SoHoHelpDesk Computer Services - Blog

Dell Studio One 19 Desktop

2009-05-01T19:25:00.001-03:00

Very Cool but HP beat them to market

Dell Studio One 19 Desktop

Help build dead simple tablet PC!

2009-04-26T22:20:00.001-03:00

What a great Idea…. I want one for sitting in my lazy boy!!!

Help build dead simple tablet PC!

Sorry it has been awhile since I have made a post

2009-04-24T05:58:00.003-03:00

It has been a very difficult last few weeks. My Mom was very sick on life support and then passed away. I broke my leg bad about 8 weeks before Mom got sick. The chemo I went through a couple of years back killed all the roots of my teeth so I am on my way to movie star false teeth, one more visit to have the last 6 front upper teeth removed. I looked into implants vs False plates... $$,$$$.00 Holy Crap, Denture's it is. :-).

I would like to say thank you to all of you for your support and nice emails of concerns. I will be back posting again, sooner then later.

Ciao for now.

Michael

Touch Screen Tablet PC - Dell Latitude XT

2009-03-29T19:34:00.002-03:00

Dear DELL, Maybe DELL should send one Latitude XT Tablet PC to me so I can use it as my Main PC for my Construction SAFETY supervisor, Information Systems Manager, Human Resources Manager, position. I work in all Atlantic Canada Weather Conditions, Warm/Cold, Inside/Outside, remote access to remote offices in 3 Atlantic Canada Provinces, Secure Internal 802.11n/CAT 6, Windows Small Business Server 2003, with AD, Exchange, SharePoint. You name it, I will run it through its paces, document & BLOG about it daily. Please let me try.

Michael McCrea, MCP, MCDST, A+, Network+, CSS
McCarthy's Roofing Limited, (NS) & (NB)
Bradshaw Roofing Contractors, Inc.
SoHoHelpDesk Computer Services
--
902-456-9796 BlackBerry
902-469-2260 Office
--
michael@sohohelpdesk.net
safety@mccarthysroofing.com
itsupport@mccarthysroofing.com
--
http://sohohelpdesk.blogspot.com
www.sohohelpdesk.net
www.mccarthysroofing.com

Touch Screen Tablet PC - Dell Latitude XT

New Gateway 14" Tablet PC Spied (2007) Why can I not buy this any longer? Old guys can not see 12.1'” screens, Come on Help The OLD GUYS EYES!!!!

2009-03-28T06:52:00.001-03:00

AS you all may know I am looking for the best Tablet PC I can buy for my new Job. I am the Information Systems Manager, Company Construction Safety Supervisor & Now head of Human Resources. In my personal office I have a Dell Windows 2003 Small Business Server, Clone Windows XP Pro SP-3 Desktop PC with Dual Samsung Monitors and a Compaq Presario V5000 Laptop with a 2nd. Samsung 18.1” NEW Monitor attached to the laptop. I now want to have a Tablet PC to replace my laptop so I have all my company data with me at all time as i am very mobile where my job takes me to industrial job sites, small residential jobsites, remote offices of our company other offices in other Atlantic Canada provinces, meetings at many different contractors offices, etc. etc. You get the point I am very busy. When I started this job a few months ago “FULL TIME” there were really no digital records for me to work with so I have to make these from scratch, which has really turned out to be a lot of work. I have found so real nice software to assist me in this. But I am always looking for more.

My Dream Tablet will be:

Large 14” Screen that has to be able to be viewable in direct sunlight as I spend a lot of time on Very Large Commercial Construction projects doing Safety Inspections on the roof.

POWER, POWER, POWER, LOTS OF RAM, Windows Vista, Docking Station

WiFi 802.11n

Large HDD

Reasonable price!

PLEASE HELP ME….

OR Close to this:

Some specs of the 295 Series:

Core 2 Duo T7100 1.8GHz or T7300 2GHz processor
2GB DDR2 SDRAM
60GB-100GB hard drive
Integrated Intel GMA x3100 graphics
14" WXGA TFT Active Matrix display (1280x768)
Wacom and touchscreen capabilities
Standard 8-cell battery

www.TigerDirect.ca use to list a 14” Gateway and Fijitsu but no longer…. WHY??????

New Gateway 14" Tablet PC Spied

This is the NEW DELL but is a 12.1” “Come On”

Digg

2009-03-22T21:31:00.001-03:00

THE ULTIMATE TABLET PC HUNT

2009-03-22T21:27:00.001-03:00

I am and Construction Safety Supervisor for 3 large Construction Company’s in Atlantic Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick & PEI CANADA. I am still looking for my dream Tablet PC so if you know of one model please let me know. My wish list is: a 14” Screen with Windows Vista, and large HDD, 802.11n, Web Cam built in, but most of “ALL IT HAS TO WORK IN DIRECT SUNLIGHT” as I am a Construction Safety Supervisor. If you are an up and coming company that would like me to demo your model in the real world. PLEASE CONTACT ME, ASAP….. Summer is coming and I will write about it on my Blog as well as other PC Mag’s online.

If you know of others, that may suit my needs please contact me.

Thank you in advance.

Michael McCrea, MCP, MCDST, A+, Network+, CSS

McCarthy’s Roofing Limited, (NS) & (NB)

Bradshaw Roofing Contractors, Inc.

safety@mccarthysroofing.com

902-456-9796 Blackberry

902-469-2260 Office

The Journal of Joe The Peacock. Yay.: The Ultimate Guide To Twitter

2009-03-22T21:18:00.001-03:00

I love Twitter, but this guy really does. Read his post you may like it.

