January 11, 2011

Setting up a Business Network

Filed under: Data Doctors, E-mail, Internet, PC, Passwords, Tips, Wireless Internet — admin @ 3:32 pm

Setting up a small business network allows you to get more out of your systems and components, you’ll be able to access the internet on any computer, as well as share files on computers within the network.

The first thing you need to do is make sure you have the correct equipment for your needs, If you want your business wired, Ethernet cables will be needed, if you choose to go wireless, a wireless router will be required. You are also able to use a combination of the two.

There are two ways you can set up your network:

PEER TO PEER

When using a peer-to-peer setup, each computer acts as both the client and server, and is able to communicate directly with the other computers on the network. You will only need a router, and have the computers on the same work or homegroup, and enable print and file sharing. Windows offers a Network Setup Wizard that you can access to walk you through your setup.

CLIENT-SERVER

A client-server setup allows several computers to connect to a single sever where public data can be stored. This is more typical in a larger office setting. For this set up a server is needed, a computer with a ‘server-friendly operating system’ can be used. (For little companies, Windows XP, Vista or 7 Professional will work just fine.) Making sure everything is hooked up properly is the main thing, as well as making sure all of your client computers have separate names.

Setting up a business network is all a matter of preference and layout, call your local IT Company with any questions or concerns!

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-set-up-a-small-business-computer-network/

April 8, 2010

Open your eyes when surfing the internet!

Filed under: E-mail, Online Safety, Viruses, Wireless Internet — Tags: computer, computer expert, computer security, computers, cybercrime, Internet, minneapolis, minneapolis minnesota, minneapolis mn, minnesota, open wifi, security, spam e-mail, spam emails, spyware, surfing the internet, surfing the net, virus, Viruses, WiFi — admin @ 2:57 pm

Would you cross the roads with your eyes shut?  Open your eyes when surfing the internet!

Reading the Star Tribune on Sunday, we learned that Minneapolis is now ranked the seventh-riskiest city in America for cybercrime!!  Eeek, now that is hitting a little close to home.  Every day we are hearing or seeing in the news something about a new virus attack or online threat to our computers.  It’s not like all the computers in Minneapolis are going to grow legs and arms to strangle us.

The Minneapolis area does have one of the highest populations of in-home computers and computer users in the nation.  Minneapolis is growing to become known as a very internet savvy city.  Due to this, we are more likely to encounter spyware, spam emails and other viruses.

Keep yourself safe by never fully opening an email, use a preview window to read your messages  (both entourage and outlook allow you to do this), do not log into confidential sites when you are on an open wifi network unless it is secure, and make sure you know what you are downloading before you hit ok.  It’s just like you’re a kid again and your mother is teaching you how to cross the road. Look both ways to ensure that there are not any viruses coming before you begin to access the site and keep looking both ways as you access the site to make sure a virus doesn’t pop up out of nowhere.  If you are nervous or have questions, ask a computer expert. We’re here to help and answer questions.

April 6, 2010

Gmail Introduces New Security Against Scammers

Filed under: E-mail, Gmail, Google, security advisory — Tags: computer, computer security, computer security expert, computer security expert warns, computer security experts, computer security experts warn, computers, E-mail, e-mail security, gmail, gmail account, gmail account hijacked, gmail advisory, gmail hijacked, gmail scam, gmail security advisory, gmail security system, gmail’s new security, gmail’s new security system, Google, google engineering director, pavni diwanji, scam, security advisory — admin @ 12:28 pm

A friend in need is a friend indeed, says the old axiom.

Computer security experts are warning you to be wary of old friends who show up in your e-mail box and in need of your money. Your friend may be an innocent and unknowing pawn in an elaborate scheme that seeks to rip you off.

One of Google’s own, an engineering director named Pavni Diwanji, was targeted by such a scam. The Google executive reports that he recently received an e-mail from one of his legitimate acquaintances who was reportedly in a jam in London, broke and desperate due to a series of unfortunate events.

Turns out a scammer had hijacked the acquaintance’s account. That allowed the scammer to not only know where the acquaintance was, but to also have access to all of his e-mail contacts.

It’s not an isolated case. The Data Doctors have seen several cases where local clients have unknowingly had such e-mail pleas issued from their accounts.

The scam prompted the Google engineering director to initiate tightened up security measures in an effort to prevent Gmail customers from having their accounts hijacked.

The new measures are especially effective when logins appear in quick succession from different countries.

Here is the link to find out more about how to protect yourself and to learn about the new “security system” in place with Gmail accounts.

February 15, 2010

What is Google Buzz and Should I Use It?

Filed under: E-mail, Google — Tags: buzz, flickr, gmail, Google, google applications, google apps, google buzz, google reader, new social media site, new social site, picasa, sharing, social media, social media sites, social networking, social sharing sites, social sites, tiwtter — admin @ 8:25 am

For those that haven’t been paying attention, the world is in the midst of another communication revolution and Google has decided not to sit this one out by introducing Google Buzz.

Social tech is not a fad and Google knows it.  Facebook is the current king of social tech with an estimated (as of this writing) 400 million users worldwide that are very engaged on a daily basis. To put it into perspective, if Facebook were a country, it would now be the third largest in the world behind China and India.

Google Buzz is a new option that is appearing only for those that currently use Google’s e-mail system Gmail. In its current iteration, it looks like Google is trying to cut into Facebook’s turf and integrate features that are similar to what Twitter is all about.

It can serve as a basic ‘aggregator’ for various social media sites, but oddly it has no integration with Facebook (which is why most are speculating that they are the target).

In our view, Google Buzz is so new that unless you are an ‘early adopter’ of technology, you should probably let them get through a couple of development cycles with the early adopter crowd before you jump in (exhibit: Google Wave – what’s happened to it?) In fact, you should get familiar with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Plaxo so that you can understand where Buzz may fit in your social media connections.

Unless you’re using Gmail, it’s a moot point on using it as there is no stand alone version of Google Buzz.

The biggest concerns in the early stages of Buzz seem to be in the area of privacy, primarily in the area of the way you automatically get followed or start to follow others.

If you are a Gmail user and want to avoid any of the privacy issues being voiced by critics, you need to do more than just click on ‘Turn off Buzz’ as that simply turns off what you see, but not necessarily what you are participating in. Cnet’s Jessica Dolcourt has posted an excellent step-by-step tutorial on how to ensure that none of your ‘privates’ are included in the Buzz: http://bit.ly/dw1ubz

Whatever happens with Buzz social media is here to stay.  The digital world is not going away. So jump in, the water is fine!

December 21, 2009

Temporary e-mail addresses

Filed under: E-mail — Tags: Data Doctors, data doctors mpls, E-mail, email, junk mail, mailinator, mailinator.com, temporary e-mail, temporary email — admin @ 7:23 am

There are times when you are surfing the Internet that you want to gain access to a resource that requires a valid e-mail address. If you give them your real e-mail address, you take the risk of getting some additional junk mail.

But if you don’t use a real e-mail address, you can’t get the confirmation message that provides access to what you want.  In those cases, a valid temporary e-mail address would be handy so give Mailinator a try (don’t use this for newsletters or anything that you actually want to get over the long term).

Make Mailinator a link at www.mailinator.com