Computer Orange | Your Trusted IT Specialists Located in Downtown Boca Raton

2012 has finally arrived, along with new year resolutions a mile long.  We have a few resolutions of our own which will hopefully get your tired, overworked PC in better shape for the new year.  Our 7-day makeover series for your PC should add a boost of energy to your computer system.

DAY 1: BACK UP YOUR DATA

This ranks with all the important warnings and bits of advice you've heard over the years like "Remember to floss" and "Get at least 30 minutes of exercise each day."  We know you know that backing up your data is important.  Nevertheless, we have scores of customers who bring in a PC with a failing hard drive which houses all the adorable pictures of their daughter's sixth birthday party only to inform them that the data is lost forever.  Learn from the mistakes of others and start backing up your data today before you lose something irreplaceable.

To get started, consider opening a free account with Mozy.  You'll get 2GB to store your photos, music, and other files.  With Mozy, you can automatically backup your data and encrypt your files.  It also comes with iPhone and Android apps.  There is absolutely no set up fees and you never have to surrender your credit card.

Click on the Mozy Logo for more info.

Do you look for signs that a website is trustworthy before you give up your credit card information? Here are few tips and pointers on how to recognize a safe place that you can trust with your information:

• Ensure that you know who is operating the website and whether or not the company is legitimate.
• Look for a seal from an independent site verification program like AVG LinkScanner®.
• Make sure that you can see the padlock sign before you submit your personal information.  The padlock symbol should be visible in your browster status bar.  This ensures that the site is secure and using encrypted (https).

Don't provide your personal information if:

• Your antivirus or web browser flags the website as dangerous
• You received a link to the website in an email from someone you don't know.
• You get a pop-up about security certificate issues (not signed by a valid authority etc) when you access the website

Computer Orange is a team of dedicated IT consultants who specialize in business network administration, computer repair, and website design.  Contact us at 561.771.0101 for a free consultation.

We are convinced that Google is on a mission to take over the world.  In fact, we think Google knows us more about us than our own mothers.  Conspiracy theories aside, they make the internet cool.  Since its introduction, Google Chrome has been giving Internet Explorer and Firefox a run for their money and rightly so.  We have been hooked since the day we shrugged and decided to take it for a test run.  Without question, it is one of the best browsers we have ever had the pleasure to use.

Here are the 5 things we love about Google Chrome:

01.It's really fast.  Pages load in no time, much faster than in Firefox or Internet Explorer. It has done wonders for our productivity.

02.Google Search Simplified. In fact you search directly from the address bar!  We no longer have to go to "google.com" first in order to perform a search query.  Google has possibly added years back to our lives with this feature alone.

03.It's Secure. Google Chrome  is considered to be more secure than Internet Explorer and Firefox.  It emerged victorious when a team of security experts tried to exploit all the browsers in search for bugs.

04.Incognito Mode.  The incognito mode in Chrome is an ultra cool (and handy) feature. Just press Ctrl+Shift+n to slip into stealth mode.  Google Chrome offers the ultimate in private browsing: Webpages and downloaded files are not recorded in history and all your cookies are deleted once you close all incognito windows.

05.It's from Google (Obviously). We do love Google and we believe it hasn't even reached its full potential yet.

 

Ready to take the plunge? Click here to download Google Chrome now.

Are you a black diamond, blue square or green circle traveler?

• (Black diamond: experts who know what to do and how to do it ( shoes & coats off, metal in the tray, laptops out)

• Blue square: most of us ..casual travelers.

• Green circle: those who need assistance and families.

Whatever your status, here are some hints from the Black Diamonds among us to minimize the travel hassle and, maybe, even make it more efficient:

1.TripIt.com: A terrific free web site. Save time: instead of manually typing your travel data (flights, confirmation numbers, times, dates, car rental, etc.) into your phone or computer, this site allows you to forward the email confirmation to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it which, in turn automatically records all of those details. AND, you can subscribe to your personal Tripit feed…now your computer or cell phone calendar will record these details automatically!!

2.FightTrack Pro: Want to know even before the airlines do if your flight is delayed, where the flight is currently (on a map), gate number, etc. For $10 this app will allow you to do all of this and even more. AND, it auto-syncs with Tripit.com. Good bye manual entering of anything!

3. Phone check in: Each airline has its own iPhone or Android app for this. Your phone displays a bar code which is supposed to replace the paper boarding pass. Unfortunately, not every airline is created equal. Delta seems to be the best of the airlines. After opening the app, you tap Check in and it displays your “boarding pass” as a big black & white bar code…along with other details: gate number, seat number, seating zone and Delta’s customer service number.

When you get to the security gate, show the code on your phone to the first guard. Then proceed to the TSA person who actually checks you in (ID & boarding pass inspection). You put your phone face down in a glass scanner and you go right through.

Checking in on your phone offers extra bonuses: you are being green (saves paper), you don’t have to remember to p/u the pass from your printer and perhaps lose it on the way to the airport, AND you might get a free upgrade before those people who wait until they reach the airport to check in.

4. Kayak & FlightAware:

a. Kayak: (free for iPhone & Android): fast app for searching available flights. You can’t purchase tickets but it allows you to filter you preferred departure and arrival times.

b. FlightAware.com (also Flightwise app for iPhone or Android):For those who are picking up passenger(s) this allows you to see actual flight positions on a map and exactly when it will land.

5. Which flights are laptop-friendly?: Many flights now have Gogo’s inflight WiFi and power outlets. The cost is usually around $13 (for cross country), less for shorter flights. Use seatguru.com to find out this availability and also to get a comparison of the seat “cramp” factor of the different airlines.

Hope this information helps in some small way to make your travel experience less troublesome!