The Journal of Joe The Peacock. Yay.: The Ultimate Guide To Twitter

CDN - Acer Aspire 8930 Desktop Replacement Laptop

2009-03-11T15:10:00.001-03:00

Acer has put just enough features and perks into the Aspire 8930, its high-end performance laptop. Thanks to a couple of reasonably primo parts, this high-octane portable is a solid choice for mobility-minded gamers. And with a price tag under two grand (our reviewed configuration was US$1700 as of 2/22/09), this desktop replacement laptop won't blow your budget.

Running the show are a 2.5GHz Intel T9400 Core 2 Duo processor, an nVidia 9700M GT 512MB graphics card, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, and the 64-bit version of Windows Vista. That combo delivered a reasonable WorldBench 6 score of 94. In game tests, it struggled a little with Enemy Territory: Quake Wars and Unreal Tournament 3; running at 1680 by 1050, it notched 30 and 35 frames per second, respectively. So, technically, you can still play games on it, but you might notice the occasional slowdown.

As for more-recent games, it couldn't play Valve's zombie-apocalypse shooter Left 4 Dead at the display's native resolution, but it ran comfortably at 1280 by 720 with most settings maxed out. Even the hardware-crushing Crysis ran at playable frame rates with antialiasing off and settings at medium at 1280 by 720--a respectable showing. (Whether the later, more graphically-intense parts of the game would remain playable is questionable, however.) The difference in performance here might be due to the 64-bit OS and which games are utilizing it, something that you may wish to keep in mind when you set your gaming expectations for this laptop.

What about the battery life? Well, nobody buys a desktop replacement to lug around that often, but it lasted a reasonably long 2 hours, 54 minutes.

What matters is that the Aspire 8930 looks good. The 18.4-inch display, offering a native resolution of 1920 by 1080, dazzles with terrific brightness and good color reproduction. Though the screen has a glossy finish, it manages to remain usable under reasonable levels of sunlight, whether outside or indoors with the curtains open. The bezel is a little thick, but in my tests the lower edge was elevated enough to give me a good, full view of the screen even with my meaty paws typing away at the keyboard. My only complaint is that the rubber "feet" on the left and right sides of the display are placed slightly haphazardly. While I understand the need to keep the pretty screen scuff-free, the feet don't match the overall aesthetic of the laptop's otherwise slick styling.

The Aspire 8930 cuts a striking profile. Complementing the smooth, high-gloss finish are blue-lit LEDs along the hinges that look great. When you open the laptop, its aesthetic changes with a textured metallic surface that looks different without seeming gaudy. The texture continues over the touchpad--I hated this initially, but it grew on me when I noticed that it gave the touchpad a nice tactile feel.

The Aspire 8930 also offers a lot in the way of ports, with three USB 2.0 inputs, two eSATA ports, VGA, HDMI, and DisplayPort video outputs, and line-in and microphone audio inputs. Acer was also nice enough to throw in an excellent Webcam, positioning it at the top of the screen bezel.

Laptop keyboards with dedicated ten-key inputs are often a recipe for frustration and missed key presses. However, thanks to its size, the Aspire 8930 manages to pull the design off with nary a missed Ctrl key during Web browsing, typing, or game playing.

Moreover, no keys have shrunk noticeably to make room for the numeric pad. Using the keyboard wasn't all roses, though, as I felt a bit of clicking on the right side of the board after extended use (it never affected the functionality, but it was cause for concern).

The Cinedash Media Console, a touch-inductive media interface located to the left of the keyboard, is another eye-grabber, and for the most part it works well. The media controls are intuitive and reasonably responsive, and the volume slider is, well, fun. It makes the machine feel like a laptop from the future. Unfortunately, that future doesn't include a more finely tuned volume control--accidentally touching it while playing some games minimized them. The Media Console does have a hold button, so hitting the volume control by mistake can be avoided, but having to figure that out the hard way was annoying.

All of the laptop's internal expansion areas are available behind one panel on the system's underside. Removing the panel is painless enough, but check your timidity at the door, as a fair amount of force is required to pry the plate up. Once you manage to detach it, though, you're ready to go. The hard drive is easily replaceable, and the motherboard supports a pair of DDR3 SO-DIMMs (and with a 64-bit version of Vista and the shrinking cost of 4GB SO-DIMMS, expansion is a viable option down the road).

As with many laptops, sound is the Aspire 8930's sole stumbling point. The machine is billed as a home-theater substitute, and it comes with a full 5.1 setup. In stereo mode, it performs reasonably well; music is loud, and movies are clear. Unfortunately, in surround mode, the laptop disappoints. While the front and side channels produce acceptable audio, the center channel is tinny and quiet--since movies drive dialogue through the center channel in 5.1 mixes, this is troublesome. With the surround mode active, DVD dialogue was barely audible a few feet away, and undetectable across the room. Most users will likely want to find a decent pair of external speakers if they plan to watch a lot of movies on this laptop. The included S/PDIF output and HDMI audio output capability are nice bonuses that mitigate that disappointment somewhat, however.

