Month: March 2012

Why Data backup and Data Recovery is essential.

Paul1 Reply

Master Chief, Backed Up by Rico-san, on Flickr

Behind the blog post!

I hate to rant on my family but sometimes they can be hardest people to deal with.  My Sister (I’ve got a lot of ’em) brought me this Acer Aspire One [Amazon Affiliate] laptop and asked me to get her data off it.  I really don’t have a problem with the laptop myself but what happened was something only another Geek would cringe.  The screen was cracked and the laptop wouldn’t boot.   The basic signs of a the laptop being dropped or smashed along the lines.  Anyways, she asked me to get her I-Tunes stuff off your computer.   That part isn’t really a problem because you can pretty much find the technical manuals for free.  So that problem was solved for me because I never taken apart a small laptop like that.  However, upon inspection of the cables I would need to use the hard drive.   I found I had a really old version of the IDE and Atapi USB connector and didn’t have a SATA USB Cable.   I bought one off Amazon which was Cables To Go 30504 USB 2.0 to IDE or Serial ATA Drive Adapter (Black) [Amazon Affiliate].   It Plugged in and started right up the Hard drive.   I must say it was the simplist plug and copy of files, that I’ve done in a long while.

Data Backup!

I really don’t buy from Itunes because of the fact I only get one file copy and if that is lost or stolen, then I have lost my money.   I prefer Amazon Video [Amazon Affiliate], because I can have 2 downloads and still stream it all I want.   I wanted to at least talk about some ways to backup again, I’m sure you’ve heard me talk about backing up once.  I hate for anyone to loose their data because they didn’t want to backup.  So I’m going to give you some help:

  • Decide what type of backup! This is the first step I take to figure out what type of backup I want.
  • Crashplan Plus [Affiliate link] is what I recommend.   You can backup all your household for just 6 dollars a month.  Works on All Major Operating Systems Linux/Mac/Windows, so no worries there.
  • Keep alert for Warning signs of a Hard Drive going bad.   This is also why you need to keep your data backed up.
  • Free backups are also better than nothing.   I don’t recommend as much because you get what you pay for, but it still might help you if their was a problem.
  • Don’t forget about Backing up your Drivers for those important hardware add-on.   I’ve seen it before, people have to go re-download them once they re-install the Operating system.  This will help prevent it.
  • If you want to keep your OEM Operating System, you might want to Backup your Hidden Partition on the Drive.  

In the End, it is what you want!

Nothing is set in stone, so you can always decide to do it your own way but you must remember to do it often and you must remember to have two or three ways to back up your software in case something terrible happens.   If you don’t you just might regret it, and you know how important those pictures of your kids are. 

Paul Sylvester

 

Why Self-Fulfilling Malware causes problems!

Paul

Self-fulfilling malware? Yea Right!

A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behavior.

Via Wikipedia

It’s not really a prophecy but yet it is to a point.  I’m not saying that it is self-replicating or anything of that nature, but I am talking about how it has evolved over the last few years.  If your like me, you get a lot of calls from customers who insist that they have a virus because of a various number of reasons.   Some fo them could saying, they are getting warnings, others that I’ve seen just said that their system is really slow and thus they think they have a virus slowing down their system.  I’m sure you have many examples of this  and thus you know what I am talking about.   There have been many customers that I’ve had to deal with about just that.   They think it is a virus are pretty much won’t accept anything else but that, I’m sure I am not alone when it comes to you own small business.

Dealing with the Customer!

In many ways you probably like me, you try to insist that they don’t have a malware but yet they are coming up with ways why they do.  I’ve got a few tips to help deal with those types of customers who think they HAVE to of gotten a virus or malware along the way!  I’m going to share a few with you that might help you with your own customers.

Customer is always right! (And some that are just not right!)

The first thing I do is tell them it will cost them a certain amount of money to diagnose the problem and thus this will likely turn them away from you and help you help those who really might need the technical help.   I do recommend not charging a lot because if they do have a virus and don’t know how to remove it then you could be loosing a value loyal customer.   Consider charging something like a 30 minute fee to diagnose the problem, what ever you hourly fee is probably about right.  Something else you might want to consider, is to make it free if they have a virus or malware!

Give Customers Free Resources!

If your see my site, you will see that I offer a free Antivurs URL for anyone who might not want to remove their virus themselves but then again.   I warn them that they do this at their own risk and maybe give them some more resources if you know of any.   This will help you with the customers that might need the extra time with their problems.   I don’t like doing this option but it is a good option if you don’t have the time to worry about those customers.   

