Computer Support Blog

Zappos, an Amazon retailer that sells shoes, announced recently that hackers breached their website and stole confidential client information. The stolen information included email addresses, the last four digits of credit card numbers, phone numbers, encrypted passwords and physical addresses. Using this information, the hackers might be able to determine a client’s other passwords. For many people, their email password is also the password they use for many other websites. This dangerous practice can compromise your Internet security.

Internet security is a vital issue in this age of online-everything. When we have online banking, important private emails, online shopping, and other important private information kept online, it is essential to know that your information is safe.

It is very important to make sure that your online banking passwords, email passwords, and passwords for other websites that contain sensitive information are not passwords you use for less important websites. If remembering passwords is an issue, do not hesitate to make use of the forgotten password feature of most websites or set up a master password. Your Internet security may depend on the difficulty and variety of passwords that you use. As the lesson of Zappos should teach you, low Internet security could mean hackers get your information or even plant malware and viruses on your computer.

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Over the past few years, online social networking sites have caused more and more of our social interactions to happen online. They have also changed the way we interact with our friends, even changing the definition of the word ‘friend’, but they have not changed basic human nature.

There have always been people who do not understand that their friends and acquaintances have no interest in all the tiny things they do in a day. There have also always been people who never share huge life events with their friends. Both of these types of people are still present on the Internet. Look at your Facebook feed sometime and you will notice exactly that – some people over-share and others never share. Thankfully, there are also plenty of people in the middle range who know what and how much their friends really want to know.

Soon, Facebook will allow those over-sharing people to post everything they do on other websites onto their profiles. This new release is not as widely supported as Facebook might wish. Pandora, the hugely popular Internet radio website, is one of the sites that are hesitating to allow Facebook to automatically publish every song a user listens to, onto the user’s profile. Pandora is reacting the same way that the majority of people would react: “My friends do not need to know every song I hear.” Pandora does publish on Facebook already, but the site does not want to publish everything automatically.

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We all know Google, Bing, and Yahoo are the most popular search engines. Why, when there are hundreds of other possible choices, do people choose these three? Maybe there is a better choice out there, but how will you know? How do you choose a good search engine?

According to comScore’s latest press release, Bing now controls 15.1% of the market share for search engines in the United States. Yahoo, which dipped to 14.5% in December, has been decreasing in market share for quite some time now. Google, unsurprisingly, reigns supreme with 65.9% market share. If Bing continues to rise in popularity though, it may eat slowly away at that impressive number.

But what makes one better than another? Why did Bing finally surpass Yahoo? Why is Google the most popular?

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Have you been considering upgrading the storage capacity of your laptop? Are you thinking about data backup? Since different laptops store data in various manners, there are actually quite a few options to consider when upgrading your laptop’s storage capacity.

The oldest type of storage, and the bulkiest, is the traditional hard disk drive. Hard disk drives have been around since the 1950s, though they are drastically smaller now than they were then. Hard disk drives use a rigid spinning disk to store information and they have been growing in storage capacity at a pace that has kept them relevant for the advances in technology.

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Alpha Consumers, we need you!

In just a few days, Victorinox will release one of the coolest products to hit the portable memory market ever.  However, like so many initial product releases, it comes with a pretty hefty price tag.  As a result, many of us will rely upon the fact that Alpha Consumers satisfy the initial demand and absorb the expense of producing the next, less expensive, round of the product.  The cool new product is the Victorinox 1 TB USB/eSATA II flash drive!

Victorinox, most famous for creating and selling the Swiss Army Knife, has been making and selling USB flash drives of a similar style for years.  Incorporated into their trademarked fold-out design that allows you to essentially keep several different tools within a common handle, Victorinox included a USB flash drive to keep the tool relevant in the 21^st Century.  Victorinox is pushing the envelope forward now with their 1 TB USB/eSATA II flash drive.

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Over the last few years, millions of Angry Birds have attempted to rescue their stolen eggs from the evil green pigs. They fling themselves repeatedly at the pigs’ enclosures, attempting to knock them over and kill the pigs inside. Each time they succeed in killing all of the pigs they are one stage closer to the return of their precious eggs.

We have all heard of the Angry Birds game, and probably most of you have played it at least once. Have you ever wondered how this simple game of flinging birds at pigs became a nation-wide trend? Who thought up this game and why?

Rovio Entertainment Ltd created the hugely popular game Angry Birds in December of 2009 and launched it as a smartphone app. The game was a final effort to bring the company back from bankruptcy, according to Business Insider. Their efforts certainly paid off, with their small puzzle game launching a $50 million business built around the merchandising from one game.

There are Angry Birds plush toys, t-shirts, board and card games, blankets, headphones, backpacks, and so many other products. Rovio knows how to make money from their products – that they have created a game that so many people play is an accomplishment in itself, but to sell so many unrelated products simply because they have Angry Birds on them is phenomenal.