The Acer Aspire 8930 offers a great combination of price and purpose. My only reservations relate to our review model's lack of a Blu-ray drive (since the machine has a Full HD display but its video card won't run games at that resolution, you'll want something to show the screen off), as well as to the likelihood that you'll need to buy a new laptop bag to transport this 18.4-inch monster.

CDN - Acer Aspire 8930 Desktop Replacement Laptop

BlackBerry Storm Video

2009-03-10T18:10:00.000-03:00

An 8-point plan to lower stress and lift morale at work - IT Business Slideshow Index

2009-03-10T18:09:00.001-03:00

An 8-point plan to lower stress and lift morale at work - IT Business Slideshow Index

ESET - Antivirus Software with Spyware and Malware Protection

2009-03-09T18:34:00.001-03:00

ESET - Antivirus Software with Spyware and Malware Protection

eSet NOD32 Anti Virus Software

http://www.eset.com/

http://www.eset.com/products/compare-NOD32-vs-competition.php?pm=2

Competitive Advantages

Compare Antivirus Software

ESET products remain the best virus protection available in 2009, whether it's ESET NOD32 Antivirus or ESET Smart Security (built with the same ThreatSense® engine as ESET NOD32 Antivirus).

AV-Comparatives named ESET NOD32 Antivirus the "Best Antivirus Product" in 2006 and 2007 as they know that proactive, precise technology—not brand names— stop malware. ESET NOD32 Antivirus was then awarded "The Best Proactive On-demand Detection" and "The Best Overall Speed Performance" for 2008.

Direct comparisons with other antivirus solutions tell the story better than we ever could.

Using the in-depth chart below, you can compare antivirus software and find out which type will provide the kind of protection you need. The study stands ESET NOD32 Antivirus up to some of the biggest brand names - Symantec, McAfee, Trend Micro and Kaspersky - comparing protection as well as performance.

Comprehensive Protection	ESET	Symantec	McAfee	Trend	Kaspersky
VB100 Awards for Detection of All In-the-Wild Viruses in the VB Test Sets Without Any False-Alarms (virusbulletin.com, May 1998 - February 2009)	54	48	37	16	44
Advanced+ Awards Tests of Proactive and On-Demand Detection (AV-Comparatives.org, May 2005 - November 2008) Advanced+/Advanced/Standard	13/2/0	6/4/5	2/10/3	0/0/3	9/3/3
Missed In-the-Wild Viruses in Virus Bulletin Tests between May 1998 and February 2009 (virusbulletin.com)
- On-Access - On-Demand	0 0	29 2	64 71	70 68	34 16
Proactive Detection Click to learn more
Proactive Protection by AV-Comparatives (May 2008)	57%	14%*	32%	No Data	21%
Proactive Test by AV-Test.org on 1-Month Old Signatures (January 2008)	68%	26%*	30%	27%	24%
Performance Advantages Click to learn more
Boot Time Overhead Percentage by AV-Comparatives (November 2008)	12%	26%	70%	No Data	108%
File Access Lag Time (virusbulletin.com; August 2008)	0.02 MB/s	0.04 MB/s	0.08 MB/s	No Data	0.04 MB/s
Commit Charge (Clean Systems, West Coast Labs; September 2008)	100.63 MB	186.3 MB	157.93 MB	No Data	156.12 MB
Application Startup Time (Internet Explorer, West Coast Labs; September 2008)	1.94 seconds	3.1 seconds	3.74 seconds	No Data	2.17 seconds
Boot Times (West Coast Labs; September 2008)	157 seconds	229 seconds	187 seconds	No Data	168 seconds
* Norton AV

ESET is the only company with over 50 VB100 awards and continues to lead the industry with the highest detection rates and zero false positives — the winning formula in malware protection.

Check Out The Video Below This Post

2009-01-24T10:57:00.002-04:00

Inspired by CNET's Quick Tips and First Looks on Windows 7 beta, but not sure how to install it correctly? Never fear!
This video guide will help you create a dual-boot configuration, so you can run the preview of Microsoft's latest OS without destroying your older operating system.

The public Beta of Windows 7 will expire on August 31, 2009 so it is a good idea to dual boot so you can still work on your old operating system and play on Windows 7.

Cheers,

Michael

Windows 7 Beta - Dual Boot Video

2009-01-24T10:53:00.000-04:00

Windows 7 Public Beta

2009-01-22T05:13:00.003-04:00

I am running Windows 7 which I download from Microsoft's Public Beta page on my Compaq, Presario V5000 laptop. When I bought this laptop it had Windows XP pre-installed with 1GB RAM. I bought Windows Vista Business for it as it has a Windows Vista Capable sticker on it. What a joke that is.... I ran like CRAP with Vista Business so I upgraded my RAM to 2GB (the Max) and it did run a bit better, but not enough to get excited about. I tuffed it out for a year, then a few months back I re-installed Windows XP back on it. You just got to love XP :-).

So I downloaded Windows 7 Beta after Microsoft sent me an invite in one of my partner emails. I must say it is running like a top with Windows 7. One of the things I really like was after the install I had no conflicts at all. I did not have to go and hunt out drivers. (Although I all ready had all the drivers for all the hardware on all my PCs, Laptops & servers on a USB Stick) but it was nice to see that in device manager.

One other thing after you do the download and burn the 2.4GB .iso file to DVD you can not upgrade instal from XP to Windows 7. The only supported upgrade install is from Vista SP-1. So you will have to format and do a clean install. But you all know that you should backup your data to an external HDD first.

