therefore, if you are looking for a high definition disc player, make sure you are shopping for Blu-Ray and not HD-DVD.

While Blu-Ray does not use the term “DVD”, all Blu-Ray players do in fact have backward compatibility with current DVD discs. And most Blu-Ray players will “upconvert” the resolution of DVD discs to look better on HDTVs. So while your old DVD movies won’t look as good as a true HD Blu-Ray movie, you will at least be able to watch your current DVD collection with a Blu-Ray player and your movies should look better than on your old TV.

Also, don’t confuse the cancellation of HD-DVD with the current DVD format. The current DVD format is still alive and well and will continue to be produced for quite some time in the future. Really the only thing HD-DVD and DVD have in common are the letters DVD. So don’t worry that you won’t be able to rent or purchase movies for your current DVD player.

Now the first question most people will have is, “which Blu-Ray player should I get?” As Blu-Ray is still a very young standard, only one generation of players have been produced. As manufacturers are readying to release a second generation of players, currently the common advice is to wait for the second generation of players. However, my answer may surprise you. If you’d like to get a good quality Blu-Ray player, yet still have some assurance that the player will have some upgradability to newer features of the second generation players, consider the Sony Playstation 3.

Yes, the Playstation 3 is a video game machine, however all Playstation 3 units can play Blu-Ray movies. Since Sony was one of the original supporters of the Blu-Ray format, it is no coincidence they did this. Already, Sony has updated the software of the Playstation 3 a few times, and each time they did, they have improved some aspect of the Blu-Ray feature. The real kicker is that the Playstation 3 is about the same price as a normal Blu-Ray player. So for about $400, you can purchase a Playstation 3 and be able to play games as well as play Blu-Ray discs. Prices are not expected to drop soon on Blu-Ray players, especially now that the HD-DVD format is no longer competing. In fact, it appears prices have actually risen on Blu-Ray players since since the format war ended, yet the price on the Playstation 3 has not changed.

If you have any questions about HDTV, please feel free to contact me.

Most people are aware that electrical surges can damage their electronics, so most people have surge protectors for their computer equipment. The problem is that a lot of people think a surge protector is all the protection they need. But these people aren’t aware that surges are simply one type of power problem, and in fact, are less common than other types of problems. While a toaster or simple electrical appliances won’t really suffer any consequences from common power problems, computers are much more complicated pieces of equipment and need more complete power protection.

Think of it this way – electrical power is the fuel for your computer just like gas is the fuel for your car. If your car is receiving poor quality fuel, it will not operate well. Really bad fuel can cause a car major problems. The same is true with comptuers. Poor quality electrical power can cause all sorts of malfunctions with your computer. Severe power problems can damage your computer. The reality is that most electrical power is not of a very good quality for computers.

A simple surge protector is not enough. Surge protectors do not protect against under-voltages, over-voltages, electrical noise, and other electrical disturbances. In order to get full protection for your computer equipment, you need a good quality uninterruptible power supply, UPS for short, or commonly called battery backups (not to be confused with a “data backup”). See my previous article about power protection for more information.

Many people also aren’t aware that electrical surges can also travel along phone, cable, or network lines. If you have Internet service though a modem or DSL, you should surge protect the phone line coming into your computer or DSL modem. If you have cable Internet service, you should surge protect the coaxial cable connected to your cable modem. Businesses can also protect the Ethernet lines that network their computers. Many UPS units include data line protectors, so this is a convenient way to make sure all aspects of your computer are protected from power events.

Finally, many people now have digital video recorders (DVRs) such as Tivo or devices like the Apple TV in their home theater systems. Products like these are basically computers, complete with hard drives susceptible to the same type of power problems as PC’s. I recommend UPS units for home theaters as well, in order to protect these newer computerized devices. They can also protect the coaxial lines that supply home theater with cable or satellite service.

If you are unsure about the status of your power protection for your computer or home theater, please let me know and I’ll be happy to help you ensure you are protected.

As many of you may be aware, on February 17th, 2009, federal law mandates that television broadcasters end their analog broadcasts and use digital broadcasts only. There is a misperception that this means everyone will need to have an HDTV by that date. While it will certainly be more convenient if you have an HDTV by that date, if you have an older “standard” definition TV, it will continue to work if you get a digital-to-analog converter, or if you have cable or satellite TV.

Regardless, many people will still think they will need an HDTV by that date – or at least they’ll use the excuse to get one! So 2008 will probably see unprecedented sales of HDTV’s, especially toward the end of the year as people wait until the holidays to get one. While TV manufacturers will probably have enough supply to meet demand, there exists a possibility that there may be a run on HDTVs this holiday or post-holiday season (January/February 2009). While you may be able to find an HDTV, you may not be able to find the one you really want. For this reason, as well as a few more I will talk about, my suggestion is to not wait until the holidays to purchase an HDTV.

