Updated December 6 2011
Help Buying a new Computer
MAC vs. PC - MACs are pricier up front
but seem to have less maintenance costs associated
with them so you may break even in the long run.
Many people buy MACs to they don't have to deal with
the Virus issues that plague Windows users. MACs
are not more secure than Windows but Windows has the
bulk of the market share so the Mal-ware writers
target it more. You can buy
your MAC right from the Apple store or from
Apple.com. I am going to focus on the PC purchase as
there are not as many choices on the MAC side and the
Apple store techs can help you through that purchase.
Vendor – On the PC
side, I prefer to buy directly from Dell. They are
aggressive in their pricing and their tech support is less
horrible than the others. I prefer buying direct from Dell
either by phone or website as opposed to buying from one
of the local stores as you have more options to customize
your system and will have your warranty directly through
dell.
Laptop vs. Desktop - Desktops will have
faster processors, larger hard drives, can house more
memory, and are more expandable than laptops and generally
have a longer lifespan.
The only real reason to go with a laptop is portability.
Operating System – Windows 7 is the
latest and greatest from Microsoft. It is a great
operating system. 64-bit Windows will give you
better performance.
Processor - Unless you are gaming or
doing heavy video editing, there is no real need to spend
money on updating to a faster processor. Any Core 2 Duo or
Dual Core processor will suffice.
Memory(RAM) – Windows loves memory. For
Windows 7, I would go with a minimum of 4 GB RAM.
Your system will perform better with 6 or 8GB.
Hard Drive - it's usually short money to
upgrade to a larger hard drive. Video eats up hard drive
space quickly. Photos and Music can if they are high
quality. 500GB is usually pretty cheap and sufficient for
most. 1 Terabyte is usually reasonably priced. Check
what you are currently using and plan for plenty of
growth. Solid State Drives are coming down in
price. These are faster than standard hard drives if
it keeps the system in your price range.
Video – built in video will be sufficient
for everyday use. There isn’t a real need to upgrade
unless you are doing something special such as video
editing, CAD Design or heavy action gaming.
Warranty – I would go with a 3 year
onsite warranty. After diagnosing a hardware issue over
the phone, they will send a tech to your Home/Office to
repair your system. A processor or motherboard
failure will pay for the warranty.
Laptop Battery – Go with a 9 cell
battery. You will get more hours out of a charge.
Laptop Screen Size - This is personal preference. Larger screens make for a heavier laptop so be careful if you travel frequently. Go to a local store and check out the different sizes to see what you are comfortable with. 15" seems to be acceptable to most in terms of screen size and weight.
May 9, 2011
Which Web Browser is Safer?
Internet Explorer vs. Firefox vs. Google Chrome
There are several options available for
web browsers today. How do you decide which one to
use?
According to statcounter.com, Worldwide, Internet Explorer has about 56% of the browser market while Mozilla Firefox has 31% and Google Chrome has about 15%.
http://gs.statcounter.com/#browser-ww-monthly-200912-201012
While all Internet Browsers are
susceptible to viruses, Internet Explorer seems to have
more viruses attacking it. Many IT pros agree that
this has nothing to do with which browser is more secure
but the fact that Malware writers are targeting the
biggest population. As the others gain marketshare,
the number of viruses targeting them will increase;
but for now, using one of the browsers with a smaller
market share seems to help.
The biggest deterrent to Malware
infections is always good user habits. Be
careful what you click on and stay away from the "seedy"
side of the Internet. There is a ton of valuable
information online but there is almost as many dangerous
places. Always be cautious and skeptical when
surfing or reading mail.
Aug 4, 2010
Removal from SPAM lists
Be careful when trying to get removed
from SPAM lists. Clicking on remove links or replying to
get removed can actually increase the level of SPAM that
you receive.
SPAMmers get addresses from websites, unsecure mail
servers, captured from address books by viruses, etc. They
send out millions of pieces of SPAM not knowing what
addresses are good and not caring. They know that some
percentage will get through. When you reply to a SPAMmer,
you are confirming that they have a valid address, that
they got through your SPAM filter, and that you read your
SPAM. Your address just increased in value and made it to
the top of the SPAM list and will be sold at a higher
value to other SPAMmers.
If you opted into a mailing list from a legitimate source,
you will be able to opt out, otherwise, just hit the
delete key. Use a junk E-mail address as opposed to your
main one when signing up for things on the web, that way
you can delete the address and start over if the SPAM gets
too bad and keep your "real" address for friends, family,
business, etc. There are plenty of free mail providers
that you can use; Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.
June 1, 2010
Distracting Beach Babes on Facebook
That seems to have gotten everyone’s
attention.
Distracting Beach Babes is the name of the latest Facebook app/virus. Anyone can write and submit a Facebook app. Facebook does not check apps before they're put up on the site. By the time Facebook realizes that an app is infected, it's too late and thousands of users are infected. Stick with the mainstream apps like Mafia Wars, Farmville, etc. if you must use any apps at all. Don't be the Guinea Pig testing out the cool new apps as that is where a lot of people find problems.
While we are on the subject of
Facebook, be careful with links posted on peoples walls as
many of those are posted by viruses and will lead you to
infected websites. Most importantly, always make
sure your antivirus and anti-spyware protection are up to
date.
May 18, 2010
Netbook vs. Notebook
Netbooks are great for online
activities. Checking
E-Mail, Web Surfing, Playing Online Games, Instant
Messaging, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Netbooks
generally don’t have the power to do things like Editing
Photos and Videos, Watching HD Movies, Installing Office
Software, playing PC Games or Multitasking.
Netbooks have a smaller screen size,
generally 10 inches or less.
They also have a smaller keyboard that some people
do not like to work with.
You will want to go see one locally to make sure
you can work on it before deciding to buy one.
May 13, 2010
Scareware
Scareware is one of the newer tactics that scammers are using to separate you from your hard earned money. They basically install a fake virus scanner on your systems. The scanner pops up and looks like it is running a legitimate Virus scan. It will come back and inform you that you have several infected files and attempt to scare you into buying their cleaner. They will try to force you to buy their cleaner by holding your system hostage, quite often not even letting you close the window unless you purchase. Do not purchase any of these products. No legitimate program will force you to purchase it this way.
In addition to your system not being totally cleaned, they will be back for additional money in the near future, or worse, they may go shopping with your credit cards. If you purchased any of these Scareware cleaners, contact your credit card company immediately and dispute the charge and cancel the card.
April 27, 2010
Get Blackberry Enterprise Express Server for free.
For those of you who run their own Exchange environment, RIM is now offering a free version of their Enterprise software. This will allow you to sync Contacts, Calendar and E-mail over the air.
This is a great move for RIM who had always been known for only being a good option for large enterprises due to the high price tag of their Enterprise software. I have the professional version running at a few customer sites and it does a great job. The express looks pretty similar to the professional version sans the price tag.
Download directly from RIM..... http://na.blackberry.com/eng/services/business/server/express/
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