I had a backup of Vista SP-1 and XP-Pro on my external HDD and guess what? Windows 7 only seen my Vista Backup.....

But Windows 7 just like Vista will take all your "My Documents", "Program Files" etc and save it to a Folder called "windows.old" under the C:/ on the new install so you can move your data over to the new install Documents folder.

Microsoft and Norton must have both jump into the same complaint bed as Norton 2009 products are no longer resource hogs like they have been for so many years. I am very impressed with the changes they made to all the Norton 2009 Lineup; Norton Antivirus, Norton Internet security, Norton 360. i have trialed 30 day trials of each one. From the Windows install they will recommend 3 Antivirus Company's so you can get beta software for Windows 7, One is Norton 360 Beta, AVG Antivirus or Security Suite as well as Kerpenski Labs (may have spelled it wrong)

I will put a link to the download pages later on this post. Sorry, but I have to get ready for work. Just go to www.microsoft.com and search for Windows 7 Beta.

Ciao for now,

Michael

Free Software Downloads and Reviews - Download.com

2009-01-14T16:55:00.001-04:00

You all know how much I like C-Net or Download.com and here is one of the reasons why. Check out some of the applications which they recommend and I do as well. I learn about a lot of great FREE and trial software. Click on the link below and they also recommend a great Windows Security Kit as well. You will see links to it on the page.

The must have Windows Starter Kit

Free Software Downloads and Reviews - Download.com

FlyBook V5 Advanced Laptop Computer - Intel Core 2 Duo ULV U7600 1.2GHz, Bluetooth, Wireless WAN, 802.11abg WLAN, 3GB DDR2, 80GB HDD, 8.9" WSVGA, Fingerprint Reader, Webcam, Vista Business, Gold A211013-77N00-511112 in Canada at TigerDirect.ca

2009-01-14T14:26:00.001-04:00

Flybook V5 & VM Notebook
by ComputerTV

FlyBook V5 Advanced Laptop Computer - Intel Core 2 Duo ULV U7600 1.2GHz, Bluetooth, Wireless WAN, 802.11abg WLAN, 3GB DDR2, 80GB HDD, 8.9" WSVGA, Fingerprint Reader, Webcam, Vista Business, Gold A211013-77N00-511112 in Canada at TigerDirect.ca

Warned, Teens Clean Up MySpace Profiles, Cautionary Email From "Dr. Meg" Prompts Many To Remove Sex, Drug Talk, Boost Privacy - CBS News

2009-01-14T10:18:00.001-04:00

Parents: Wake up, check out your kids online profiles and do something about it! Read this article…

(AP) Many teenagers cleaned up their MySpace profiles, deleting mentions of sex and booze and boosting privacy settings, if they got a single cautionary e-mail from a busybody named "Dr. Meg."
The e-mail was sent by Dr. Megan Moreno, lead researcher of a study of lower-income kids that she says shows how parents and other adults can encourage safer Internet use.
Her message read in part: "You seemed to be quite open about sexual issues or other behaviors such as drinking or smoking. Are you sure that's a good idea? ... You might consider revising your page to better protect your privacy."
Parents, and even doctors, who care for adolescents "should feel very comfortable looking up" their children's or patients' profiles on social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, said Moreno, a pediatrician and adolescent medicine specialist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It's not creepy or an invasion of privacy, she said, but more like reading posters on their walls or slogans on their T-shirts.
Young people don't consider the consequences of posting their drinking habits and sexual behavior, Moreno said. Several wrote back to "Dr. Meg" saying they had no idea their pages could be viewed by anyone. Such social networking sites have privacy settings, but they're not always used.
The sites can be a window into a teenager's world.
"People who work with teens often have this idea that teens are hard to reach," she said. But many young people publicly post their hobbies and interests on MySpace or Facebook and expect people to look. "It can be a great icebreaker," she said.
The study, published in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, shows adult supervision of MySpace can raise adolescents' awareness of how accessible their pages are, she said.
The researchers first located 190 MySpace public profiles in a single urban ZIP code, randomly selected from the 10 U.S. Census areas with the lowest average income because researchers wanted to target adolescents who might have less access to doctors. Moreno said she could not reveal the city because of privacy restrictions set by a study review board.
All the users said on their profiles they were 18 to 20 years old and their pages included three or more references to sex, drinking, drug use or smoking.
Half were sent the "Dr. Meg" e-mail; the other half weren't contacted.

Fast Fact

Of 500 randomly selected MySpace profiles of 18-year-olds nationwide, more than half contained references to risky behavior such as sex, drinking and violence.

