31 December

SOPA is bad news for internet users

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Meants to write this few weeks ago but with Christmas and new year lots happened.
Few things have inspired as many technological advances over the past two decades as the internet. But that will come to a screeching halt with the passing of Stop Online Piracy Act, or SOPA. Here are some information about it.
• What is SOPA?

The “Stop Online Piracy Act” or SOPA is a bill running through America’s Congress right now that will allow big corporations to shut down sites that could possess copyrighted material. It is supported by big industries such as AOL Time Warner, The MPAA and the RIAA.
In theory, the SOPA act sounds good on paper, but in its practical use, it is not only not good, it could completely paralyse any technological advances that have been made.
• The Issues With SOPA
Why is SOPA such a problem? Well, for one thing, companies do not need to authoritatively prove there is copyrighted material. Simply saying “We believe that this site has copyrighted material” will allow a web site to receive a Denial of Service (or DNS error). DNS errors have been used to restrict access to information in China and Iran.
Second, SOPA also allows anyone in the world who is posting any sort of copyrighted material to be sued, and possibly imprisoned for up to five years. This is not strictly limited to America. In 2011, a 23-year old British student named Richard O’ Dwyer was facing extradition for providing links to copyrighted material. He did not even post the copyrighted material on his page and what he did was not illegal in England. President Obama sent in the U.S. Department of Immigration to extradite him!
How draconian is this law? This law is so draconian that say you were to upload a video with music playing in the background. If the song is a copyrighted song, you may be treated as a felon and sued for hundreds of thousands or millions of US Dollars, or thrown in prison for up to five years, regardless of what country you live in.
• Why we are against SOPA
SOPA will treat millions of every day people worldwide as criminals and felons under the U.S. Justice System.
SOPA will crush hundreds of thousands of independent music artists trying to get name recognition and a growing fan base by not allowing their music to be broadcast to the public.
SOPA will turn the world into a “police state” and will censor sites like YouTube, Twitter, Reddit and many others that people turn to for entertainment.
SOPA will impose denial of service systems which can be easily overridden with no proof it will stop social engineering, posting of copyrighted material, or anything along those lines.
• How to control social engineering
Social Engineering is a very serious problem and needs to be addressed. Some ways to stop it include:
1. If someone is “phishing” you, call the company directly and ask if there is a charge that you need to pay.
2. make sure your anti-virus and firewall software are fully up-to-date.
3. NEVER give your credit card information or personal information to anyone over the internet unless you have a strong encryption.
4. For most social media sites (Facebook, etc.), make sure that you have secure browsing turned on (use https instead of http).
[source] http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lw0l6aTudT1r6mxhwo1_500.gif
 
15 December

Web Design Fuel

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Fuel is a Dublin based design and web solutions company. Services include Website Design as well as Corporate Identity, Branding & Print Design; but Fuel specialise in providing website content management solutions. Fuel have developed completely customised content management solutions on over 80 websites currently running in Ireland and the UK, providing their clients with complete control over all of the website content displayed.
In particular we’d like to point you towards Fuel’s CMS Packages
http://www.fuel.ie/about/packages/
which offer an affordable solutions for all levels of business.
Fuel’s regular clients range from small private companies to mid-sized enterprises. Providing each of their clients with the same professional and personal service, Fuel strives to supply innovative and tailor-made solutions to every project.
For a full portfolio of work and previous clients please visit www.fuel.ie

