We often talk about securing your computer from viruses, spyware, or hackers.  But, we less think about someone physically getting to your computer to access your personal information.  So, it is smart to learn how to physically secure your office so that your computers are safe from potential robbers or in-person hackers.

Here are the steps to take to secure your computers inside your office:

1. Set up a video surveillance system that records your office entrance and office activity itself for easy playback.
2. Make sure your building is set up for a buzz-in entry or that there is a doorman or stop form of security.
3. Set up an intercom system so you can see those who enter your building and/or office.
4. Lastly, and most importantly, set up a “hold-up” button so you can press this button to alert the police if being held-up.

We have called up ADT Security to take care of security for our offices and we feel very secure.  This is a small price to pay for not only your computer contents, but also your personal safety.

Getting hacked is not fun.  Everything needs to be redone and reset.  Talk about a re-do!  You have to get new credit cards, new usernames and passwords, and tune-up your computer to ensure the hacker is out of your life.

Now, you can find out if you’re hack prone.  Take the hacker test to check your security level.   This will let you know how secure your computer is.  The cool factor here is FBI-level folks will actually cross-reference your name with any hackers they know who might have your personal info.  Have you ever watched Dateline or 20/20 where the security experts track hackers, in turn, locating all of the swiped credit card they stole?  Well, this is the same thing, but this is a free security check that can prevent potential fraud with your accounts.

Take the test.  It could save your hours of hack anguish and tech support.

The iPhone has improved upon its battery life with the new 3G release.  However, once you start watching a movie; listening to an album; or play a few games, you start to realize that you’re almost running on battery fumes.  The Mophie juice pack air has resolved the dreaded power issue of the iPhone.  After charging it up, it gives you double the battery juice of your current iPhone battery. 

Here are the cool factors with this rechargeable battery case:

• It charges via USB and doesn’t require the iPhone during charging.
• The device is slim and fits around your iPhone like a glove, acting like a protective layer
• Provides 4 indicator lights to see when you’re running low
• You can double your current battery life while using your iPhone
• Mophie will first use its battery to deplete, so you can still have a fully charged iPhone afterwards
• Did we mention it’s purple?!  Or the classic white and black.

 The InCase Power Slider was the first type of extra battery power that was produced for the iPhone.  We feel the Mophie is far more superior for the following reasons:

• Mophie has longer battery life.
• InCase Power Slider gets very hot to the touch.
• Power Slider has a complicated sync process when connected.  The mophie doesn’t need as much tech support.
• Power Slider is a little bigger and heavier.

The one advantage the Power Slider has is that it physically protects more of the iPhone casing than the Mophie.  But, this product is meant for giving more of a battery charge, not for scratch-protection.

It’s tough to shop for Dad on his big Father’s Day.  Another tie or pair of pants just doesn’t cut it.  How about simplifying his computer world by getting him a snazzy Gadget4All all-in-one mouse pad?!  The snazzy factor is that it includes 4 USB ports, 2 sounds ports, and may play your iPod or other mp3 player via its audio connection.

This is a great gift since it reduces cable clutter and adds 4 more accessible USB ports.  We say accessible because usually USB ports are hard to reach since they’re in the back of your computer.  With the USB ports on top of your desk within your mouse pad, you can easily connect and disconnect without reaching far under your desk. 

At $22, this tech gadget is definitely a worthy purchase.  By the way, this mouse pad also rolls up easily if you want to use it for your laptop on the go.  As a final thought, there is no tech setup.  You just plug the mouse pad into one of your computer USB ports, and it’s ready to go!

Computer maintenance is a great way to take care of your computer.  It allows an expert computer technician to run certain tests, checks, and optimization techniques, ensuring your computer is protected against viruses, spyware, pop-ups, and crashes. 

There is a myth that computer maintenance has to be weekly.  However, periodic tech maintenance can be as frequent as you’d like.  For example, for a home computer or small computer setup, it is wise to have computer maintenance either quarterly or twice a year.  This will allow testing for malicious items as well as failing hard drives, RAM, Internet speed status, dust build-up, network/printer/equipment issues.

We have found that preventative maintenance can save tons of money in the long-term, as well as extend the life of your mac or PC. 

Here’s a good periodic maintenance schedule based on the number of computers your company or small office has:

• 1 - 5 computers - bi-annual maintenance
• 6 - 10 computers - quarterly maintenance
• 11 - 15 - monthly maintenance
• 16 - 20 - bi-weekly maintenance
• 21+ computers - weekly maintenance 

Having the proper periodic plan for your business can save time and money, in turn, increasing overall production.  Please feel free to contact a local service provider for your computer maintenance options. 

