We have a new giveaway for the month of August here at Homeland Secure IT!
Trend Micro Internet Security is great for business or personal use!
Last month we drew for a wireless network IP security camera, before that we gave away a Cisco Flip Mino HD video camera, and this month, we are going to give away Trend Micro Internet Security 2010, THE best anti-virus packages on the market!
Two lucky winners will receive the retail version of Trend Micro Internet Security 2010 which will protect up to 3 computers from infection by trojan, virus, spyware, grayware, and other forms of malware as well as spam! Each package retails for $49.99. Protect your Microsoft Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 based computers from infection!
How do you enter? That’s easy! In the “Follow Me” section on the right-hand column of our blog, enter your email address and hit “Subscribe”, you will get a daily archive of this blog first thing in the morning after that. Another option is to join our mailing list/s. You can do that by visiting http://www.HomelandSecureIT.com and hitting the “Subscribe to our mailing list” link on the right side of the page.
If you subscribe to the blog and one of our mailing lists, you get TWO chances to win, if you subscribe to our blog and both mailing lists, you get THREE chances to win when we draw for the names.
Who is eligible? Homeland Secure IT provides computer service, support, repair and sales in the Greenville / Upstate SC area, so if you are in these areas, our mailing lists are probably of interest to you and if should you win one of our drawings, we will try to deliver the item to you in person or you can pick it up at our office on Mauldin Rd. in Greenville. Those who enter from outside the Upstate area are responsible for shipping and handling of the prizes.
Homeland Secure IT employees and family members who are subscribed are also eligible, however, one of us actually won the last contest and we decided to redraw. If Greg wins, he is not giving up his prize, hahah.
Those outside the USA are not eligible unless they can come here and pick up the prize in person. This offer is void where prohibited by law.
How is the drawing done? We take all names on all lists, dump them into Microsoft Excel, run a random number generator from 1 to however many is on the list and select the corresponding name. Very low tech, but hey, it works!
We will draw for two winners of the Trend Micro Internet Security 2010 package on September 1st, 2010. Winners will be announced here on this blog, in our newsletter and via social media sites like Twitter & Facebook.
GOOD LUCK!!!!
Which Anti-Virus do you use to protect your computer and/or server? Multi-Select if you use more than one…
AVG, Avast, ESET, Norton, McAfee, Sophos & Trend Micro were selected because they are the most popular by far. Please forgive me for not listing your favorite and just select “Other”, or feel free to respond to this post and state your A/V of choice.
Many people from investment bankers to video and photo editors have been using multiple monitors on their desktops for years, but the majority of individuals have not realized the value in adding video “real estate” to their desktops.
A typical computer worker will have a 19″ monitor on their desk, and spend a good part of their day flipping between applications. They will open Microsoft Outlook, and read emails, flip back to Excel and work on a spreadsheet, copy some data from that and paste it into an email or start up Microsoft Word and continue this routine of flipping between applications to view the most important one at that moment.
Windows 7 allows you to quickly move two programs to opposite sides of a display to view them simultaneously
Some workstations are lucky enough to be equipped with a larger, say 20 or 22 inch widescreen monitor, and Microsoft Windows 7 which allows you to easily snap one program to one half of the screen and another to the other half, sharing that one monitor to view Word and Excel simultaneously.
While this solution is much better than the constant flipping, it does have a few drawbacks, such as limited display area due to screen size, unless you are one of the very few who are fortunate enough to have a 30″ display, and if you are one of those, you can just close out this site now, because we all hate you. (Of course I am only kidding, really).
A much more elegant solution is to use two monitors, hopefully of the same model and place them side-by-side or use a specialized mount to hold the monitors in the perfect position for you to see them. These mounts have come down in price considerably and are worth looking into, especially if you have MORE than 2 monitors.
Dual monitors can increase your productivity
For those who have not experienced multiple monitors, having two monitors allows you to keep your Outlook open on one, while working in Word or another application on another. You move seamlessly between them, when your mouse gets to the right edge of the left monitor, it moves to the left edge of the right monitor. You can move open windows and applications between these monitors as if they are one large display.