12 December

Server Virtualisation technology

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If there is anything that the recent recession and the current debt crisis of the United States and Europe have taught us, it is that businesses must save every penny that they can in any way possible.Server virtualisation technology is an advancement which allows businesses, especially those on small budgets, the ability to have the same protection and management of data as enterprise level businesses for a fraction of the cost.Server virtualisation technology is technically placing the data streams of different clients inside of the same physical server while segregating the data streams so as to simulate a dedicated server experience for each of the clients in the physical server. Since the same physical server is being used, each client does not have to pay for the resource of a dedicated server. However, because the server is virtual, each client receives the same resources as they would on a dedicated server.On a virtual server, each client can download different third party apps and even different operating systems without disturbing the other clients on the server. Security is also increased as data leaks in the data stream of one client also do not affect the other clients.
As to the resources that each individual client receives on a virtual server, they may not quite match the resources of a dedicated server, but they are usually enough for all but the largest enterprise level business establishments. Virtual technology also allows the resources of the server to be allocated to the business as they are needed, which saves a business from having to pay too early for services that they do not use or underestimate the services that they do need.
Virtual servers can be managed or unmanaged services. In a managed service, the virtual server host is responsible for all of the maintenance to the server. In unmanaged service, the client is responsible for the maintenance. This is usually only a wise course of action if a business has the manpower and the resources to take care of a server themselves. However, since the server itself is rented from the server hosting company, it is usually the best policy to let the server host take care of it, as they are the ones who actually own the server.
Businesses who are set to grow may also want to invest in an unmetered line. In the unmetered line of a virtual server the amount of data which is able to be streamed through the server has no limit, which will allow for the most growth possible for a business with traffic spikes and constant rises in traffic.
Certain types of software do not run well in virtual environments – this is really the only weakness of server virtualisation technology.
6 December

How a VPN Works

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Because of the prevalence of Internet communication technology, businesses that are in the growing phase these days have the capacity to expand into shops and business offices the world over. To insure the maximum efficiency of operations, the manpower in the new locations has need of a secure, stable and speedy way to share information. Also, any employees that travel need a reliable way to remotely connect to the computer network of the business.

The VPN, or virtual private network, is a popular technology built for problems like these. A virtual private network actually uses a physically public network, most times the Internet, in order to connect users from many remote sites. The connections are routed privately through the Internet from the private network of the business to the remotely located employee. The use of a VPN ensures that anyone who happens to intercept any data encrypted over the data stream can not actually read it.
The VPN is the connection network which connects many local area networks, like a ferry traveling between islands. There may be other people on this ferry, which is the idea of a leased line, which is the idea that the VPN came from. However, the VPN is more like a submarine than a ferry, transporting each individual client along his or her own data stream to get to the island that contains the remote employee.
Physical distance does not actually matter with a VPN, and a VPN is completely scalable, able to add more users much more easily than any other technology which attempts to connect LANs. The security of a VPN is also vastly improved over technologies of the past. Most VPNs now are not restricted by hours, meaning that any person on the business network should be able to access the VPN at any time from any location as well.
There are two main types of VPN.
The remote access VPN is the more common type of VPN. It allows each user to establish connections with other nodes within a business network privately. To have a remote access VPN, two components are necessary. First, a VPN must have a network access server, also called a media gateway. This is the server which the user actually uses to connect to the Internet to access the VPN. The VPN must also have client software. The client software allows the computer that the remote user is using to recognize the VPN that is being accessed and maintain a connection between that computer and the VPN. However, cloud technology is making this client software less and less a requirement as the “client software” can now be held by a third party server to which the remote computer will connect.
If you would like to find out more on how to implement this in your business contact IT Support
18 November

Cloud Computing pros and cons

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Cloud computing, to put it concisely, enables users and organisations to store, retrieve, save and manipulate data and other resources on third-party servers and via the internet. Consider it analogous to the public electricity grid: Consumers pay for the service, without having to possess knowledge about the very complex infrastructure of how that electricity is delivered.
 
 

Pros

1. Cloud computing is especially beneficial to small businesses and organisations, taking a lot of the overhead and specialised computer knowledge of it—and letting another (trusted) party worry about aspects like the security, integrity, and availabitliy of the business’s data.
2. Without often costly and burdensome in-house servers, organisations can save substantially on costly items such as software upgrades and patches, hardware upgrades, and equipment maintenance.
3. Many cloud computing providers (‘hosts’) also provide sometimes-invaluable customer relations services, such as ‘pass through’ billing and even direct billing.
4. Most offer virtually unlimited scalability (the potential for business to grow), support VLANs (virtual local area networks), VPN, and comprehensive “dashboard” controls for immediate access to resources and data.