If you’re one of those crazy cats with multiple personalities who needs several Gmail accounts, this blog is for you!  The new Internet Explorer 8, albeit still a work under construction, offers a cool little feature for Gmail.

Typically, you cannot open more than one gmail email account at once.  Internet Explorer or Firefox will force you to log out of your first email account to access the second one.  Now, Internet Explorer allows you to access multiple Gmail account by the following way:

1. Open up Internet Explorer 8 and Gmail.  Uncheck Remember Me when signing in.
2. Hit Alt-F, I and then press enter.  This will open a new window.
3. Open Gmail and sign into your second account, again unchecking Remember Me

That’s it.  You can repeat steps 2 and 3 for all of the additional Gmail accounts you might have.  Yes, it won’t remember your username and password, but this will act as a neat little work-around for keeping tracking of your e-mails.  A nice little tech tip if we do say so ourselves.

Taking notes while on the go is not easy.  It’s tough to find a pen and piece of paper all the time.  And after you jot down the note, its easy to misplace where you put it.  Microsoft had a post-it note program that worked well for a while where you would simply hit a shortcut key and then you can write the post-it note.  Then, it would appear on a yellow sticky note square on your screen or you can minimize it.  Now, with so many mobile devices and work and home computers, the electronic post-it note seemed to lose its luster due its inability to be available at all times.

Now, Evernote has transcended the electronic post-it note by allowing e-notes to be available to all electronic devices, such as PCs, macs, iPhones, and Blackberries.  All you do is jot down your note; then it syncs your info across your computers and phones for you to look at later.  You can try Evernote for free for up to 40MB per month or pay only $5 per month for up to 500MB.  A cool feature is being able to take pictures from your phone and then later having Evernote decode it for text in instances of business cards or magazine pages.  Best of all, you don’t have to be a computer support specialist to know how to work it.

Data recovery is a tenuous subject. If you don’t have a data backup and your hard drive fails physically, you are not in a good situation. You’ll need to perform data recovery which is replacing failed parts of the hard drive in order extract files. There are tedious stages of data recovery that need to occur in order to attempt file recovery. The best way to approach data recovery is to contact a data recovery specialist.

Here’s what not to do, otherwise known as the top 3 data recovery myths:

1. Throw your hard drive in the freezer.  This will cause your drive to fluctuate in temperature to the point where the drive will have a small probability of recovery.
2. Take the head of the drive and pop it into another hard drive.  It’s a good theory, but you’ll need to make sure the replacement hard drive is identical in specifications.  Plus, you’ll need a clean room that ensures a dust-free environment.
3. Bang it a few times to loosen up the bad sectors.  This will cause further damage. 

Skype has been very busy lately.  It recently programmed the software so it may be used in iPhones.  Now, a new version has been released, although still at the beta level, that allows you to share your screen.  Specifically, you may share your whole screen or part of it to your Skype contacts.  All you have to do is initiate a phone call with your contact and then authorize your screen to be shared.

The downfall with the screen sharing is that you cannot share your screen by an instant message.  Also, you cannot collaborate by sharing with more than one contact.  The good part about this is that this sharing is pretty much allowing someone who is tech savvy to come onto your screen to provide tech support for viruses, spyware, or other computer issues.  So, you can turn this sharing aspect of Skype into a remote tech support function which would be a free way to have someone help you out with tech problems.

Cell phones can be tricky devices to figure out.  That is if you don’t know if your cell phone is set to bluetooth device, headset, or the standard phone-on-ear setup.  If you have a cell phone that you’ve paired up with your bluetooth car setup, this can work well.  However, sometimes cell phones forget how to work when they’re not in the car.  They might still be set to bluetooth or headset and you might not be able to make or receive calls.

Here are the steps to take to get your phone out of bluetooth pairing mode:

1. Go to your bluetooth option on your phone and remove your bluetooth pairing device and make sure your phone is not set to bluetooth.
2. Turn off and on your phone.
3. Turn off your phone and remove your battery.  Then, turn on your phone.
4. If steps 1 - 3 don’t work, stop in to your local phone provider’s store.  They might have to upgrade your cell phone software or reset the phone.

Bluetooth setups on phones in the car is a great convenience.  And well, it’s the law to be hands-free so this is a crucial necessity when using your cell phone in the car.  However, you might need to perform some tech support on your phone if your phone is not operational outside of your car.