For example, another reason is that you will also probably want to purchase other devices to go with your HDTV. For example, in order to get the best quality out of your HDTV, all your source devices (cable/satellite receiver, DVD player, A/V receiver, etc.) will need to be HD sources. If you don’t want to spend money on all these things at one time, you should purchase the HDTV first, then save the device purchases for the holidays.

As you will read in my Tech Toy of the Month article, the ability to rent movies over the Internet via the Apple TV will require the use of an HDTV. Technically, you could get an adapter for your older TV, but why spend the money on an adapter when you could just put the money towards a new HDTV? As the Apple TV will probably spur the sales of HDTVs as well, the possibility of not getting the HDTV you really want becomes more likely.

Finally, if you need help getting your new HDTV setup, it may become very difficult to find quality help during the holiday or post-holiday season, again because most people will probably put off their HDTV purchase until then. The early bird gets the worm in this case. Speaking of getting help with your HDTV, please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions on HDTV or home theater.

Some of the most popular purchases over a holiday season are computers and accessories. In the haste to set up their new toys, many users may be leaving themselves open to some hassle and security concerns. For example, a lot of new computer owners are not aware that their new computers come with time-limted “demo” or “trial” software. This usually isn’t a very big problem except in two instances.

The first is Microsoft Office. Many people confuse Microsoft Office with Microsoft Windows. They believe that when they get a new computer with Windows, Microsoft Office is part of the package. They may not notice or ignore the fact that the Microsoft Office they are using is a 30-day trial. I’ve had more than one client call me in a panic because their demo expired at an inconvenient time. While this problem is most prevalent with new Windows computers, new Macintosh owners also receive a 30-day “Test Drive” of Microsoft Office. I’ve had a few Mac clients get bit by this problem as well.

The second, and more serious problem, is with anti-virus software. Because anti-virus software mostly runs in the background and many people (especially kids) have a bad habit of ignoring warning messages, there will be many users left without effective anti-virus protection soon after purchasing their new computers. Many anti-virus trials last only 30 days, some 90. The moral of this story is to be sure of the status of your anti-virus software. Pay attention to any warnings that your subscription is about to expire.

Many new wireless networks are set up without proper security. This leaves many users with their wireless network open, allowing anyone in range to connect to their network. Obviously, this could expose their private data and possibly make them a victim of identity theft. Many new wireless routers today are easier to setup than in the past, however, if you are not sure of the status of your wireless network, please give me a call.

Finally, many users do not purchase battery backup units for their new computers. New computers are just as susceptible to damage from power events as older computers – except that having a new computer fried just seems so much worse! So if you haven’t purchased a battery backup unit, do yourself a favor and pick one up today before storm season starts.

Of course, if you have any concerns about the security or safety of your new computer, please contact me. My Security Blanket service specifically covers all the potential security concerns of new computers. And don’t neglect your older computers either. I’d be happy to give them a Computer Tune-Up!

QuickBooks for Macintosh 2006 will delete all files on your Desktop

A serious bug in the auto-update feature of QuickBooks 2006 for Macintosh will delete all the files on your desktop. DO NOT LAUNCH QuickBooks 2006 until you have moved and/or backed up all the files and folders on your desktop. If you have any questions, please give Marcel Brown Technology Services a call at 618-580-6256.

To be clear, this bug does NOT affect any version of QuickBooks for Windows. This bug only seriously affects QuickBooks 2006 for Macintosh. The mechanism of this bug is not yet fully understood, but it appears to have begun manifesting itself late Saturday or early Sunday of this last weekend.

The bug also affects QuickBooks 2007 for Macintosh, but it does not delete all the files on your desktop. QuickBooks 2007 for Macintosh users will be prompted with “An update to your QuickBooks application is available. Do you want to download it?”. If a user chooses to download this update, they will soon get a message from QuickBooks stating “You are not connected to the Internet.” A file named “Desktop1.” is created in the user’s home folder, but otherwise no other problems occur. This message to download the update will continue to appear each time QuickBooks 2007 is opened. I recommend users to choose “Later” when this prompt appears until this bug is resolved.
Another message will be sent when more information is available. Please forward this message on to any Macintosh users you may know.