The game itself is very easy to learn how to play, but can be quite difficult to win. A basic understanding of physics and a lot of trial-and-error can take you far in the game, but the stages are progressively harder as you move further into the game. It could be said that Angry Birds has the popularity it does because of this method of game design – anyone can play it, but it takes determination to win.

There is currently an Angry Birds game available for all of the popular operating systems, including Windows, Mac, IOS, and Android. As an added incentive to buy their other products, Rovio has recently made the Angry Birds game completely free on Android.

Users should take caution, however, of possible Internet security threats from pirated copies of the Angry Birds game. With its huge success come many pirated copies of the game, some of which could contain malware and other threats to your Internet security. If something happens to your mobile device because of these Internet security threats, do not wait, get help from professional computer repair specialists at RESCUECOM.

Rovio is still keeping their focus on Angry Birds for now, but they have hinted that they are working on a new game, but it will be a while before it is ready. It is very likely that Rovio’s next game will capture the world’s attention the same way the Angry Birds has.

About RESCUECOM:

RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.

For More Information, Contact:

David Milman, CEO

315-882-1100

david@rescuecom.com

It seems that no matter whom you talk to recently, everyone has his or her favorite browser. If you express any other opinion, you may find yourself in a debate over which is the best browser, but how can you know which is the best browser if you do not know about the different choices?

The four most popular browsers are Internet Explorer, Firefox, Google Chrome, and Safari. Internet Explorer, commonly shortened to IE, has the most users with a market share of 52%, according to NetMarketShare. IE is the default browser preloaded onto most computers and many people simply use it out of convenience, however, it is by no means the fastest or sleekest of the choices. IE does not have the internal spell check function that the other three have, and it is the only one that does not support Macs.

Firefox is slower than IE in start-up time, but faster in navigation time and with 22% market share, Firefox is the second-most popular browser available.  One of the downsides of Firefox, however, is that it does not use thumbnail previews to allow users to preview pages by hovering over the tab.

Google Chrome, the newest of the popular browsers, has been rapidly growing in popularity. Chrome’s market share is currently at 19 percent after only three years. The best features of Chrome include its speed, simple design, and the Omnibox, which allows users to search directly in the address bar.

Safari, made by Apple, has the smallest market share of the popular browsers with only 5%. This could be because its main market is Macs. There is a Windows version, but with the other great browsers available, it is possible that PC users have already made their choice. The best things about Safari are its great look and the convenient gallery of most-browsed sites.

The best choices in terms of Internet security are Firefox and Chrome. Firefox has a ‘private mode’ that can be turned on, in order to increase your Internet security, which does not affect how your browser appears. Chrome uses ‘sandboxing,’ which means that each tab runs on its own and therefore better contains any threat to your Internet security. IE has good security, but it is not quite of the innovative quality of Firefox or Chrome. Safari does not have a private mode or anti-phishing capabilities, according to NetMarketShare.

Overall, there is no ‘best browser’ out there. Each one features different benefits, so choose one based on what you want out of your browser. Chrome fades into the background, Firefox is the fastest, IE is the most popular, and Safari has the reliability of Apple. Each one is unique and targeted at different browsing needs, but there is no rule that says you only have to have one. Try them all and keep whatever works for you, or use different browsers for different things – it is all up to you.

About RESCUECOM:

RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.

For More Information, Contact:

David Milman, CEO

315-882-1100

david@rescuecom.com

Ever since its introduction, the Stopping Online Piracy Act (SOPA) has caused a lot of uproar among the Internet community. The SOPA was designed to increase Internet security and help protect copyrighted content from being stolen on the Internet. Many who have read the bill, however, say that it goes far beyond that. The majority consensus of the Internet community is that it is too harsh and will greatly restrict or even stop the creative, free use of the Internet.

According to Dory Carr-Harris on PSFK, experts are worried that the SOPA will ruin the Domain Name System (DNS), a backbone of the Internet that allows computers all over the world to access websites. The problem with blocking domain names is that many thousands of websites exist under one domain name.

Recently, the Internet community decided to boycott GoDaddy for just that reason, and the Internet users won. GoDaddy pulled their support of the bill because of the boycott and said “GoDaddy will support [SOPA] when and if the Internet community supports it.” Anyone else who has given his or her support to the SOPA could be in trouble.

This amazing retraction could be the beginning of a major onslaught from the Internet community. Now that they have realized the extent of their power, it would not be surprising to see even more successful boycotts taking place soon because of SOPA and PIPA (Protect-IP Act).

At the first hearing in the House of Representatives, nothing was decided for sure and the Internet community made itself heard afterwards. There was uproar over who the speakers were and the Representatives’ seeming failure to understand anything about the bill itself. Rep. Jason Chaffetz asked his colleagues to “bring in the nerds” in order to satisfy the public’s call for expert testimony on the bill.

This time, they have. A new hearing has been set in the House of Representatives for the SOPA, which will address many of the issues that the Internet community has with this bill. Seven prominent Internet-savvy experts will speak at the hearing in the House and perhaps shed some light for the Representatives on the bill and the restrictions it will bring to the Internet.