After three months, 42 percent of those getting a "Dr. Meg" e-mail had either set their profiles to "private," meaning only people they'd chosen as MySpace "friends" could view it, or they removed references to sex or substance use. Only 29 percent of those in the group who had not been contacted by Dr. Meg made such changes over the three-month period.
Moreno said the results suggest the e-mail intervention had a positive impact on "the hardest-to-reach teens, which gives us great hope that a similar intervention could be used to reach teens as a whole."
In a separate study, Moreno and other researchers looked at 500 randomly selected MySpace profiles of 18-year-olds nationwide and found that more than half contained references to risky behavior such as sex, drinking and violence.
"The ones to me that were most surprising and most worrisome were the sexual references," said the doctor. "We often found males and females describing the circumstances around the loss of their virginity. Females would describe things males could do" to have a better chance of having sex with them. "They'd say, 'I like a guy who brings me flowers and takes me to dinner and (if you do that) I might consider having sex with you."'
Kids decorate their pages with beer logos, marijuana leaf icons and Playboy bunnies. Those counted in the research. But typically it was bold references in the teenagers' own words that researchers found.
"Clear and concise language: 'I got drunk last Friday,"' said Moreno, who is a 35-year-old mother of a baby and a toddler. She said she'll try to stay involved with her kids' computer use as they grow up.
Teenagers who refer to risky behavior on their MySpace pages put themselves at risk of online harassment or solicitation for sex, Kimberly Mitchell of University of New Hampshire's Crimes Against Children Research Center, who wasn't involved in the studies, wrote in an accompanying editorial. They also may jeopardize future job prospects.
But social networking sites also give teens a chance to develop their identities, become independent and get support from friends.
"It is time to use the benefits offered by social networking sites to reach youth, perhaps in new and creative ways that were not available prior to the advent of these sites," Mitchell wrote”

Warned, Teens Clean Up MySpace Profiles, Cautionary Email From "Dr. Meg" Prompts Many To Remove Sex, Drug Talk, Boost Privacy - CBS News

How To Protect, Fix Your Online Reputation, Expert Explains Dangers Of Negative Web Postings, And Tells How To Avoid And Repair Them - CBS News

2009-01-14T10:11:00.001-04:00

The links above and below will take you to the CBS website about this article. I have copied it and posted here in case you do not want to follow the links.

NEW YORK, Jan. 10, 2009

(CBS) Did you ever "google" yourself and find something negative?
It should worry you. Just one negative posting can cost you a job
It's estimated that more than 70 percent of employers do a Web search on job applicants as part of their hiring procedures. More than half of them admit to not bringing someone on board because of negative information they found online.
It could be something you posted years ago, or something put into cyberspace by someone you know - or even a perfect stranger.
What can you do about it?

Michael Fertik, founder of ReputationDefender.com, had some advice on The Early Show Saturday Edition. Fertik says he started the business two years ago with one person. He now has 60 employees. His service costs about $10 a month.

Fertik told substitute co-anchor Seth Doane that safeguarding your online reputation is “as important as your credit score nowadays. Every life transaction that you have, whether you’re looking for a job, you’re looking for romance, you’re looking for a friend - people are gonna look you up on the Web and make conclusions based on what they find.

"One random, idiosyncratic piece of content about you on the Web could dominate your Google results forever," he said. "It's such an issue: It affects people who are undeserving, people who are sort of using bad judgment, all kinds of different people."

What's worse, legal recourse is murky at best, Fertik observed, saying, "The law hasn't caught up yet with privacy. The Internet has really changed the privacy landscape in a big way and the law hasn't yet caught up with it. It's lagging behind, so far."

Fertik stressed that, "You have to be on top of your (online) reputation. It's not about narcissism. It’s about your personal brand. Especially in a down economy, people are looking you up, they’re making decisions. They're denying you a job unless they find something really good about you on the Web."
He had three key pieces of advice:

First, never let anyone set up your reputation online. Establish yourself online to create a clear and positive image of you. Don't wait for someone else to destroy it. Use what he calls "Google insurance": Create a profile on something like Facebook that's positive and tasteful. Claim the real estate on your name. What is said about you on the Web isn't a function of you living a righteous life: Anyone can say something bad about you. "Write your own history," he recommended.

Second, if there's a problem with your online reputation, you have to find it. Constantly monitor the Web. Search for full names, usernames, etc. Be on top of the game. Go deep into the Internet to Web sites that aren't indexed by Google: "The deep Web - Facebook, MySpace, the pages where the content really starts to generate and become problematic."
"Monitor yourself assiduously," Fertik told Doane.

Third: The longer it's there, the more it spreads and can be archived. If you see a problem, deal with it quickly. Get in touch with people and tell them to stop, in a kind and thoughtful way, without getting a lawyer involved right away. Reach them on a human level. If you want professional help, companies such as ReputationDefender are available. As Fertik told Doane, "Nip it in the bud before it spreads and gets mirrored and replicated. If you can't do it, you want to hire the pros."

If you do find something bad about yourself, how do you get it offline?

"Sometimes," Fertik responded to Doane, "what we do is, we overwhelm the 'bad' with good to make sure that when people look you up, they see what you want them to see, they see your good videos not necessarily the (bad ones).”

How To Protect, Fix Your Online Reputation, Expert Explains Dangers Of Negative Web Postings, And Tells How To Avoid And Repair Them - CBS News

Instant-On Hyperspace Promises New Era of OS Co-Habitation

2009-01-10T17:26:00.001-04:00

VERY,VERY COOL and I am downloading it today as they have a trial link in this article. The Linux and Mac users are going to say that this OS will kill Windows but I actually think it will be very Windows friendly.

Early Verdict

We’ve only tested a pre-release version of Hyperspace, but we were just blown away by its ability to work alongside Windows and its incredibly agile sleep / wake process. With a few more apps and the ability to share files with Windows, this technology could truly change the way we use our laptops. The main question remains whether it will deliver over the long haul and whether users will be willing to pay a subscription fee for it. We wish Hyperspace was pursuing a different business model. For now, it’s definitely worth that free trial download.