I currently have two 24″ monitors on my desk, and could not work with less than that after maximizing the use of these monsters. If I had a larger desk, I would add another monitor!
Going multi-monitor is a snap. You first need a computer that supports this, or to purchase a dual output video card. Then you need a 2nd monitor and cable. It’s really that easy. Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 supports multiple displays, but Windows 7 does the best job of it. Apple Mac OS X Machines also support multiple monitors.
The Nexlink Business computers we offer come dual monitor ready, so if you have one of these systems, you only need the additional monitor.
If you would like more information on dual or multiple monitors (no need to stop at 2, why not add 6!?), monitor stands, multiple output video cards, or our Nexlink Business computers, please call 864-990-4748 or email info@homelandsecureit.com – We offer sales of monitors, computers, video cards and installation in the Greenville / Upstate, SC area.
Homeland Secure IT Alert
Homeland Secure IT Alert for Monday, August 02, 2010
Microsoft Issues Emergency Patch: Rated Critical
Microsoft issues out-of-band security bulletin and patch today August 2, 2009. Out of band means released ahead of the regular scheduled monthly update. The out-of-band patch is designed to address a security flaw in the way shortcuts are displayed.
Software affected includes Windows operating system, various versions, and is rated critical. Microsoft encourages users to take action
This security update is rated Critical for all supported editions of Microsoft Windows listed here and obtained from Microsoft
Operating System
Windows XP Service Pack 3
Windows XP Professional x64 Edition Service Pack 2
Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2
Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition Service Pack 2
Windows Server 2003 with SP2 for Itanium-based Systems
Windows Vista Service Pack 1 and Windows Vista Service Pack 2
Windows Vista x64 Edition Service Pack 1 and Windows Vista x64 Edition Service Pack 2
Windows Server 2008 for 32-bit Systems and Windows Server 2008 for 32-bit Systems Service Pack 2*
Windows Server 2008 for x64-based Systems and Windows Server 2008 for x64-based Systems Service Pack 2*
Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems and Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems Service Pack 2
Windows 7 for 32-bit Systems
Windows 7 for x64-based Systems
Windows Server 2008 R2 for x64-based Systems*
Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-based Systems
Recommendation from Microsoft: Customers who have not enabled automatic updating need to check for updates and install this update manually.
If we can be of assistance with this or any other security or computer issue, please do not hesitate to call us at 864-990-4748 or email info@homelandsecureit.com
Homeland Secure IT Alert - Contact Info
Tanya Thompson / @thompsontanya commented about a device on Twitter this morning that caught my eye… It is the Withings / @Withings Wi-Fi connected scale, which uses network connectivity to log and track your weight loss (or gain) among other things.
You can view your trends with a web interface, and access the data with your iPhone. I believe something like this really could encourage you to lose some weight. Recently there have been news stories which cite studies about weight loss and the results indicate that those who use internet weight tracking actually do lose more weight and manage to maintain that loss better than those who do not.
The thing that bothers me is that it will Tweet out your weight once a week to Twitter. All I could think was exactly what it would be tweeting when I stepped on it… Something like, “HELP ME! This fat guy is smushing me!” is probably what it would have to say about me! Still, it is an interesting gadget and I would love to have it. Who knows, maybe I will order one. Follow me on Twitter to see what this thing has to say!
Toshiba vs Nexlink – Battle to the death – In a steel cage! (Okay, maybe not)
The other day, I wrote about Nexlink SP series business notebooks and that generated some interest in their products among our clients and friends. Today we happen to have both a Nexlink SP 4000 and a Toshiba Tecra A11-S3511 in stock before they are delivered to their new owners, so I thought we would give a rough comparison of the two.