As more and more monitors are being sold in the widescreen format, I thought it would be a good time to discuss a few tips on buying monitors. A common misconception is that a widescreen monitor is bigger than a “standard” monitor of the same size. For example, many people think that a 19″ widescreen will be bigger than a standard 19″ monitor and therefore purchase the widescreen. Widescreen is newer so it must be bigger and better, right? Not always.

Widescreen really means that the screen is shaped in a different proportion. Standard monitors are also called 4:3 monitors, which means the screen is shaped in a 4 to 3 ratio of width to height. Widescreen monitors come primarily in one of two ratios, 16:9 and 16:10. Extrapolated down to compare with a 4:3 screen, 16:9 is equal to 4:2.25 and 16:10 is equal to 4:2.5. As can be seen by comparing the ratios, some height is sacrificed on a widescreen display as compared to a standard screen of the same size rating.

Put into real world terms, common 19″ standard LCD monitors have resolutions of 1280 x 1024. Common 19″ widescreen LCD monitors have resolutions of 1440 x 900. As this shows, compared to a standard monitor, a widescreen gains 160 pixels of horizontal resolution, but loses 124 pixels of vertical resolution. Users who are shopping monitors should look at one size higher than they may be used to because of this. A 20″ LCD widescreen will give the same “feel” on a vertical scale as a 19″ standard LCD. This is because common 20″ widescreens are 1680 x 1050 resolution.

Speaking of the 20″ widescreen, I would actually recommend that you step up to a 22″ widescreen, but NOT a 24″. Why, you may ask? Most common 20″ and 22″ widescreen monitors use the same resolution of 1680 x 1050. Given the same resolution, a larger screen will seem magnified as compared to the smaller screen. This is certainly good for those people who don’t have perfect eyesight. However, most common 24″ widescreens use a resolution of 1920 x 1200. Besides the additional cost of the 24″ monitor, most people don’t need that high of a resolution. The higher the resolution, the smaller everything looks on the screen. This can be compensated for in the operating system, but many people don’t know this and simply set their monitors to lower resolutions. This can look bad on most monitors, as LCD displays are designed to operate at their highest resolutions. The moral of this story is to look at resolution as well as size when comparing monitors. Bigger isn’t always better.

If you care at all about the quality of the picture displayed on your LCD monitor, make sure you get a monitor with a digital input (usually referred to as DVI). Even if your current computer does not support DVI, your monitor may outlast your current computer. Your next computer will almost certainly have DVI output. You could also purchase an inexpensive video upgrade for your current computer to add digital capability. Digital LCD monitors look much sharper than LCD monitors that only support analog inputs.

Make sure to compare the warranties of monitors. Most monitors only come with a 1 year warranty. Some brands come with 3 year warranties. A common brand that comes standard with a 3 year warranty is Acer.

Finally, when shopping for monitors, make sure you actually get to see the monitor in person. There is no substitute for actually seeing a monitor with your own eyes. And ask the salesperson to make sure the computer is set to the monitor’s optimum resolution.

If you’ve read this far, your head may be spinning, and I don’t blame you! With all the advancements in monitor technology over the last few years, things have become more complicated. But don’t fear, if you have any questions, please let me know and I’ll be sure to help you get a good monitor for your money.

Along with the release of Windows Vista in January of this year, Microsoft also released Office 2007. Microsoft Office is the name of their software suite that includes Word, Excel, and Powerpoint. One of the “features” of Office 2007 is the introduction of new file formats. This really means very little to most people. However, it does pose a very inconvenient problem for many of us. The new file formats can not be opened by the earlier versions of Microsoft Office. Those of you who use Office 2003 or earlier versions (or those who use Office on the Mac) won’t be able to open the files generated by users who have Office 2007. As more and more users start using Office 2007, this will become more and more of a problem.

Of course, you could upgrade to Office 2007, but this is an expensive option. Additionally, many people are not happy with the many interface changes to Office 2007.

Fortunately, Microsoft has released a “compatibility pack” to help out users of Office 2003 and Office XP. Basically, once installed, the compatibility pack allows these versions of Microsoft Office to open, edit, and save the 2007 files. For more information and to download the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack, go to this web page
Additionally, Microsoft has also released a converter for Mac users. The converter allows Mac users to convert the 2007 files into a format the Mac versions of Office can open. However, it does not allow users to save files into the 2007 format. The converter can be downloaded from this web page.

That Microsoft has released these items to help out users of older software is really unprecedented. In the past, they’ve usually not enabled any sort of “forward” compatibility for older versions of Office. So take advantage of Microsoft’s good will and make sure you can open files from the 2007 version of Office.

If you have any other questions regarding document sharing, especially when it comes to cross-platform sharing, Marcel should be your first call!