These are just my few options that I have come to use, maybe you have another way to do it and would love to hear your stories.   

Paul Sylvester

 

First Look: The HTC Inspire 4g With Android (AT&T)!

Paul1 Reply

Chattahoochee River

The HTC Inspire!

I’ve been playing the HTC Inspired 4G (AT&T) phone [Affiliate Link] for the past week and I must say, I am really impressed with what you can do with it!  The phone that uses is Android 2.3.3 (Froyo).  if I Root the device, I might just be able to put Ice Cream sandwich on it but I am unsure if it will work at all!  I’m simply loving touch interface that comes along with the HTC Inspire.   It has been nothing but flawless.   Before I go any furthur, let’s at least get the System Specs out of the way.

Software Specs:

  • Android 2.2 operating system (Froyo) with over-the-air upgrade capability for future OS releases
  • eReader app with access to over 2 million book titles
  • BLOCKBUSTER app enables you to discover and download the latest movie rentals on the go.
  • DLNA capabilities enables you to share your photo albums, videos and movies wirelessly with a compatible HDTV or other DLNA device
  • Easy access to social networking via HTC Sense including updates from Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr.
  • Full messaging capabilities including SMS text, MMS picture/video and IM instant messaging (via popular services including AOL, Yahoo!, Windows Live Messenger, and Google Talk)
  • Access to personal and corporate e-mail (including support for Exchange and push Gmail)
  • HTML Web browser (WebKit-based) with support for Adobe Flash Player 10.1 for accessing Flash-enabled websites, watching video and playing games.

The Lowdown!

You can stream Netflix, and Youtube on the phone.   Although, I am not going through AT&T because I am using a NO contract phone! I’ve pretty much decided that I will keep the no contract option and see if I couldn’t get a SIM card from Straight Talk to work with this phone.  I have no doubt once I either get this phone unlocked or just Root the Phone and bypass the locking software.   I haven’t decided how I will be doing this but I suspect I can still keep using AT&T and my network provider but not pay as much!  I can also use another network to use Android on when you are using Straight Talk.   

Once I have done more research and find out which Android O/S is best, you will be the first to know about it!

Paul Sylvester

Hakuna Matata : Friday!

Paul

Thank Goodness it is Friday!

So this is going to be a very interesting article.   I’d thought we could at least view some really cool pictures together and see which ones you like or hate:

 

Nature

Something to Get away to:

nature_091

Something Blue:

Source: google.com via Robbie on Pinterest

Rocking Nature:

Something Blooms!

Source: google.com via Dee on Pinterest

Something Funny!



I liked them all but I will let you decide which ones are the best. I hope you have a great Friday and remember the Weekend is around the corner!

Paul Sylvester

 

How To tell you Friends or Family they’ve got a computer virus!

Paul2 Replies

After all, just one virus on a computer is one too many.  — Glenn Turner 

It’s Sometimes isn’t easy telling your family or friends that they have a computer virus.   Sometimes, you feel like you just beating an old horse.  I’ve always had the philosophy that it isn’t going to change until you make it change.  In this little quick article I am going to give you a few tips and tricks to help tell your friends that they have a virus.   

Simple ways to Tell your friends/family:

 

  • Flickr — Find a Photo and send to you Family/Friend
  • Pintrest — Another Good Photo sharing site!
  • Send them my Antivirus Page!
  • Twitter — If your know their twitter account, send them a Quote about a Virus!
  • Facebook — If they are your friend on Facebook then you tell them out right!

Explain to them about a Computer Virus!

I kid you not.  I sometimes have to explain why they get a virus.  It isn’t allways going to be easy because of the way people feel embarrassed that they have a virus but if they don’t know how can they fix the problem. A computer virus can be a very touchy subject to some of them and thus you will have to consider someone’s feelings when it is time to tell them that they have a virus.   I am not going to go into a lot of detail on this article because everyone is a little bit different when it comes to their attitude about having a computer virus.  Some will laugh others will get really defensive and thus if I try to tell you to do it a certain way you may end up hating this post, but the hope is that you can have the courage to help stop the spread of these darn pesky computer viruses.   

Not telling your Family or Friends can lead to the problem at hand.   Remember only you can prevent the spread of Viruses or Malware!

Paul Sylvester