Instant-On Hyperspace Promises New Era of OS Co-Habitation

Complaint about 1and1.com Web Hosting ???

2009-01-10T14:11:00.007-04:00

In fairness, I recently had a comment on a post on my Blog about bad service with 1and1 Internet. I have decided not to post the comment on my Blog as I do not post comments that are not able to use there real name, or choose not to.

UPDATE: See my comment below

The comment was regarding a mix up that a Lawyer/Blogger claimed that 1and1.com tried to steal his domain name. http://patterico.com I spent a few hours checking out the comments of the comment maker and found out there was a complaint that was made. The story was back in Oct 2008. I read the complete story as it was very long and found that this has all been resolved. The Blog also does have the domain name that he claimed was being stolen and auctioned off. I was not able to collect any more info regarding this story, as the comment form has been closed as of Nov. 22, 2008.

I have hosted with 1and1 Internet for many, many years and never once had any problems at all and I have used many of the services that they offer over the years. As with all large companies in this business world the customer service is outsourced and you may have a help desk person that does not have great English, if this a concern check it out first but all big company's outsource. I have worked in the past for AT&T as a Tech Support Rep for the AT&T wireless in the USA and I live in Canada. I also worked as Tech Support for Microsoft Windows XP, US English versions for the whole world and we were the #1 support desk for them, we had 900 employees in Nova Scotia. When I would get a call usually the first thing the customers would say was thank god you speak English. The #2 call center was in Bangalore, India.

I have also had many customers host their web sites with 1and1.com as well, and never have I heard one complaint. I have one friend that I turned on to 1and1 and she makes her living online and she has hosted her site with many before. She works all day, every day and she is very happy with the service. When you are the WORLDS LARGEST WEB HOSTING Company for sure you are going to have some mistakes, and as well some unhappy customers, it is a given.

As you can see I have links on my Blog about the 1and1.com Internet Service, I feel that this is a very good service, as well as what you get for the money. As they are by far the cheapest hosting service out there.

I would also like to say that when you choose a web hosting company it is always best to buy your web domain name 1st. from a domain name register in your Country, do not have your domain name owned by your web hosting company. Make sure you own your domain name and you are not renting it, just in case you want to transfer in the future.

Ciao for now,
Michael

Update: After more research, it seems that somebody thinks that the website domain name was being stolen, or even just messed with because the owner is a Blogger on the right, and it was done to shut him up!!!! I do not know what is right, you make your own mind up...

Windows 7 beta: First impressions | Business Tech - CNET News

2009-01-08T18:47:00.001-04:00

Check out this article on CNET News if you are interested o hear about Windows 7 which will replace Windows Vista in the not to near future. Maybe there is life still in that old P4 in the corner that I would never dear to install windows Vista on.

Ciao for now,

Michael

Windows 7 beta: First impressions | Business Tech - CNET News

What is the fragmentation status of your hard disk?

2008-12-29T19:38:00.001-04:00

I like many Power Users always want the best for our laptops, Desktop computers or Server’s HDD’s (Hard Disk Drives) especially now with today’s 360GB, 500GB, 750GB & 1 TB drives being the norm. When you have these xlarge HDD’s you just have to have really good disk defragment software on your computer.

I always try to explain to people that do not understand the whole disk fragmentation thing. Think of your computer HDD as a filing cabinet. First, you have drawers and then you have folders and then you have files. You know how easy it is to find something when it is filled properly. You pull out the right drawer, look in the correct folder and then grab the correct file or document. Well if some body went into your cabinet and started to grab files and folders and put them in the wrong drawers and then just plain messed everything up it would take you forever to find that one file, that you may need in a hurry.

Well over time and with normal use of your computer this very thing happens to your HDD’s. This is called fragmentation. So when you launch a program and that program takes forever to start, or maybe forever to do a certain function and you think it is because you do not have a fast enough computer or maybe not enough RAM (memory) most of the time it is just plain old fragmentation.

Sure Windows has a built in disk defragmenter, you know where it is right? Click on; Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter you all knew that? I also bet you use it often as well? Most people do not know about this little tool or even what it is for, if they have seen it. It does work, but not all that great and it is a lot of work to always have to remember to launch it. You can schedule a task to run it if you like but there are much better disk defragment tools on the market. Some are FREE and some you have to pay for. As well it all depends what type of system you may be running as well. Are you a high speed gamer or maybe you are running a file server for a small office, you may also be running a mission critical server for a database, what ever it is there are many types of disk defragment software makers on the market today.

I have a little chart below that will show you what you get from some of them, and you all know how much I like FREE software, BUT FREE does not always do the job you may need done. Maybe you need some custom features because of Active Directory & GPO’s, maybe you want it to run on certain drives at certain times. What ever it may be, do some research about the product you want to buy and what you want or need it to do.

Flat out, I am going to tell you what I use, One my Windows 2003 Small Business Server I run “PerfectDisk 2008 Server” and it is the Best Disk Defragment software I have ever used Hands Down.

