Blog

“Check” it out!

My life has been made substantially easier with the technology deployed around banking and funds transfer. There are numerous services/apps that make paying people extremely easy; services like PayPal, Venmo and Cash. They have their limits and, in some cases, costs but they make that occasional billpay or friend reimbursement remarkably easy.

My banks have also made it a lot easier with free built-in billpay services and funds transfer services such as Zelle. I especially love the ability to deposit checks directly from my phone using the bank’s app.

Today, none of those services could do what I needed done in the timeframe I needed it done in. I needed a good old-fashioned check. To add insult to injury, I had written out my last check for the account I needed to disburse from last week. It would take days to order and receive checks and there was no branch nearby where I could ask for a counter check. What to do?

Enter checkrobot.com! This free website allows you to create and print your own checks on plain paper. You add your bank information and then add your payee and you’re ready-to-go. The service will create an authentic bank check in the necessary MICR font that can easily be deposited via an app or at a bank. It’s easy, simple and free and will get you out of a jam if you need in a hurry.

“Check” it out!

 

Ooops (spelled UPS)

Much of my workday is spent in my “command center” which includes my desktop computer, two large monitors and all my Internet and telephone technology. I rely on it being up and available 24/7/365 as my services might be requested at any time. I typically spend six to eight hours seated at my desk on any given day and any period of downtime can be very disruptive. That is why I follow my own recommendations and make sure I have as many single points of failure addressed with redundant technology and multiple levels of backup, both local and in the cloud.

As I was working midday last week on a very hot summer’s day, my lights and air conditioner turned off and on briefly – twice. Both times there was NO interruption in the operation of my technology. That’s because I had equipped my command center with an uninterruptible power supply or UPS. Not only did I avoid the necessity of having to restart all my equipment from scratch twice, I protected myself from a system crash or data corruption that can be caused when power is suddenly removed from an active computer.

In most basic terms, a UPS is a power strip on steroids and contains batteries and circuitry that allow it to provide the same electricity as your wall outlet to all devices plugged into it, even when it is receiving no electricity from the wall outlet itself. The types and number of devices you can plug into it depends on the size of the UPS. They come in sizes from small and personal up to supporting a whole data center.

A UPS is not designed to run your equipment for an extended period of time during a power outage. The reality is that most power blips or outages are very brief. A UPS will handle blips transparently as mine did in the story above. A UPS should be sized to give you enough runtime to allow an orderly shutdown of your equipment should an outage be longer than expected.

There are many reputable brands of UPS and they are not hugely expensive. Your IT professional can help you determine which of your devices need to be plugged into a UPS and what size you need to accommodate an orderly shutdown if required. We’re always here and happy to help if you have questions about how to protect your technology with a UPS.

 

 

I Love My 5-year-old Smartphone?

‘I love my five-year-old smartphone and see no reason to upgrade whatsoever.” said no one ever! We all recognize the immediate improvements in ease-of-use, functionality, reliability and security that come with every new generation of cell phones and don’t hesitate to upgrade on a regular basis to gain these benefits.

So why don’t we do the same for our computers? I think the four main reasons are fear of change, inertia, fear of productivity loss and cost. So, let’s address those individually.

  1. Fear of change – Computers are complicated beasts and the learning curve for new technology can feel daunting. We should remember that when we moved to the technology we’re presently using, it wasn’t painless, and it wasn’t without some glitches, but it was well worth it in the end. You would never consider going back to older technology than you’re using today because you are much more productive for having made the change. You need to adopt the same mindset and keep moving forward.
  2. Inertia – The inclination of an object at rest is to stay at rest. It’s so much easier to do nothing! But the world is rapidly changing around you and if you don’t change, you’ll eventually be unable to be an active part of the world moving forward. It is easiest to solve this problem by scheduling an update to the latest computer technology on a regular and periodic basis. Plan that, when you buy your new computer today, that you will replace it four years hence and budget for it.
  3. Fear of productivity loss – this is a reasonable fear, but the pain is temporary. Most changes made these days are to enhance usability as well as functionality. How not to lose productivity? Schedule your hardware upgrade with your provider during downtime and arrange in advance for an hour or two with an expert to walk you through the major changes, especially to the features and functionality you use most. These two tips will save you hours of frustration and get you back on an even-more-productive road in a very short time.
  4. Cost – As I write this, the two latest smartphones – the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 and the iPhone X – both retail at $1000 (or more depending on model). Does this deter the average user from making that purchase? Not in the least. A solid basic desktop or laptop computer with current technology and a manufacturer’s warranty can be had for half that cost. So why don’t we make the leap? Few people buy their cell phones outright. They take advantage of zero-interest financing from the carriers or the cost is rolled up into a two-year contract. If that scenario feels better to you, financing options are almost always available for your computer purchase, the easiest being your credit card. Cost, while relevant, should seldom be the most important variable in your purchasing decision.

Your technology provider will be happy to help you identify the best upgrade options for you. Give them a call and get back on the fast-track where your office technology is concerned!

 

Size Matters (in smartphone cables)

We were perplexed. A perfectly good Samsung S7 was refusing to transfer files from the phone to a Windows PC. The textbook approach on this is to make sure device drivers are up-to-date, and then try the different connection modes available from the device. The default option offered is MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) as well as PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol) and RNDIS (USB Ethernet). No problem connecting by any mode but when looking in File Explorer, there were no files in the folder being displayed.

Fast forward to a 90-minute support call between the client and Verizon/Samsung, The result –  no progress whatsoever. And now we’re in major frustration territory. Maybe we need to bite the bullet and get a new phone? That’s one very expensive solution to a connection problem.

