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5 Things You Should Do Before Calling IT

We’ve all been there; the point of no return when technology has turned its back on us, leaving us high and dry. As frustrating as this scenario is, it is not uncommon, especially in the workplace. Keeping your cool when dealing with misbehaving or unresponsive technology is an important step on the path to staying sane at work. Although it is tempting to immediately call Information Technology (IT) when a computer crisis occurs, try following these steps before picking up your phone for quick and easy fixes.

1. Reboot: Yes, this idea is as basic as it sounds but you’d be surprised how many employees don’t try this simple step before calling for help. If your computer is giving you trouble, try turning it off and back on again. Believe it or not, at times computers get confused just like us. This confusion can sometimes result in the computer attempting an incorrect action and receiving an error message. The reboot will potentially clear your computer of confusion and save you an embarrassing phone call.

2. Check the plug: If you’re having trouble with one of the accessories attached to your computer, confirm that the hardware is plugged in and turned on. For example, if you are receiving error messages when trying to print, check out the printer. Is it plugged in correctly? Did you try plugging it back in? Is it turned on? If it’s a printer, does it have paper? Answer all of the basic questions you can think of because these are the preliminary questions IT will ask you. The closer you look at your hardware, the smoother your phone conversation with support will be.

3. Force quit: This quick and easy step may be the answer to all of your questions. For PC users, this command is known as Ctrl + Alt + Delete, while Mac users select Command + Option + Escape. Forcing your computer into this action will allow you the opportunity to look at your Task Manager. Task Manager will show you all the programs currently running, as well as those that aren’t responding or “frozen.” If you do have an unresponsive program, you will be able to manually quit via the Task Manager and, hopefully, free up your computer’s ability to run smoothly.

4. Support forums: Check out online support forums that offer general support and answers for your computer. Whether you’re a Mac or a PC, you should be able to find answers to basic questions others have had in the past. The research may also help you become more familiar with your technology, teaching you things you didn’t know before.

5. Gather information: If you have exhausted all other means and still need to call IT, know some basic information about your computer before dialing. Be ready to give IT the type of operating system you’re running, what applications were open when the error occurred, when the problem occurred, what error message came up during your issues, and what you were trying to do. Depending on your office policy, there may be other information you need to know, including warranty information, purchase date, and the serial number. When in doubt, gather what you can, call IT, and ask to call them back if you need to collect further information from your supervisor.

Without question, technology enhances life and makes our workload easier. That being said, it can also cause quite a few headaches when errors arise. Knowing these simple steps when trouble comes will save you time on the phone with IT.

Posted by Movin' On Up

Get some privacy on Facebook

New York - Over the past week, Facebook has been nudging its users - first gently, then firmly - to review and update their privacy settings.

You may have procrastinated by hitting "skip for now", but Facebook eventually took away that button and forced you to update your settings before continuing to use the site.

After finally accepting Facebook's recommendations or tweaking the privacy settings yourself, though, you might have made more information about you public than what you had intended.

At the same time, Facebook has given users many granular controls over their privacy, more than what's available on other major social networks.

So if you want to stay out of people's view, but still want to be on Facebook, here are some things to look out for as you take another look at your settings.

1. Some of your information is viewable by everyone

Everyone can see your name, your profile photo and the names of work and school networks you're part of. Ditto for pages you are a fan of.

If you are worried about a potential employer finding out about a quirky fetish or unorthodox political leaning, avoid becoming a Facebook fan of such groups. You can't tell Facebook you don't want those publicly listed.

Your gender and current city are also available, if you choose to specify them. You can uncheck "Show my sex in my profile" when you edit your profile if you don't want it listed, and you can leave "Current City" blank.

2. Your list of friends may also be public

Facebook also considers your friends list publicly available information. Privacy advocates worry that much can be gleaned from a person's list of friends - even sexual orientation, according to one MIT study.

But there is a way to hide the list. Go to your profile page and click on the little blue pencil icon on the top right of your box of friends. Uncheck "Show Friend List to everyone". Either way, those you are already friends with can always see your full list.

3. You can hide yourself from web searches

There is a section for "Search" under Facebook's privacy settings page, which is accessible from the top right corner of the website under "Settings".

If you click the "Allow" box next to "Public Search Results", the information that Facebook deems publicly available (such as photo, fan pages and list of friends), along with anything else you have made available to everyone, will show up when someone looks up your name on a search engine such as Google. The stuff you've limited access to in your profile will not show up.

This is useful if you want people you've lost touch with, or potential work contacts, to be able to find your Facebook page. If you'd rather not be found, uncheck this box.

A second setting, controlling searches within Facebook, lets you refine who can find you once that person has logged on. Limit searches to friends only if you think you have all the friends you need and don't want anyone to find you when they type in your name to Facebook.

4. Beware of third-party applications

Quizzes and games are fun, but each time you take one, you first authorise it to access your profile information, even if you have made that available only to your friends. You're also letting the app access some information on your friends.