Cons

1. Cloud customers inevitably have little or no control over the physical equipment their data is hosted on. For instance, in the event of a power outage at a data center (the location where data is physically stored), the client and his/her data is at the mercy of the hosting company AND its ability (or lack of, therein) to quickly restore operations.
2. If history is any indicator, performance (chiefly, the access time for clients or website users) may suffer if the business grows too rapidly and exceeds the capabilities of the hosting company’s servers—granted that there are usually hundreds or even thousands of other clients/sites that are running on the same servers and competing for the same bandwidth.
3. Very sensitive data—like trade secrets and information that’s controlled with regulations, such as HIPAA and PCI—is still one of the biggest concerns among organizations that host large volumes of highly confidential information. However, cloud security, like technology itself, is rapidly advancing.

In Summary

The latter issue is surmountable with due diligence in looking for a cloud host, though. Industry experts say that it’s vital to choose one that is well-established, has a substantial, satisfied customer base, and offers local, automated backup services. Also, choose one that has a clearly-stated DRP (disaster recovery plan) and own their own servers (some hosts share servers with other organizations, sometimes creating conflicts of interest) on their premises.
Equally important is establishing an SLA (service level agreement) with the host. An SLA bounds the service provider to guarantee such things (all in writing) as a minimum, guaranteed speed (e.g. T1, T3, 4xT-1, and so forth), maximum response time to outages, pricing, and comprehensive rights-statement.

10 November

Google Apps for Business

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Google is known for being the number one search engine, but few people recognise the other benefits Google can offer users, especially business users. They offer a Google apps package specifically for business owners that include many comprehensive programmes for a very cheap monthly or yearly price. While not a full list of all the apps, some of the best include Google Sites, Google Cloud Connect, Business Gmail and Google Docs.

Google Sites is an easy-to-use website builder that can be used as a storefront, or it can serve as a back-end website to organize employees. The system is template based, so users do not need to know any HTML or CSS, they just have to click an element and it will be added to the website. Spreadsheets and other business documents can be easily added, which is a plus.
Google Cloud Connect works with the Microsoft Cloud system, allowing users to simultaneously edit documents. It also allows offline changes, and there is a revision history tool so users will know who touched the document last, if there are any problems with an edit. One of the best points is that there are no complex deployment procedures, it can be setup without any extra work.
Gmail is common known as a basic email program, but Gmail for business has quite a few extras. Users receive 25GB of data storage, which should be enough for even large businesses. It can also be synched with iPhone, BlackBerry and Android phones, making mobile business work very easy and convenient. There is also a powerful search feature, so users can quickly find emails, and the spam filter is stronger than with normal email accounts.
With Google Docs users get a range of office programs, but at a very inexpensive price. This includes a spreadsheet, text editor, drawing program and a program for presentations. Since Google Docs is a Web application, files can be easily shared and accessed by employees or associates. This also makes it easier to access the files if users frequently switch between computers.
The pricing for business Google apps is rather inexpensive, especially when compared to similar business app packages. If paying monthly, the fee is only €5, and the yearly fee is €40, saving €10 a year. There can be an unlimited number of users, and there are many benefits to getting a paid account. Google will be available for phone and email support, they have powerful SSL protection, there are APIs to customize programs and users get higher storage capacities than if using Google apps for free.
These apps will help organize a business’s online presence, will make it easier for workers to do their work and projects can be easily coordinated.
1 November

Top 5 PC Cleaning tools

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One of the most important things about owning a computer, whether for personal or for business reasons, is how to keep that computer clean. However (especially with Microsoft heavy computers), every company is out for a buck, and some of them simply do not have products that do the job. To keep you away from the losers, here is a list of the top 5 computer cleaning tools that are on the market today.

