Denver IT Support: Anti-phishing Software
Growing technology allows the threat of spam to continue evolving, and phishing is the scam of the moment spammers are using. Your best defense against phishing is to be cautious and maintain a healthy level of skepticism. However, you can save time by using good anti-phishing software.
North Star Strategic IT – Your Denver IT Support company
Anti-phishing software works by searching for any phishing content that may exist in an email. It is normally used as a complementary service to your email service in the form of a toolbar. This toolbar will display the real name of any website you visit and any fake websites phishers tend to use.
This software offers a backup defense for blocking phishing attacks and sites that might… Continue reading...
How to Choose Anti-spam Filter Software
Everyone experiences the flow of unwanted emails wanting you to join this or that or insisting you have won tons of money. This spam email is not only bothersome, it is also dangerous in some cases. Many spammers use emails to transfer viruses and also adware and spyware to your PC. To stop this you need to use a good anti spam filter. This will also reduce the amount of junk mail you receive.
What is an anti-spam filter?
This refers to a special program used for detecting and blocking dangerous emails. It looks for words and phrases or other things that may indicate an email is spam. It is based on the assumption that email containing certain details is spam.
It also has… Continue reading...
How to Retrieve Information in Excel 2007 With a Custom List
A good way to retrieve information in Excel 2007 is with a custom list. There are already lists in Excel. If you type Jan into a cell and pull the copy handle, the rest of the months will fill in. You can create your own custom lists, and make whatever you want fill in. Oh, and hey… if you’re in the market for some Denver IT Support, we’d love to help you!
Let’s say you do parts ordering for your company. Instead of looking up vendor numbers, you want the vendor number to appear next to your part number.
Open a new worksheet in Excel 2007. You want the custom list to be out of the way; click in a cell that’s far to the right, say T1. Before you type anything… Continue reading...
How Presence Technology Reduces Email Overload and Message Tag
What is Presence?
Presence is a type of software technology that allows business communication systems to show levels of availability for a person or communication device. Presence is designed to enhance the possibility of getting the person you are trying to contact on the first try, and is facilitated by unified communications systems that use underlying Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology. This is part of a technology platform where your computer data network is integrated with phone and communication systems, providing information on callers and recipients to find the most desirable way to connect the two.
Availability IT
Presence is essentially a sophisticated availability board. However, instead of simply saying someone is in or out of the office, presence coordinates their communication devices and software applications to let you know how to… Continue reading...
Losing Your Mind with Data Recovery
Losing all your data is a very traumatic experience for any computer user. This is especially true if you use your system for business or other important matters. Losing information that you have worked long and hard to accumulate can be very stressful, to say the least.
Everyone knows that it is a good idea to back up data on your computer every so often, however did you know you should check that backup? It will compound your frustration to find out what you thought was adequately backed up is not functioning correctly when you need it most.
Data loss can happen to anyone, even the most perceptive computer user or business can experience this problem. The problem is people tend to think… Continue reading...
Identity Theft and the Economy
The economy is in an economic downturn. When that happens, it brings about other consequences in our society. For one, crime increases. Protect yourself from identity thieves who want to separate you from your money.
Identity thieves use high tech methods to find ways of defrauding innocent people. They come up with telephone scams, internet website scams, email scams and other ingenious plans, like taking photos of your card with a cell phone camera. When times are hard, these same thieves could resort to less sophisticated ways of stealing.
Consumers have become smarter in order to outsmart identity thieves. You read articles and booklets on how to protect yourself from these criminals. That includes shredding mail, being careful when shopping online, paying bills online… Continue reading...
Windows 7 Hot Tips Series: 16 through 20
Tip #16: Right-Click Mania
In Windows 7, right-clicking may just be your secret friend. There are many ways the right-click can simplify your computing experience. Here are just a few:
Right-click any empty spot in your desktop, and you have the control to change the screen resolution.
Right-click any of the icons in the Taskbar to “Unpin this program from the Taskbar.”
Right-click the Taskbar Explorer icon to access your most frequently used folders.
Tip #17: Unveil Your Hidden Drives
See the drives that aren’t currently in use when you open My Computer.
Click Computer → Alt to see the toolbar → Tools → Folder Options → View (tab) →
Uncheck “Hide empty drives in the Computer folder.”
And they magically appear!
Tip #18: Find a File or a Song You Want – Instantly
Find just about anything on your PC… Continue reading...
MS Outlook Calendar Tips: Dealing with missing invitations
No longer just for sending and receiving emails, MS Outlook has evolved into a powerful program, capable of organizing your emails as well as your contacts, appointments, and To-Do lists. MS Outlook also allows you to sync information across multiple handheld devices like Blackberrys and other smartphones, so you are always up to date.
However, with increasing functions come increasing complexities. The Outlook calendar, in particular, is often known to mysteriously lose appointments. These problems typically arise when multiple actions are taken on the same invitation, whether it is because both you and your assistant have replied to an invitation, or because you have responded to the invite via multiple devices. Moving or deleting invitations can also cause your appointments to go missing. Following these seven simple tips will allow you… Continue reading...
Windows 7 Hot Tips Series: 6 through 10
#6: Help the Help Desk Help You
Solving problems unique to a machine can be an arduous task for both the end-user and the help desk.
Windows 7 introduces the Problem Steps Recorder, a screen-capture tool that allows the end-user to record the problems they’re having step-by-step.
The program is accessible from the Control Panel under “Record steps to reproduce a problem” or run psr.exe from Explorer.
Hit “record” then add in comments as needed. A HTML-based file is converted to a .ZIP folder, which is easily passed on to the help desk.
#7: Sticky Notes Avoid Sticky Situations
Instead of using paper, use Windows 7 Sticky Notes. Enjoy the variety of seven fun Sticky Note colors by right-clicking the note.
Need another sticky note reminder? Click the + sign in the top left corner of the… Continue reading...
Recycling and Repurposing Old Computers – Green IT Ideas
The computer revolution has created many great opportunities for both home users and businesses, but it has created its share of problems as well. The rapid pace of technological change often means that computers are obsolete long before they stop working. That creates a dilemma for computer owners – do they simply throw their usable old PCs in the trash and add to the growing landfill problem, or do they try to find a new home for their old hardware? Many computer owners and businesses are choosing the latter approach – recycling and repurposing their old computers to help others while helping the environment.
The environmental impact of old computer hardware is a surprisingly large one. Many people do not realize that a great deal of that old computer equipment ends… Continue reading...