We have an even playing field with these two products… Both are designed for business use and feature the following specs in common:
Nexlink SP 4000 Business Notebook
Intel i3-350M 2.26G Processor
2GB DDR3 1066 SODIMM RAM
15.6″ widescreen LCD display w/built-in camera
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional
Docking connectors, VGA port, 10 key numeric pad, media card reader, express card, DVD-RW, audio in/out, Gigabit NIC, Wireless & Bluetooth, security lock slot
The differences between the two are:
Toshiba has a finger print reader, serial port, mini display port, eSATA, modem, 3 USB ports and only 250GB HD
Nexlink has 4 USB ports & 320GB HD
Aesthetics: In comparing the two visually, they both feature a matte finish on most of the areas you touch, though the mouse buttons on the Toshiba are chromed plastic and show fingerprints badly. The rest of the surfaces are similar between the models. The layout is similar, except many of the connections, including power are on the back of the Toshiba unit. The Nexlink’s backside is devoid of connections.
Display: Set to the same resolution, I can tell no difference when viewing the same screens and graphics. The speed of refresh is great on both models. One difference is that the Nexlink may offer better privacy when viewed from the side. Those working with sensitive material may still wish to use a privacy filter.
Toshiba Tecra A11-S3511 Business Notebook
Keyboard & Touch Pad: Both units have excellent keyboards though slightly different in style, however the touch pad on the Nexlink is more to my liking, the surface area is larger and is a little rougher, making it easier for me to manipulate. Your mileage may vary here. All of us in the office like the Nexlink’s feel better and it seems to be more responsive.
Performance: Considering these are units going out to clients, we did not want to load them down with benchmarking tools. We did use them to browse, check resources and to run the Windows Experience Index. Not surprisingly due to the similar configuration, they both had a 3.6 rating, with the Toshiba coming in 0.1 faster on disk access and the Nexlink 0.2 higher on gaming graphics. Otherwise, they performed identically. It should be noted that the Toshiba comes pre-loaded with their suite of software and applications to support the notebook and that from the factory it was using 1.02GB of RAM, while the Nexlink was using 600MB.
Overall Experience: Either of these notebooks would make a great system. They weigh about the same, have about the same dimensions, have similar battery life, and have a rugged build to withstand the everyday wear and tear a portable computer user would inflict. In addition to being a great portable computer, they also connect to an (optional) docking station that allows the use of a large LCD, external speakers, printers, full size keyboard and mouse all by dropping the computer into the docking bay. Who could ask for more?
The bottom line probably comes down to money for most potential owners of these notebooks. If that is the case, then I recommend you consider the Nexlink SP Series as your first choice. You get similar performance and features and can save a little money!
Homeland Secure IT is proud to partner with the US based manufacturer and offer the entire line of Seneca Data’s Nexlink notebooks, computers and servers. Please call 864-990-4748 ext 201 or email info@homelandsecureit.com for more information. We provide installation, migration and support in Greenville / Upstate SC and national sales.
Trend Micro ranked #1 among leading corporate Anti-Virus products (again) – It REALLY IS Worry-Free!
Trend Micro Worry Free Business Security is Anti-Virus you can depend on!
I am asked why Homeland Secure IT loves Trend Micro Worry Free Business Security and Office Scan products so much. The default answer is, “Because it is the best!”, and then I proceed to explain how we feel it protects our clients better than other anti-virus / anti-malware suites, and how it consumes less resources and many other factors, however, I could stop with just the security. After all, what good is anti-virus if it doesn’t do the job it is intended for?
Our belief that Trend Micro is the best is backed up by many totally satisfied clients who use it and rely upon it daily, and many independent studies which have been performed on various Anti-Virus brands.
One that sticks out is a benchmarking test performed by AV-Test.org that covered five Enterprise endpoint solutions, including Symantec, McAfee, Microsoft, Sophos and Trend Micro. The Trend Micro test included two products, Worry-Free Business Security designed for small business and OfficeScan designed for large Enterprise accounts.
AV-Test.org Endpoint Security Benchmark Testing
AV-Test.org tested zero-day attacks actually occurring in the wild by sourcing malicious URLs which have malware associated with them. The testing occurred simultaneously across all vendor’s platforms to ensure no biases during the test runs. Products were configured to block or detect the threats at multiple levels, thereby giving each vendor maximum ability to protect against these threats.
