http://www.microsoft.com/athome/setup/wirelesstips.aspx

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/setup/windowstricks.aspx

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/organization/twomonitors.aspx

If you need help or more information, please contact me.

August 4, 2010 ]]> http://blog.mysmbc.com/?feed=rss2&p=421 0 http://blog.mysmbc.com/?p=406 http://blog.mysmbc.com/?p=406#comments Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:17:13 +0000 Dean http://blog.mysmbc.com/?p=406 Not ready to make the jump to Windows 7 but need a new computer?  You have the right to downgrade your operating system to an earlier version, with a few limitations.  Check out this article from Microsoft for the complete details.

http://oem.microsoft.com/script/contentpage.aspx?PageID=553056#windows7

Epson’s New Artisan All-in-One Printers Offer Superior Performance, Image Quality, Convenience, and an Eye-Catching Design

Artisan 835 and Artisan 725 Deliver Unbeatable Features and Fit the Décor of any Room

LONG BEACH, Calif. — Aug. 4, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Epson America, Inc., a leading provider of superior performing desktop printing solutions, today introduced its new line of Artisan® all-in-ones – the Artisan 835 and Artisan 725. With image quality preferred by consumers 3-to-1 over the competition¹ and a host of unique features, the new Artisan all-in-ones are a perfect match for today’s active, digital families that require one solution for various printing needs.“These latest Artisan all-in-ones continue to redefine the standard for image quality, print speed and unique creative capabilities,” said Julie Ernest, product manager, Consumer Ink Jet Printers, Epson America, Inc. “From family photos and creative projects to school work and household documents, these versatile all-in-ones deliver the quality, reliability and performance consumers have come to expect from the Artisan line.”  The flagship Artisan 835 boasts a 7.8-inch smart touch panel, a 3.5-inch color LCD, built-in fax, and a 30-page Automatic Document Feeder to quickly copy and fax documents. The Artisan 725 features an enhanced touch panel for easier navigation. Both feature 2.5 times faster wireless connectivity with Wi-Fi n², wireless printing from an Apple® iPhone³ and the world’s fastest 4”x6” photo print speeds⁴. In addition, the Artisan 725 and Artisan 835 deliver vibrant colors and crisp, clear text with Epson’s six-color Ultra Hi-Definition Claria® ink.Additional Features of the Artisan Series:

• Delivers fast ISO print speeds of 9.5 ISO ppm black and 9 ISO ppm color⁵ 
• Offers built-in wireless and Ethernet networking
• Saves up to 50 percent of paper supply with automatic two-sided printing
• Creates personalized greeting cards, coloring book pages, elegant stationery, and note paper
• Creates professional-looking discs by printing images and text directly onto ink jet printable CDs/DVDs with easy-to-use Epson Print CD software
• Features built-in Auto Photo Correction to automatically evaluate and correct images and red eye
• Prints applications wirelessly from an iPhone, including PDF files, photos, photo calendars, business documents, and more, through applications available on the iTunes App Store 
• Prints images directly from digital cameras, mobile phones and USB Flash drives with PictBridge® 
• Accommodates various printing needs with individual ink cartridges at affordable prices (standard and high-capacity sizes)⁶
• Delivers vivid, true-to-life photos with Epson’s exclusive MicroPiezo® print head with DX5™ technology
• Offers a range of eco features and environmental qualifications including, ENERGY STAR® and RoHS compliance, and is designed to be recycled⁷

Pricing and Availability

The Artisan 725 ($199.99*) and Artisan 835 ($299.99*) will be available in mid-August through major computer, office and electronic superstores, a variety of retail stores nationwide and Epson’s retail site, www.epsonstore.com. An all-white “Arctic Edition” Artisan 725 ($199.99*) will also be available in mid-September exclusively through Best Buy to allow consumers more options to match the décor of their home and computer equipment. All models come with a one-year limited warranty and free lifetime phone support⁸ with quick and convenient product exchange. For more information, please see the Artisan 725, Artisan 835 and Artisan 725 Arctic Edition fact sheets.About Epson America Inc.

Epson America, Inc. is a leading provider of an extensive range of printers, 3LCD projectors, scanners and point-of-service printers that are renowned for their high quality, functionality, innovation and energy efficiency. Epson America is a U.S. affiliate of Seiko Epson Corporation, which employs more than 70,000 people in 106 countries around the world. Seiko Epson is committed to its ongoing contributions to the global environment and for the second year in a row has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, an indicator for leading companies in economic, environmental and social criteria. To learn more about Epson America, please visit: www.Epson.com. You may also connect with Epson America on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/EpsonAmerica), Twitter (http://twitter.com/EpsonAmerica) and YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/EpsonTV). # # #
Specifications are subject to change without notice. Epson and Claria are registered trademarks, and Epson Exceed Your Vision is a registered logomark. Artisan is a registered trademark of Epson America, Inc. All other product and brand names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Epson disclaims any and all rights in these marks. ¹Compared to photo all-in-ones priced at $300 or less as of 11/1/08 in testing by Newman-Stein, Inc. ²Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n certified; level of performance subject to the range of the router being used. Visit www.wi-fi.org/files/11nbasics_glossary.pdf for more information. ³See www.epson.com/mobileprinting for more information on optional phone applications. ⁴Compared to ink jet, photo all-in-ones priced at $299 or less as of April 1, 2010, based on independent testing.⁵ISO ppm is based on the new international standard for measuring print speed. Black and color print speeds are determined in default, single-side mode, in accordance with ISO/IEC 24734. Actual print tiems will vary based on system configuration, software, and page complexity. See www.epson.com/printspeed for details, including complete ISO reports.⁶Cartridge yields are based on continuous printing of a suite of five black and color pages as required by ISO/ IEC 24711 and 24712. Actual yields will vary considerably for reasons including images printed, print settings, temperature and humidity. Yields may be lower when printing infrequently or predominantly with one ink color. A variable amount of ink remains in the cartridges after the “replace cartridge” signal. Part of the ink from the first cartridges is used for priming the all-in-one. Ink is used for both printing and print head maintenance. All inks are used for both black and color printing. For more information about yields for this all-in-one, see www.epson.com/cartridgeinfo.⁷See our website for convenient and reasonable recycling options at www.epson.com/recycle.⁸Epson provides phone support, without charge, for the life of the product. Telephone toll charges may apply*Estimated street price