Here are some of my Favorite features of PerfectDisk 2008:

It has a brand new interface with ribbons
My Favorite feature: “StealthPatrol” unattended background defragmentation for when scheduling is not convenient. (Or you may have forgot :-))
Single File Defrag is now Selected Files Defrag, allowing multiple files to be selected for defragmenting for times you do not want the entire drive defragmented. As well, files to be defragmented can be selected from the “Most Fragmented Files” list. (Very Cool)
New graphical displays. (Gotta like that, shows pride in there work)
Native support for 64-bit platforms. (Database Servers anyone)
Enhanced installation and upgrade procedures; uninstall of Evaluation version no longer required. (Nice, no longer have to re-boot after the trial)
Enhanced tray icon functionality.
Improved performance via reduced memory requirements. ( I like this very much as I only run 4GB RAM)
Support for Windows Server 2008 ( My next Server OS, SBS 2008 :-)
PerfectDisk 2008 Command Center includes new reports & functionality. (Very useful)
PerfectDisk for VMware available to automatically defragment virtual drives and shrink drives to reclaim space in your VMware environments. (Seems to be the BIG thing in today’s IT environments.)

I have run all the flavors of Diskeeper on my laptops, Windows NT, 2000 & 2003 Servers. On my XP Pro Desktop I am presently trying out Diskeeper 2009 Pro Premier with HyperFast & Vista Business I run SmartDefrag 1.03 (FREE Version).

But like I said this is what I use and what I have found works best for me. Maybe you have a new laptop with SSD (Solid State Drive) HDD. Everybody has different tastes and different needs, so go to the company websites and try a sample. O’ ya do not forget about my favorite place for download trial software, www.download.com as you can find all trials at this one great site.

Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta

2008-12-25T16:10:00.001-04:00

Windows Live SkyDrive, Microsoft's free online file management and sharing service, offers 5GB of storage. Users get password-protected "anywhere access" to their information, which can be shared with others. This anywhere, anytime access to files is key to Microsoft's Windows Live vision--the powerful integration between Web services and client software--going forward.

By Peter Galli


Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta - Creating a New Folder to Share Files

Users can share files with others based on the permissions they establish.

Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta - Drag and Drop

Files can be dragged and dropped into folders, where they will be uploaded.

Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta - Permission to View

Users can change who has access to any of their folders whenever they want.

Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta - The Sign-in Screen

This is the view a user will get when he or she signs in to the SkyDrive service.

Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta - Add a Photograph

Users can add photographs to their files, but each upload is limited to 50MB.

Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta - Spreading the Love

Spreadsheets can also be dragged and dropped into a file, as long as they are 50MB or less.


Windows Live SkyDrive Exits Beta - A Progress Report

Users are kept up to date on the progress of their various uploads.

Windows Vista SP2 Beta

2008-12-17T18:57:00.001-04:00

Is Microsoft finally going to get Windows Vista right? Well I for one hope so. Read this article by PC Mag.com, you may find it interesting.

Is Microsoft finally getting Vista right? The recent release of the Service Pack 2 beta is a step in the right direction. This update not only installs cumulative security and compatibility fixes, but also adds a few goodies like simplified wireless network setup, Bluetooth 2.1 support, and the ability to burn Blu-ray discs. It also includes support for more smartcards, such as those using the ICCD and CCID standards. Software incompatibilities, too, have been addressed: Microsoft says, for example, that SpySweeper and ZoneAlarm will now work with POP3 e-mail accounts. Finally, gamers will appreciate performance upgrades that should mean smoother 3D-video performance. The company isn't committing to a date for the final release of SP2 beyond saying that it will be in the first half of 2009, but Internet rumors mention a release candidate in February and full release in April.

The service pack also includes Windows Search 4, which was introduced last June and improves indexing performance and search relevance. In another effort to perk up performance, the SP2 update reduces resources used by the Vista Sidebar, which is scheduled to bite the dust come Windows 7. Laptops should see a 10 percent improvement in power management efficiency, according to Microsoft. Finally, the pack adds support for the new VIA 64-bit CPU and includes a version of the exFAT file system for removable storage that now supports UTC timestamps for file synchronization across time zones.

Installing

Remember that, though it's publicly available, SP2 is still beta, and therefore not recommended for critical systems. If you want to test it, it's advisable to install it in a virtual machine, using Microsoft's free Virtual PC or a similar product that will isolate your system's actual OS. This beta will only be operational until May 1, 2010.

There are a few ways to get SP2. You can use Windows Update, though you'll need to give it some special instructions (detailed below). You can also download and burn a disc image of the update from Microsoft TechNet. Finally, if you're a TechNet subscriber, you can download and burn a full installation containing the service pack. You must have SP1 installed in order to complete the update, and the new upgrader cleans out SP1 bits that are no longer needed to free up space on your hard drive. That's another reason you'll want to install SP2 on a virtual machine, at least initially. Installing the beta also requires that you agree to send info about your setup experience to Microsoft through its Customer Experience Improvement Program. The documentation says the update is about 41MB (60MB for 64-bit). If you down the disc image, however, that's a considerably larger download, at over 300MB. If you download the disc image, however, that's a considerably larger download, at over 300MB. I chose the Windows Update method, as that's how most users will get it.

In order to get the beta through Windows Update, you need to run a command script that sets a registry key telling Windows Update to offer you the Service Pack. You run this as an Administrator to get things going. When the final version is released, this step won't be necessary: the update will occur automatically for users who have enabled automatic updates. I actually had to edit the Registry directly and go through a couple of Update requests before SP2 took hold. On my 64-bit system, despite the file size mentioned above, the update was listed as 490.8MB to 494.0MB, and on a 32-bit system the file showed as 297.5MB.