 
– Defraggler
Defraggler is simply just a better option than the Windows default defrag option. It takes up much less space and does the job much faster than Windows does. And unlike the default option that comes with Windows, you can pick and choose the files that you want to defrag. This makes the process a lot less painful.
– nCleaner
If there is ever a Swiss army knife of cleaning a computer, then this is it. Sometimes you just do not know exactly what you need to clean in your computer, and with nCleaner, that is ok. With this app, you can clean your entire system, tweak your settings, manage your startup files, and find the junk that you do not need on your computer. nCleaner can actually take the place of a number of programs. It is also much easier to use than the many programs that you were probably using. It has great default settings for those who do not really know what they are doing, and for those that do, you can really get down and dirty with your cleaning process. The program is also very clear with you about the changes that it is making on your computer, unlike many of the programs that love to talk in code that they seem to know that you can not understand.
– AVG Free
One of the most acclaimed free virus fighting software packages on the Internet, some tout it as the out and out best. No matter what anyone says, no one has ever said that it did not do the job. The protection is pretty basic, offering just antivirus and anti spyware stuff (no Internet monitoring), but you shouldn’t be visiting those crazy sites that you visit anyway, so that is your fault. On top of that, you don’t have anything to complain about – the program is completely free.
– Malware Bytes
Some antivirus programs, even the ones that purport to clean your entire hard drive, sometimes just pick up the viruses and completely miss the spyware/malware, which is sometimes even more damaging because it works in the background tracking you online and secretly providing information to the leak, unlike viruses, which tend to show themselves. Malware Bytes is one of the best spyware removal tools on the Internet today.
– Ccleaner
If your computer is still slow after downloading all of the above programs, then you might have some temporary files still on your computer. That is the specialty of this program, remove all your junk on your compute.
Use this to round out your protection efforts.
19 October

Top 5 Twitter clients

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Top 5 Twitter clients
Even if you are not impressed with the Twitter site itself, the application continues to expand its usefulness by fostering many add on clients which can definitely add to the experience of both the individual using Twitter for personal things or the business using Twitter to promote a product or service.
Below are the top 5 Twitter clients that you should give a try, especially if you are a small business on a budget or a growing business in need of that next big promotion.
5 – DestroyTwitter
Perhaps the most ingeniously named of the top 5 Twitter clients, at least for the sake of publicity, DestroyTwitter is a client that is perfect for the mobile environment, one column and customizable.
 
4 – Tweetie
With the best looking GUI that any Twitter client has, Tweetie can provide many services as a Twitter add on far past the added value of its great look. With Tweetie you can pull streams of information right off of your Twitter page. If you see something that you are very invested in, you can keep the entire stream on another screen if you so wish.
 
3 – Seesmic
Although this app is not yet available on the iPhone, on any other platform it works very well and is a must have. Seesmic is a great addition to both Twitter and Facebook services, giving you the power to shut on and off the notifications that you want to receive, the URL shortening that you want to use or not use, which image hosting services that you like the most, and even the size of your event timeline, which will become even more important as per the recent announcement that Facebook will be placing added relevance to the event timeline.
2 – Brizzly
Brizzly is Twitter times two. This application actually does not add much functionality; it just makes what Twitter already is look much better. For instance, you do not have to worry about expanding any URLs that have been shortened, pics and videos are automatically thumbnailed for your viewing pleasure, and your useful links are not lost with scrolling action, as it is on the regular Twitter interface. This supercharged version of Twitter is freely available on the web, another reason to update to it as soon as you can.
1 – Tweetdeck
Tweetdeck is the flickering night light to the social media butterfly. With this innovative Twitter client, a social media buff can monitor his or her social media accounts all at once on the same screen, including Twitter. You can also manage multiple Twitter accounts from the same Tweetdeck, a must have for business users. You can also sync and backup your profile to other devices as well.

3 October

Google Apps vs Microsoft 365

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The fight between Microsoft and Google battling for supremacy is nothing new. Both tech giants struggle for relevance in a world where Facebook gains momentum every day. In the cloud, however, the two behemoths compete with just themselves in the lunch line, each hoping to get the choice business from the lucrative cloud-hungry government and business markets.
Web-Based Interface
Microsoft hopes to downplay how the core of its office suite resides locally, not in the cloud with its Office 365 Web-based tools. Hoping to sell a mix of Web-based and cloud-based applications, Microsoft wants its customers to enjoy a blend of old and new technologies as it scrambles to bring the rest of its suite into the cloud.
 
From the get-go, Google seems poised to make major gains in the enterprise, mainly because all of its office applications already reside in the cloud. Companies unwilling to accept Microsoft’s plan to mix cloud and local apps find a capable competitor in Google. Its cloud-based product is mature and already proven in the enterprise. Google buttresses its position as the solution for the present in its native mobile apps that allow people to work from anywhere.
 
