SECURE IT ALERT: Microsoft “Patch Tuesday” brings security updates for Windows, Explorer, Office, Sharepoint & Exchange

Homeland Secure IT Alert for Wednesday, December 15, 2010 Many of you may have found your Microsoft Windows computers rebooted when you came into work today if Automatic Updates is configured. But there are more updates than Automatic Updates will address. This Tuesday brought security updates to the following: Microsoft Windows Operating System (XP, 2003 Server, Vista, Win 7, 2008 …

Password security is a necessary inconvenience these days due to various sites being hacked…

It sure has been an event filled weekend regarding security! Several high profile sites have been hacked…  The largest is the Gawker controlled sites, Gawker, Gizmodo, Lifehacker and a slew of others where it is estimated that as many as 1.5 million usernames and passwords may have been compromised. Supposedly, the Gawker passwords also allowed Facebook to be used for …

Secure IT Alert: Apple QuickTime for Mac & Windows Vulnerable – Time to Update!

Secure IT Alert for Thursday, December 09, 2010 Apple has released a security update that addresses 15 media handling vulnerabilities in Apple QuickTime player on both the Mac and Windows operating systems. These vulnerabilities are similar in nature… If attacker can coax a user to open a malicious media file, such as an image or a video, the holes can …

Are you ready for Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2011?

The “preview” of Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 7 has been available for months, and it looks like we are approaching an RTM (Release To Manufacturing) soon. Windows Small Business Server 7 is a total refresh of the Small Business Server 2008 which was built around Microsoft Server 2008 and Microsoft Exchange 2007. SBS 7 is built around Microsoft Server …

Silly Science Trick: Super-Cooling & Snap Freezing Experiment #137

While most people whine and complain about the cold weather, I look forward to it for many reasons. I don’t dig the heat, or the humidity at all, which is really funny because have opted to live in the South! What’s to look forward to? Snow, ice, seeing your breath, doing donuts in your car in the snow (uhmmm or …

Cloud computing: Is Microsoft Aurora / BPOS right for your small business?

Today you can hardly have a conversation with IT professionals without the buzz words, “cloud computing”, “in the cloud”, “cloud solutions”, etc popping up. What do these terms mean? To over-simplify the definition, it means that something is not stored at your location. It is stored “in the cloud”, or on a remote server, and accessed via the internet. The …

Greenville’s Warehouse Theatre presents “Screwtape”… Reserve your tickets now!

Paul Savas and the Warehouse Theatre have done it again… They provided an evening of entertainment for my family that did not break the bank! Just what I needed on a Friday evening! This time we attended the opening performance of “Screwtape”, an adaptation of “The Screwtape Letters” by C.S. Lewis, which I have never read or had any exposure to at …