Unlike most Windows updates, this one has you go through a little setup wizard and agree to a user license. You have to close all programs, and you're warned that the update could take over an hour and restart several times—almost like installing a new OS. On a reasonably fast Toshiba Qosmio laptop with 4MB of RAM and a 2GHz Core2 Duo processor, the whole process took under a half hour. With the newly updated OS installed, the text Windows Vista (TM) Evaluation copy, Build 6002 displayed in the lower right corner of the screen.—Next: Blu-ray Burning

Blu-ray Burning

With SP2, Microsoft officially acknowledges that it bet on the wrong horse with HD DVD. Unfortunately, Windows DVD Maker is not updated by the current beta of SP2 to work with Blu-ray. When I tried to burn a video compilation with a Blu-ray burner, I got the message "DVD is not recordable," though it was a freshly opened BD-R media. Nor is Windows Help yet updated to make any mention of Blu-ray, and the Burn option in Picture and Video Windows Explorer folders doesn't offer Blue-ray drives as an option. When I tried to burn a video file to a BD-R disc using an LG burner, I got an error saying the file system wasn't compatible.

To prove Vista SP2's support for Blu-ray, I decided to choose Format from the drive's right-click context menu. This gave me a choice of UDF as the file system. Finally, I chose Options when trying to burn a file onto a Blu-ray disk. Choosing Mastered instead of the default Live File did the trick. I was soon burning BDs with no problem. With BD-RE media, I could even drag and drop files to and from the drive's Explorer window, and choose to erase the disc with right-menu option. I assume the options will be tweaked to make the process simpler.—Next: Wireless Networking News

Wireless Networking News

Service Pack 2 includes three wireless improvements: Better Wi-Fi resumption after sleep mode, support for Bluetooth version 2.1, and the Windows Connect Now simplified Wi-Fi router wireless networking setup process. Using the Wi-Fi Alliance's Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) standard, Connect Now lets you set up a wireless router and wirelessly networked PCs without having to enter a long security code in each, or even transfer one with a USB key, while still maintaining security. WPS routers have a button you can press to let a new PC join the network.

The new process means you don't have to plug any cable into your PC from your new wireless router. Instead, you just enter the device's security PIN in Vista's network setup wizard. I tried this with a Netgear Wireless N Router WNR2000 and the process is indeed smoother than going through an individual manufacturer's setup. The router features a big WPS (WiFi Protected Setup) button on the front that makes configuration a snap using Windows Vista SP2's support for that wireless, secure setup standard.

Using Bluetooth within Windows has been less than ideal, since several pairing methods were used for devices, and Windows would have to check through a long list of new Bluetooth devices before showing a user the device was recognized. Bluetooth Version 2.1 fixes these problems, with Secure Simple Pairing, which, as the name suggest, makes pairing simpler while still secure. Another technology in version 2.1, Extended Inquiry Response lets devices share their friendly name with the PC and vice versa without waiting for the specific name of the device to be determined.

That all sounds good in theory, but I ran into snags on the Toshiba laptop I mentioned before, which is a reasonably new machine. The Windows Bluetooth Devices control panel would not find any devices when I had headset nearby. And a couple of times while I was trying to get this to work, Windows Explorer shut down and restarted. On another system, the feature worked smoothly, and I was able to find and install the headset. Despite the beta glitches, I found the experience much improved under Secure Simple Pairing.—Next: Performance Improvements

Performance Improvements

Another Microsoft claim about SP2 is that it allows the Windows Sidebar to use fewer resources. In my testing, I was able to verify that on my test system, the sidebar indeed used 1MB less memory than before the upgrade—a 4 percent drop. The company's previews of its next operating system version, Windows 7, show that it plans to ditch the sidebar in that OS completely. Not everyone loves the sidebar, but I wish they'd make dropping it optional, as it seems perfectly suited to today's wide-screen monitors.

One much appreciated new addition in SP2 is Compcln.exe, a cleanup tool that removes obsolete OS software. Before I performed the upgrade, my Windows directory weighed in at 16.5GB, 69775 files. After installing SP2, the size increased to 19.6GB. Running the cleanup app shaved off a gig and a half, leaving me with 18.1GB. That's still bigger than the folder was before the update, but adding the new wireless and Blu-ray support doesn't come free.

DirectX is another area in which Microsoft touts improvements, specifically better reliability and an improved gaming experience. To test graphics performance, I ran Futuremark's 3Dmark 2006 benchmark before and after the update on a Dell XPS M1530. I ran the test several times and averaged the results. At native 1200x800 resolution with 4x anisotropic filtering, my un-upgraded system scored 3738. After the upgrade it scored 4130—a higher score is better. This is just one synthetic benchmark, but it does point to an improvement in 3D performance. That should equal faster frame rates and smoother play in your favorite games.

The enhancements that Vista SP2 brings to the party will be a boon for hardware that technoholics will surely own in the not-too-distant future—Bluetooth 2.1 phones, Blu-ray burners, and Wi-Fi routers that support WPS. This support will make the OS more useful as these devices gain in popularity, and welcome too will be the improved hardware support, security, and performance improvements. But this SP2 for Vista at this point, however, is really still beta, and though it was for the most part stable in my testing, I'd advise users to hold off and wait for the full release next spring.

Windows Vista SP2 Beta