Under "Application Settings," Facebook lists all the apps you have opened your profile up to. If you no longer want to authorise access to "Which Golden Girl Are You?" you can always remove it by clicking on the "X" next to its name.

Apps you use regularly, such as Facebook for Android if you update your status from your cellphone, should stay.

Next, by clicking on "Applications and Websites" on the privacy settings page, you can edit whether your friends can share your birthday, photos and other specific information. Remember that applications can access your "publicly available information" no matter what.

The security firm Sophos recommends users set their privacy settings for two of Facebook's own popular applications, notes and photos, to friends only.

5. Go over your list of friends

The average Facebook user has 130 friends. But many people interact with a much smaller group when commenting on status updates, photos and links. So it doesn't hurt to occasionally review your list of your friends to get an idea of just who can view your status posts, vacation photos and funny links you've shared over the years.

Don't feel obligated to add anyone as a friend, even if that person adds you first. For professional acquaintance you don't want to snub, send them to a LinkedIn profile you can set up. Some workplaces and schools have rules about Facebook interactions between bosses and employees or students and teachers.

6. Create custom friends groups

If you have friended a lot of people, sort them. Think of the groups you interact with in real life - co-workers, college buddies, girlfriends, grandma and grandpa - and organise your Facebook friends in these groups, too.

Go to "All Friends" under the "Friends" button up top, click on "Create New List" and fire away. Then decide what aspects of your profile, and which status posts and photos, these people will have access to. Or, simply create a "limited" list for acquaintances or distant relatives and limit their access.

7. Customise your status posts

Type "I'm hungry" into your status update box. Click on the little lock icon. You'll see a range of privacy controls pop up, letting you either allow or limit access to the post. If you want, you can even hide it from everyone by clicking "Only Me" under the custom settings. Click on "Save Setting". Repeat with each post, or create a default setting for most updates and increase or decrease privacy as you see fit.

8. Let your friends know you have boundaries - in person

Many of us have woken up on a Sunday morning to find that an overzealous friend has posted dozens of photos from that wild party we barely remembered - the good, the bad and the hideous.

Chances are, they didn't do this to embarrass you, though if they did you have bigger problems. Rather, they probably don't know that you don't want these photos posted.

Sure, tweak your photo privacy settings on Facebook. But if someone starts snapping pictures of you at a party, ask them to check with you before posting it anywhere.

9. Never assume complete privacy

Even for the most tech-savvy person, unflattering photos, incriminating text messages or angry status posts about work have a way of worming their way out in the open.

Written by: Barbara Ortutay, http://www.news24.com/Content/SciTech/News/1132/98a9f1145b454021a669a850079c3637/18-12-2009-07-35/Get_some_privacy_on_Facebook accessed 21 December 2009

Tips about forwarding emails

How to forward Email, make it your own and why.
You probably know this, but it is worth making sure. 

It is an excellent message that ABSOLUTELY applies to ALL of us who send email's.  Please read the short letter below, even if you're sure you already follow proper procedures.

Do you really know how to forward email's?  50% of us do; 50% DO NOT.

Do you wonder why you get viruses or junk mail? Do you hate it?  Every time you forward an email there is information left over from the people who got the message before you, namely their email addresses and names.  As the messages get forwarded along, the list of addresses builds, and builds, and builds, and all it takes is for some poor sap to get a virus, and his or her computer can send that virus to every email address that has come across his computer.

Or, someone can take all of those addresses and sell them or send junk mail to them in the hopes that you will go to the site and he will make five cents for each hit.  That's right, all of that inconvenience over a few cents!

How do you stop it?

Well, there are several easy steps. Try the following if you haven't done it before:

(1)   When you forward an email, DELETE all of the other addresses that appear in the body of the message (at the top). That's right, DELETE them.  Highlight them and delete them, backspace them, cut them, whatever it is you know how to do.  It only takes a second.   You MUST click the "Forward" button first and then you will have full editing capabilities against the body and headers of the message you've received.  If you don't click on "Forward" first, you won't be able to edit the message at all.

(2)   Whenever you send an email to more than one person, do NOT use the To: or Cc: fields for adding email addresses.   Always use the BCC:(blind carbon copy) field for listing ALL the email addresses.  This is the way the people you send to will only see their own email address.  If you don't see your BCC: option click on where it says To: and your address list will appear.  Highlight the address and choose BCC: and that's it, it's that easy.  When you send to BCC: your message will automatically say "Undisclosed Recipients" or your own name in the "TO:" field of the people who receive it.

(3)  Remove any "FW :" in the subject line.  You can re-name the subject if you wish or even fix spelling.

(4)  ALWAYS hit your Forward button from the actual email you are reading!

Ever get those emails that you have to open 10 pages to read the one page with the information on it?