We’d covered the 95% most likely answers with no luck so now time to think outside the box and look at the 5% we’d never usually consider. I remembered when I received my Note 3 many years ago, the cable that came with it worked about 45 days and then intermittent connection problems set in. A little research revealed that the quality of the cable can have a BIG impact on charging speeds and can sometimes cause connection problems.

I had a high-quality cable shipped to my client and within minutes of him receiving the cable I got a 2-word email:

That Worked!

Lesson learned. World expanded. Even in cables – size matters.

 

Invited to go phishing?

I received this email this week.

It’s from a company whose name I recognize though I haven’t done business with them.  I may have even had a conversation with the sender (actually likely as he had my email address) though I don’t remember the name. It seeks to get my participation on a project where I could possibly make some money. There are enough details that are “close” that, if I wasn’t paying close attention, would have just clicked through on the attachment and, likely, infected my computer with some virus or malware. But something was off…

So, I applied the universal rules of safe email handling by answering these questions.

  1. Do I know the sender?
  2. If I know the sender, was I expecting something from them?
  3. Do I know specifically what each link or attachment is for or leads to?
  4. Do I have a security program in place capable of detecting viruses/malware in emails?

In this instance, I did the following:

  1. I called the business number in the email – It was a TACO BELL!
  2. I called the cell number – DISCONNECTED!
  3. I deleted the email. Disaster avoided.

Bad guys can be very good at coaxing you to give up personal access or information. Don’t get caught in their phishing net. Follow the rules above and you’ll minimize the possibility of getting compromised in any way.

 

One in a Billion?

Not great odds if you’re a betting person. On the other hand, If you’re a user of Yahoo email you’ve hit the jackpot and not in a good way! As I write this, Yahoo just announced that more than ONE BILLION Yahoo user accounts may have been stolen by hackers including phone numbers, birthdates and security questions. What could you have done to prevent this? – Nothing. The blame for the breach lies squarely with Yahoo but the impact of the breach can only be mitigated by you. So what to do now?

As annoying and intrusive as it is, it is important that you adopt a more serious approach to your online identity and security. This means changing your passwords regularly to something unique and hard to guess. Get a password manager program to help you create and remember those passwords. They’re not expensive, work well and reduce a lot of the pain associated with password management.

Change your passwords at least as often as your program or service recommends. A data breach is worthless if it contains a password no longer being used. Use a monitoring service to look for your info in the wrong places after a data breach occurs.

Lastly, now would be a great time to get rid of your yahoo.com email address. Simpler, more secure options are available which allow you to personalize and customize your email. Get your own domain name for you or your business! And all of your current email and contacts can be migrated directly into your new email server and program. If you need help, give us a call!

Whatever you do, adopt a safer saner approach to data security and breathe a little easier!

 

Belt and Suspenders

 

“Belt and Suspenders” This phrase came to mind today as I visited a client who was getting a hardware failure message when starting up his computer.

For those not familiar with the phrase, the use of both a belt and suspenders to hold up one’s pants ensures you’ll never unexpectedly have your pants at your knees. In the technology world it can mean having redundant safety procedures in place to reduce risk of failures.

The error he was getting implied that the system hard drive wasn’t there, certainly a catastrophe in the making. Fortunately, we had recommended a belt (complete data backup both onsite and in the Cloud) and suspenders (mirrored hard drives in case one drive fails) and so I was confident that the worst-case scenario wouldn’t be all that bad.

As it turned out, the error was due to a startup configuration setting which was easily corrected. My client didn’t need to implement any emergency recovery procedures to get back up and working. But if he had, we could!

With modern operating systems (Windows and OSX) it’s easy and inexpensive to put “belt and suspenders” in place.

Check out the many local/Cloud-based backup services (One of my favorites is Crashplan from Code42.com) to make sure your data is backed up and accessible no matter the problem.

With Windows (since XP) there has been the capability to add a 2nd hard drive and create an identical mirror of everything on the main hard drive. Almost every modern computer already has the necessary electronics built in to power and control an additional hard drive.

These inexpensive options will allow you to add “belt and suspenders” to your system so you don’t get caught with your pants down in case of a hardware failure.

 

What Happened To Safe Mode at Startup in Windows 10?

Having worked with Microsoft Windows since its introduction many years ago, I have had many opportunities to restart a computer in Safe Mode. (Read: It was absolutely necessary to resolve a critical problem.)

Safe Mode is a Windows mode that uses only the most basic drivers and programs that are required to start Windows and will not launch any programs that are set to start automatically when Windows starts. This makes Safe Mode very useful for diagnosing hardware driver problems and computer infections in Windows. It can also be useful when you want to uninstall a program or delete a file that you are unable to remove when Windows is started normally. Microsoft always left a keystroke backdoor to allow you to start your computer in Safe Mode at will during the start-up process (F8) – but they took this away starting in Windows 8!

Here is a simple way to restore the F8 keystroke to enter Safe Mode at Windows startup. You’ll need to open a CMD window in administrative mode by right-clicking on the start button and selecting “Command Prompt ( Admin)”.

At the command prompt, type the following – “bcdedit /set {default} bootmenupolicy legacy“ and hit enter. When the operation completes successfully, restart the system and – Voila! – the F8 key works again! (If ever you want to revert back, do the same and type “bcdedit /set {default} bootmenupolicy standard” at the command prompt.)

May you never have to restart your Windows 10 computer in Safe Mode, but if you do this will help you be prepared. Needless to say, you have to do this at a time when your computer is up and running properly. Happy computing!