There is even a WhiteHouse.gov petition for President Obama to veto both of the bills. Each of the individual petitions has garnered many signatures and the petitioners are awaiting the President’s response about his official position.

Whether or not the SOPA and PIPA will be made into laws remains to be seen, but people on both sides of the issue are actually working for the same goal – better Internet security. No one wants their copyrighted content stolen, and everyone wants to know that what they put online is secure. It remains to be seen if these bills will resolve these security issues or not.

About RESCUECOM:

RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.

For More Information, Contact:

David Milman, CEO

315-882-1100

david@rescuecom.com

Everyone does it and no one really thinks about it. You register on a new website and your browser automatically asks if you want to save your password. If the computer belongs to you, you think, “Sure, why not?” and click ok. Unfortunately, there could be some major consequences to that little decision.

If your computer were ever stolen, the thieves would have instant access to all of your sites. They could get into your email, your social networking sites, your online shopping accounts, and any other website for which you have saved the password.

Even if that never happens, saving passwords in your browser does not make them secure passwords. Most browsers have a way to look up all the saved passwords, usually under the ‘tools’ or ‘settings’ menu. Anyone with access to your computer can find this registry of your saved passwords and use them.

Malware can also get into your computer and find these passwords in the same manner. If you have poor Internet security, malware can even steal these passwords undetected. Sometimes even a scan specifically designed to detect malware programs does not find them.

There are a few options available, however, to make certain you have secure passwords. At home, the easiest thing to do is simply write them down and keep them near the computer. Unfortunately, you would then have to re-enter them every time you login to the website.

Another thing to consider is that there are programs that will keep your secure passwords safe. These kinds of programs have a master password that you can set-up, which you must enter once each time you open your browser, that will then unlock all the saved secure passwords. This eliminates the need to constantly re-enter all of your passwords on different sites, but the problem with this is that you cannot ever re-set the master password, even if you forget it.

If you do not want to use either of these options but tend to forget your passwords, you can always keep changing your passwords using the ‘forgot password’ feature on the website. Most websites make this an easy and quick process, and it is another way to make sure you are using secure passwords.

Fortunately, if you ever do run into problems stemming from lost or stolen passwords, you can easily get computer support help from a computer repair company such as RESCUECOM. If you follow the tips above, however, you should have fewer worries about whether or not you have secure passwords.

About RESCUECOM:

RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.

For More Information, Contact:

David Milman, CEO

315-882-1100

david@rescuecom.com

The odds are good that if you have done any sort of financial transaction on the Internet, you have a PayPal account.  The spin-off of eBay has helped make eBay even more money than the auction site was making on its own.  By charging anyone who received money through PayPal, the financial company has generated enough revenue for itself to make PayPal a multi-billion dollar company.  PayPal has become the online financial powerhouse it has by taking money out of small businesses – like independent vendors who sell on eBay – and from the multi-billion dollar banking and credit card industries.  Now, Dwolla is entering the market to take a bite out of the credit card companies and PayPal.

It is about time.

Dwolla is using new technologies to provide its users with direct access to their bank accounts while protecting their private information.  The stated goal of Dwolla is to provide the flexibility of cash for the virtual world of the Internet.  Your Dwolla account is intended to give you a common source of payment online and in the real world without ever having to touch cash again.

What makes Dwolla different is its security and transparency.  Dwolla has unprecedented security controls that prevent identity theft by keeping your account numbers from ever getting to identity thieves.  In this way, Dwolla is very much like PayPal.  Unlike PayPal, Dwolla’s privacy controls allow users to restrict how much information is available to those they pay through the service.  With PayPal, you have access to quite a bit of information – at the very least e-mail address, name and address – of the person with whom you are doing business.  While that makes sense for virtual transactions that involve physical items shipped between two people, it makes less sense for charity donations and person-to-person transactions.

The real difference with Dwolla is in its fee structure.  Users pay $3.00 a month for their Dwolla account, which gives them access to a $500 line of credit and instant access to their own bank account.  If you use credit money and you do not pay it off by the end of the month, there are fees.  However, Dwolla encourages the small sales.  By eliminating transaction fees on all purchases less than $10, Dwolla fosters support for the small transactions that have been becoming more costly with each passing year.  The CEO of Dwolla argues that transactions like paying for a cup of coffee with your credit card are forcing vendors to charge more for their products and services.

Dwolla wants to turn that tide and help users get the most out of the money that should, by rights, be theirs.  The $.25 transaction fee on all charges above $10 is minimal when compared to PayPal’s oppressive fee scheme.  That is probably why eBay will resist incorporating Dwolla for as long as it legally can.

About RESCUECOM:

RESCUECOM provides computer repair and computer support, 24/7: Meeting every tech support need including data recovery, virus removal, networking, wireless services, and computer support for all brands of hardware and software. For computer support or information on products, services, or computer repair, visit https://www.rescuecom.com or call 1-800-RESCUE-PC.

For More Information, Contact:

David Milman, CEO

315-882-1100

david@rescuecom.com