 
Price
Google’s already huge lead versus Microsoft in the cloud has extra momentum because of its price. Google lists its service at €4 a month for each user or an annual payment of €40 per user. This compares with €5.25 per user for Office 365 for Professionals and Small Business. This package includes the Office Web Apps tools, but it only serves 25 or fewer users.
The basic package includes features equivalent to the old Business Productivity Online Standard Suite (BPOS) costs €9 per user per month, but it does not come with the Web-based apps. The top-tier Office 365 enterprise package costs a list price of €22.75 per user. This adds the Office Web Apps package to the standard Office 365 features.
Google has a significant price advantage, especially for customers who want more Web-based applications. Remember, even when buying the Enterprise package, the productivity applications such as Word and Excel still run on the local desktop.
Speed
Google boasts a speed advantage over Microsoft in areas where the latter has the wherewithal to compete. From mail to collaboration, Google has optimized its Apps suite for the Web. Its speed trounces Microsoft’s offerings, even when companies serve them from the premises.
Accessibility
We already noted that Google beats Microsoft by providing native mobile apps that keep people productive wherever they have their smartphone or tablet. However, the accessibility of Google Apps goes beyond that to include its uptime guarantee. Although Microsoft and Google both pledge to have nearly 100% uptime, Microsoft exempts itself from maintenance downtime; Google includes it. Coupled with its public status board, Google seems to have the clear upper-hand when it comes to offering an accessible and reliable cloud-based office platform.
And the winner is…
Google clearly has emerged as the strongest player in the battle for the enter price cloud. It doesn’t match Microsoft feature-by-feature (for example, Google doesn’t offer multi-party videoconferencing and meetings), but it does offer a product ready to meet their customers in the cloud where IT has headed for years.
Microsoft probably will manage to limp along until it gets its entire suite in the cloud. Until it does, Google will continue to beat up Microsoft and probably take its lunch money too.
Want help setting up Google apps let us know.
27 September

Using smartphones in your Business

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Using a smartphone is becoming one of the best things one can do for business. These devices have revolutionized the way that business works. No longer are individuals stuck at desks and cubicles all day and chained to their computers.
The influx of smartphone use is because these smart phone and cell phone combinations have made It possible to check e-mail, work on the road, stay in touch with news, and even stay in touch with the office no matter where one might happen to be. There are a number of devices out there and quite a few things to consider and look for when choosing a device. To understand what will work best in a particular business it is important to understand how all the features and benefits affect doing business.
E-mail on the go
E-mail on the go has become an essential thing to look for in a smartphone. Many contemporary devices such as Blackberry, iPhone, and Android devices have this standard with their service. It is important to look into your phone plan in order to make sure your data plan accommodated being able to send and receive email, as this is usually a feature that doesn’t affect the total data usage on many plans.
 
Apps
Applications on smartphones are particularly important, however, different types of business facilitate a variety of needs in the way of apps. Google apps on android are atop of the competition when it comes to smart phone applications. This is because the Android operating system is open source and has a variety of programs as anyone can develop for this device. This means there are many more free applications as well as many standard ones for sale via the internet. If you have a smartphone such as an iPhone or a Blackberry it is essential to make sure you research all of the apps out there that can help make your business run better and more efficiently.
Syncing with your desktop
Many programs automatically sync with your desktop computer. This is important so you do not have to transfer data from your smart phone to your desktop in order to access it. Applications that provide calendar on the go syncing can be a real help when it comes to conducting business. This is done via your smartphones data plan and cuts down on a lot of the work you would otherwise have to do. Having your smart phone work for you is essential. This is why it is a good idea to check out other file on the go apps. Services such as evernote and dropbox allow for sharing files via the internet. This can make it easy to access a set group of files from your pc, as long as you save them in the appropriate folder, without having to remember to send them to yourself online.
 
If you are thinking of conducting business with the aid of a smartphone you are on the right track. Make sure you know what to look for in a device before committing to a phone contract. Doing research online is essential, so make sure you look up as much information on a particular smartphone, applications to assist with business, and how to get the device you are looking for at the best price out there.

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