In these test, Trend Micro emerged as teh overall winner. Trend Micro also demonstrated a decided advantage in blocking these threats at their source, the URL. With an overall score at blocking zero-day threats of 89.5 and 89.0 percent, the Trend Micro Worry-Free Business Security and OfficeScan solutions respectively stand distinctly apart from other products whose averages ranged from just 52.5 to 77.5 percent.
Source: AV-Test.org | Note: Results are based on the T+60 minute results
And in the time to protect category, Trend Micro ranked #1 too.
Source: AV-Test.org | NOTE: Time-to-protect improvement is the percentage of threats missed at T=0min that are subsequently prevented at T=60min. For example, with Trend Micro OfficeScan: At T=0min, 161 threats were prevented while 39 threats were missed. Of the 39 threats missed at T=0min, 17 were prevented at T=60min (17 of 39 equals 43.6%).
Why Trend Micro outperformed the competition
Trend Micro has outperformed the competition in a number of recent tests (See NSS Labs) due to the Smart Protection Network™ infrastructure that powers OfficeScan and Worry-Free Business solutions. This unique cloud-client architecture that uses Smart feedback to source new potential threats, patent-pending correlation that analyzes multiple threat vectors (web, email, file) in real-time allows Trend Micro to react faster than other vendors against new threats. Our multi-layered approach to security gives us a decided advantage over the competition in combating today’s sophisticated threats as well as the volume of new threats.
For more information or to receive a copy of the report, please call us at 864-990-4748 ext 201 or email info@homelandsecureit.com – We sell Trend Micro products nationally and offer installation and upgrade services to Greenville and the Upstate of SC. We also provide complete virus removal and cleanup service!
If you are reading this blog post, you probably know that I am pretty involved in Social Media. Some may say I am addicted to it!
I am active on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, FourSquare, Plaxo, and still have a MySpace account, though I don’t really use it that much. I haved tried out Google Buzz, FriendFeed, and several business only SM sites. (Heck, I have even checked out Chat Roulette and Omegle – but that is an entirely different story)
Out of all of these, one that I fail to see the value in for a computer service, repair and sales business like Homeland Secure IT is FourSquare. Don’t get me wrong, I love it. I use it constantly, and get very frustrated when it isn’t working like I think it should. But I use it for personal purposes. If you have not played with FourSquare, it is a geolocation based social media “tool” that lets you “check-in” to a venue or location when you get there using your GPS equiped smartphone. Assume you go to Starbucks for a quick Dark Cherry Mocha Frapp – you “check-in” and now the whole world can see what you are doing. You can brag to Twitter & Facebook that you have disposable income you can spend on yummy coffee.
Same thing goes for attractions like amusement parks, ball games, and stores like say, “Target”. If you check-in enough times, you become the “Mayor” of that venue!
Here is where the value of FourSquare comes in… Assume you check-in and become mayor of XYZ Sandwich Shop. You have been announcing this for a while, everytime you visit there. The whole world has seen you were there, giving free advertisement to XYZ! But, if XYZ is smart, they will reward you for your loyalty and offer a free sandwich when someone becomes Mayor, and maybe a free drink every time the Mayor visits after that. A very cheap price to pay for this type of advertising.
Many places, especially restaurants, will offer specials that popup when you check-in near their venue. These will show up as a “SPECIAL NEARBY – Check out the great ribs at ABC BBQ”, which can help bring new business into these places. And still other places will offer you a free entree when you visit several of their location. FourSquare itself offers “Badges” for accomplishing certain feats, such as checking into three Starbucks locations.
All that said, our business does not have foot traffic nor visitors, so offering a “Free Virus Cleanup” to a mayor would be silly. I believe I am the only person to check-in to our location in the months that I have been using it. But it does bring up a pet peeve of mine. Today I was ousted as Mayor of a local coffee shop – BY THE OWNER OF THE PLACE. Wow, that doesn’t do anything to help with loyalty. My suggestion to places that want to check-in themselves, create a second venue, call it XYZ Sandwich Shop STAFF, and let the staff go crazy checking in!
I would further suggest that business owners who can benefit from FourSquare’s power of (free) advertising, take advantage of it the way it was meant to be used. Offer Mayors a treat, some recognition, and encourage them to remain the mayor and others to try and oust the current mayor. 4sq is both a FUN, and a very useful business tool, when used properly.