Here is a quick summary of what is wrong.  There is a way to craft a shortcut to cause your computer to run a different program, even when the shortcut is displayed.  There is no interaction with the shortcut needed.  Here is an example of how this can be used.  A melicious programmer takes over a website that you visit.  When you open the website, it downloads a program and shortcut without your knowledge.  You close your browser and Windows refreshes your desktop icons.  You notice a new icon on your desktop.  At this point, it is too late.  The display of that icon has triggered a new program and has infected your computer.  This is just one example of how this vunerability can be used.

For more detailed information about this update you can visit the Microsoft Security  Bulletin at this web address: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms10-aug.mspx

If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact me.

What is a Popup?

http://www.microsoft.com/protect/terms/popup.aspx

How to choose a firewall:

http://www.microsoft.com/security/firewalls/choosing.aspx

Click Fraud – Do you really trust the button on that website?

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/securitytipstalk/archive/2010/07/08/click-fraud-cybercriminals-want-you-to-like-it.aspx

Can you tell if that email is a scam?

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/securitytipstalk/archive/2010/06/24/can-you-spot-the-6-signs-of-a-scam.aspx

August 2, 2010

July 30, 2010 ]]> http://blog.mysmbc.com/?feed=rss2&p=399 0 http://blog.mysmbc.com/?p=395 http://blog.mysmbc.com/?p=395#comments Mon, 02 Aug 2010 15:50:28 +0000 Dean http://blog.mysmbc.com/?p=395 The following was sent to me by a Media Relations Specialist.  I love this concept and use a form of this in my business.  If you would like more information about how to set this up for your business, please contact me.

-Dean

Make Vacation Communication a Day at the Beach
By Steve Adams

The peak summer vacation season is still in full swing. And with it comes the dilemma small business owners have been facing since the beginning of the Industrial Age: Take therapeutic time off to clear your mind and recharge, or make the choice and fear that you’re not going to be available when an urgent client need arises.

Fortunately, these days it doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing choice. There are technologies available that can help you stay in contact with the office and/or your customers while still allowing you to get away from – well, if not all, at least most.

Virtual phone service for small business – These services are the most significant vacation-enablers, because they offer so much flexibility and mobility at such a low cost. A virtual phone service provides businesses with a single phone number for the entire business. The service then allows you to assign extensions to different people in the organization, both inside and outside of the main office. A virtual receptionist greets callers with a professional greeting and provides a dial-by-name directory, generally helping get callers get where they need to go.

Where they really pay off come vacation time, though, is with their smart call forwarding capabilities. You can set your office phone to forward all of your calls to your mobile phone, allowing you to answer them just as though you’re in the office. You can even specify when the phone rings and when it goes to voicemail if you want to keep normal “business hours” while you’re basking in the sun or climbing that mountain.

If you don’t want to be disturbed at the moment but want to stay on top of things, you can set your virtual phone service to send all calls to your business voicemail, then receive an email telling you when you have voicemails waiting. It’s a great way to organize your time so you can both participate with the family and service your customers.

Internet fax service – If your business relies on faxes, having an Internet fax service is indispensable during a vacation. After all, if you’re vacationing hundreds or thousands of miles away from the office it’s going to be a little tough to pop in just to check faxes. Of course, even if you’re enjoying a “staycation” you probably want to avoid the office so you don’t stop by for a few minutes and wind up there all day.

With an Internet fax service you can send and receive faxes anywhere you can get an Internet connection. And on any device – a laptop, smart phone or even one of those hotel lobby PCs. You have a choice of using your email account or a secure online portal so there’s no worries about how to get connected.

If the fax requires further action from someone else, forwarding it is as easy as forwarding an email. You can even add comments before you send. With most Internet fax services you can even have the fax sent to one or more partners’ or business associates’ emails as well as your own – just in case you’re having too much fun to take care of it right away.

Technology has definitely added to the sense of urgency in our everyday lives. But the right technologies can also help restore some order.

So as you enjoy the nearing final days of summer, make sure you have the tools that will allow you to keep your business running while you are taking some time off. It’ll make getting away from the office a literal day on the beach.

Steve Adams is the vice president of marketing for Protus, a provider of communications tools for small-to-medium-businesses and enterprise organizations, including the MyFax (www.myfax.com) internet fax service; my1voice (www.my1voice.com), a virtual phone service; and Campaigner, an e-mail marketing service. He can be reached at sadams@protus.com.