In the last couple of months, ATT has had many issues with identity theft.  Typically, the thief would call up on behalf of another company, have ATT ship a phone, and then start running up a nice tab.  The interesting thing is that the phone is not usually sent to the thief directly.  The phone is usually sent to the company who is being exploited.  Then, the thief just uses an existing cell phone to correlate the phone number to.  It is very easy to associate a phone number with a cell phone.  You can just call up ATT or sometimes go online if all the info is handy. 

How to prevent cell phone identity theft?

Set up a password with your mobile phone provider.  This will ensure just you or anyone who you gave the password to will be able to order or make changes to your account and orders.  This is the #1 way you can prevent others from racking up phones, minutes, and time on your dime.

IPTV is an alternate way to receive cable channels. It uses the Internet as its method, like voice over IP, to distribute TV channels. This is a very new way to watch TV versus the traditional TimeWarner cable, RCN, or satellite services. You can watch TV from your computer with this method. Bill Gates was happy to relay at his annual conference that 1 million commercial customers are now enjoying Microsoft’s IPTV, or Internet TV.

This technology has been out for a little over a decade, and is now gaining steam with bundled Internet services, such as phone, TV, and Internet service. As the Internet becomes more important in our lives, IPTV will have more of an impact. Further, traditional cable TV is struggling to have all channels in high-definition format while IPTV is equipped to handle the demands of high definition content. Also, IPTV will allow for sharing files, music, and pictures to your computer. So, this technology will start to have more of a need for those home users who are entertainment and file-share driven.

Of course, in order for the IPTV to also be successful, the Internet must be stable. If the Internet is down, the TV would go down too. So, people buying this technology should ensure their Internet is first reliable.

Standby mode on your computer allows you to close your computer while still saving your settings.  So, if you are working within Outlook, Word, and have a few Internet pages open, you can close your laptop lid or select standby mode on your desktop.  Then, your computer will go into a sleep-like mode so that it essentially uses minimal power.  Finally, when you open your laptop lid or move your mouse on your desktop, your computer will revert to your previous settings.

This is a good way to conserve your computer’s power, and allows you quicker access to your last session.  Further, this can help those with short-term memories to not worry about what they were last doing on their computers.  Please note that computers sometimes freeze during this mode if there are viruses, spyware, or problematic software applications.  Such computer issues could prevent your computer from getting out of standby mode since it is attempting to access your computer processing.  If you notice issues with standby mode, you can contact New York Computer Help for technical support.

Symantec’s Norton Anti-virus software is a solid security product.  However, based on the past few years, our technicians have noticed that installing Norton software has really slowed down computers when the below factors are present:

1. Computer already has a virus or spyware
2. PC doesn’t have a good amount of RAM
3. AOL Software is constantly running in the background

Norton has shown to slow down a Windows computer when installing the software after the above 3 factors are present.  The best time to install Norton is when you first get your new computer or ensuring all viruses, spyware, and adware are removed.  This applies to the Norton Anti-virus and Internet security suites. 

Why is the computer slowed down from these situations?  Norton is a very thorough product to the point where it is always running in the background, constantly running checks on files, and adds a layer of protection which drains the system resources.  Couple that with a current virus, slow RAM, or another background software (i.e. AOL, iTunes) and you should kick your feet up and prepare for a slow ride.

When getting your computer serviced, it is important to provide 5 specific things to the technology shop.  You might say, “Who cares.  I’ll let them figure it out.”  You can do that.  However, if you can provide the below 5 details about your computer, you will wind up saving time, money, and your computer overall will benefit.

Here’s the info you need to provide to the computer repair company:

1. What is the current issue? (i.e. virus or start-up issue)
2. Have there been any past, similar issues? (i.e. computer has been slowing down the past 3 months)
3. When did you first notice the current issue? (i.e. After installing a Windows update)
4. Have you attempted any troubleshooting? (i.e. updated wireless driver)
5. Provide any hardware or software repairs performed on your computer in the past year.

Computer hard drives are getting much larger nowadays and the current challenge is being able to back up all of your important files.  For those of you who are road warriors or on the run all the time, it is not convenient to carry large external hard drives.  So, the more portable way is to carry a sizeable USB flash drive, a.k.a jump drive, a.k.a thumb drive, and a.k.a small gizmo.  

The typical flash drives go up to 2GB, but now there is a new 8GB flash drive that is still small.  Many flash drives that get to 4GB, 6GB, or 8GB, or more start beefing up in size, but Lexar now makes a nice, portable, sleek 8GB USB flash drive that can still fit in your pocket.   Lexar makes 2 8GB models:

1. Secure II Plus - This $159.99 model contains a meter to show how much storage you’ve used.  There is even some security to block possible thieves from accessing your files.
2. Firefly - A shorter and stubbier model, at $149.99, comes in black, white, and gray.

These USB drives are the first found that are still mobile and large enough to hold your important files.

Microsoft’s next Server operating system, Windows Server 2008, is expected to be released in the next 2 - 6 months after being delayed last year.  This is Microsoft’s upgrade from the Windows Server 2003 Editions.  Is this new edition necessary for your computer office network?

Not necessarily.  If you currently have a mostly Windows XP Professional environment, then the Server 08 is not needed.  However, if the majority of workstations are Windows Vista Business or Ultimate, then the 2008 version is tailored for this environment and should be implemented.  The 2008 version is compatible with Windows workstations and may be set up for Mac sharing as well; however, it has gone a step ahead to ensure Vista workstation networking and sharing is seamless.  Currently, Microsoft 2003 doesn’t offer easy networking for Vista and XP workstations, and expert technicians plus third-party software is sometimes needed.

Here are the benefits of going with Windows Server 2008:

• Easier networking
• Advanced security
• Stable remote application access
• Extra monitoring tools
• Good redundancy and communication with multiple servers

Although we have beta tested this new server operating system, it is still too early to comment on how it will affect different server and networking environments.