By Forwarding from the actual page you wish someone to view, you stop them from having to open many emails just to see what you sent.

(5)   Have you ever gotten an email that is a petition?

It states a position and asks you to add your name and address and to forward it to 10 or 15 people or your entire address book.  The email can be forwarded on and on and can collect thousands of names and email addresses.   A FACT:The completed petition is actually worth a couple of bucks to a professional spammer because of the wealth of valid names and email addresses contained therein.

DO NOT put your email address on any petition! 

If you want to support the petition, send it as your own personal letter to the intended recipient.  Your position may carry more weight as a personal letter than a laundry list of names and email addresses on a petition.

(And don't believe the ones that say that the email is being traced; it just ain't so!)

ACTUAL FACT: Most e-mail petitions are worthless because they do not fully identify the signer by street address, etc. nor does it prove that the signer really signed it. Don't forward them. 

Some of the other emails to delete and not forward are:
a. The one that says something like, "Send this email to 10 people and you'll see something great run across your screen."  Or sometimes they'll just tease you by saying 'something really cute will happen.'   IT AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN!!!!!  I repeat.... IT AIN"T GONNA HAPPEN!!!!! (No matter how many you send it to or how long you wait.... IT AIN"T GOING TO HAPPEN!!!!!!!! We are still seeing some of the same emails that we waited on 10 years ago!)

b. I don't let the bad luck ones scare me either, they should get trashed. 

c. Before you forward an 'Amber Alert', or a'Virus Alert', or some of the other emails floating around nowadays, check them out before you forward them. Most of them are junk mail that's been circling the internet for YEARS!  Just about everything you receive in an email that is in question can be checked out at Snopes.  Just go to www.snopes.com.  It's really easy to find out if it's real or not. If it's not, please don't pass it on.

So please, in the future, let's stop the junk mail and the viruses.

Also get rid of the advertisements at the bottom of your emails! You pay for your internet, why advertise free for them? If they want advertisement let them pay you to use your space!!!!

12 Expert Google Search Tips

12 Expert Google Search Tips

1. Explicit Phrase:
   Lets say you are looking for content about internet marketing.  Instead of just typing internet marketing into the Google search box, you will likely be better off searching explicitly for the phrase.  To do this, simply enclose the search phrase within double quotes.

   Example: "internet marketing"

2. Exclude Words:
   Lets say you want to search for content about internet marketing, but you want to exclude any results that contain the term advertising.  To do this, simply use the "-" sign in front of the word you want to exclude.

   Example Search: internet marketing -advertising

3. Site Specific Search:
   Often, you want to search a specific website for content that matches a certain phrase.  Even if the site doesn’t support a built-in search feature, you can use Google to search the site for your term. Simply use the "site:somesite.com" modifier.

   Example: "internet marketing" site:www.smallbusinesshub.com

4. Similar Words and Synonyms:
   Let’s say you are want to include a word in your search, but want to include results that contain similar words or synonyms.  To do this, use the "~" in front of the word.

   Example: "internet marketing" ~professional

5. Specific Document Types:
   If you’re looking to find results that are of a specific type, you can use the modifier "filetype:".  For example, you might want to find only PowerPoint presentations related to internet marketing.

   Example: "internet marketing" filetype:ppt

6. This OR That:
   By default, when you do a search, Google will include all the terms specified in the search.  If you are looking for any one of one or more terms to match, then you can use the OR operator.  (Note:  The OR has to be capitalized).

   Example: internet marketing OR advertising

7. Phone Listing:
   Let’s say someone calls you on your mobile number and you don’t know how it is.  If all you have is a phone number, you can look it up on Google using the phonebook feature.

   Example: phonebook:617-555-1212 (note:  the provided number does not work – you’ll have to use a real number to get any results).

8. Area Code Lookup:
   If all you need to do is to look-up the area code for a phone number, just enter the 3-digit area code and Google will tell you where it’s from.

   Example: 617

9. Numeric Ranges:
   This is a rarely used, but highly useful tip.  Let’s say you want to find results that contain any of a range of numbers.  You can do this by using the X..Y modifier (in case this is hard to read, what’s between the X and Y are two periods. This type of search is useful for years (as shown below), prices or anywhere where you want to provide a series of numbers.

   Example: president 1940..1950

10. Stock (Ticker Symbol):
    Just enter a valid ticker symbol as your search term and Google will give you the current financials and a quick thumb-nail chart for the stock.

    Example: GOOG

11. Calculator:
    The next time you need to do a quick calculation, instead of bringing up the Calculator applet, you can just type your expression in to Google.

    Example: 48512 * 1.02

12. Word Definitions:
    If you need to quickly look up the definition of a word or phrase, simply use the "define:" command.

    Example: define:plethora

Hope this list of Google search tips proves useful in your future Google searches.  If there are any of your favorite Google expert power tips that I’ve missed, please feel free to share them in the comments.