BTW: If you can think of a way 4sq can be used to promote our computer repair business here in Greenville, and increase loyalty, well I’m all ears, but until that happens, I will be trying to take my place as mayor of every great business in the Upstate! Watch out Mayors, I’m coming for you…
BTW: Have fun, it is only a game! (But seriously, I’m coming for you)… Also check out other geolocational based SM tools / toys like Gowalla, Gypsii, BrightKite, Loopt, etc…
The next time your business needs to purchase new or renewal Cisco SMARTnet services, Trend Micro Anti-Virus, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Server, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SQL, Microsoft Office, Microsoft User / Server CALs, or Microsoft Software Assurance, please remember Homeland Secure IT…
We offer sales of licensing and renewals for these and many other great companies… Just call 864-990-4748 ext 201 or email info@homelandsecureit.com – We serve Greenville and the Upstate of SC, as well as nationwide licensing sales
Mailing List Mayhem
Let’s assume you are managing a mail distribution list with more than 50 people on it for a church or business and currently you are handling it in Outlook. Why not assume it is for a newsletter or bulletin…
Some of the problems you face are as follows: ( AKA the Top 10 Reasons to Switch to Email Marketing)
10. This is just too confusing and time consuming (see reasons 9 through 1 below)
9. Sending large emails with pictures or PDF attachments to dozens of people can slow your mail server to a crawl and take all day to send.
8. You have to manually add and remove each recipient, which is time consuming and is prone to human error (typos, accidental deletion of the wrong people).
7. You have no way for people to add themselves via a link on your website.
6. Subscribers are not verified, they have not opted-in. (Read more about the CAN-SPAM Act).
5. You have no way to see if your email was actually OPENED, or see which links were clicked on in your email.
4. Your mail distribution list likely has only the email address of each person and no idea of who happygirl1977@gmail.com really is.
3. You do not have a list of which addresses are bouncing, unless you compile it yourself from the actual bounced messages.
2. If you are sending newsletters, you may be just constructing your email inside Outlook and it may be text based, with no real consistency in appearance.
And the number one issue faced by those using Outlook to manage a mailing list/newsletter: You are sending a large number of emails from your account, which may appear to recipients and mail servers to be junk mail, which could ultimately result in your mail ending up in the spam folder, or worse, certain mail servers could see traffic from you as unsolicited email and flag your IP address as suspicious, resulting in the inability to send to that domain again until it is cleared up. In some cases, you could be blacklisted and placed on a real-time block list (RBL) and that would affect all mail sent from everyone at your business or organization to many mail servers around the world. (Those types of problems can take a while to get cleared up, and some RBLs hold you hostage and make you pay a fee before removing you).
The solution to these nightmares is to make a small monthly investment and use one of the many mailing list managers that are designed for email marketing and newsletters. They address all of the issues above, and give you an easy template based interface which allows you to create well structured newsletters, and send them to your subscribers without fear of blacklisting, and without the hassles of manually editing distribution lists. You can place a signup button and form on your website, and anyone who is interested can subscribe themselves to your list!
As an added bonus, you can see how many of the emails went out, how many were opened, which links were clicked on and other analytic information that will assist you in determining what content is “interesting” to your subscriber base. You also see how many bounced, without having a dozen bounce messages in your inbox!
You are probably thinking that this must be expensive and there is no way you can afford it. Quite the contrary, you can get started for FREE by signing up for an evaluation. After the trial period, you can then subscribe for a few dollars per month. I personally opted for MadMimi (see link below) because it is the most affordable, however, any of the three are awesome!
If you would like to subscribe to our mailing lists, or see what the subscription form looks like, click here:
Subscribe to our mailing lists
Try these out for free:
One last thing – Using these solutions you do not have to have a Publisher, or even Office loaded. It does not matter if you are on a Microsoft Windows machine, Apple Mac, a netbook or even a tablet or pad computer, you can create your newsletter with just about any computer with a web browser!
If you have questions or need some assistance, just let me know, I will do what I can to help!
