Ok, the computer company/brand I’m going to refer to in today’s blog entry is not actually g-Machine. The name has been changed to protect the not-so-innocent.

For the most part, g-Machines are midrange-power PCs sold to consumers at a very low price point. They are typically $200 to $300 less than an equivalently specified brand such as Dell or IBM. My advice is to never buy these low end brands, or any off-brand PC for that matter.

What looks like a great value – isn’t a value for very long.

The lure of low cost (The Blessing) can cloud a customer’s perception of reality. (The Curse) Even after consumers have experienced a failure and have asked Centrend to fix the computer out of warranty, they are sometimes very defensive of their buying strategy. They’ll make statements like, “It was a great deal at only $399. I’ve never had any trouble with the g-Machine until now and unfortunately it’s just out of warranty.” Or they’ll say, “I’ve only had one problem with it in two years and they gave me a brand new one.” I asked what it cost to have the data transferred from the old machine and the reply is either, “They wouldn’t help me with that, but they let me buy the old drive for $35.” Or they report that it cost between two hundred and three hundred dollars to get the data converted over. Or worse yet, they report that it was the hard drive that failed and they were not offered any data recovery services.

All computers will eventually fail. It’s not a question, but a certainty. I don’t know about you, but I’d rather pay an extra $200 for a machine that is going to last longer and leave me with support options than a cheaper machine from a company that leaves me high and dry.

I’d love to hear my readers’ opinion on this. Whether you buy the low end g-Machine or the top of the line Dell Precision Workstation, the result will is always the same. You’ll get what you pay for.

Today’s blog entry is really important for Microsoft Outlook users that want to back up their data file.

What you need to know about backing up your personal folder in Microsoft Outlook is that all it’s data is contained in just one file. That means that it should be easy to back up the single file that contains all your email, calendar, task, and contact data. The challenge is if you’re data file is in it’s default location, it’s in a hidden folder deep in your documents and settings profile tree. Most users will not be able to see this file, let alone recognize it as the one to back up.

Fortunately, Microsoft provides a free utility to make it easy to back up your outlook data file on a regular basis. The program can be set up to remind you to make a backup of Outlook each time you exit the program.

Once you download and run the installer, you can tell the program where to send your backup copy. I suggest a memory stick or
External USB hard drive. In the event of a hard drive crash of your C; drive, you’ll have a backup copy on the external device that you can easily restore from. Centrend recommends that these backups be stored offsite in a secure location or locked in a fireproof safe. If there is ever a disaster (lightening, fire, water problem) you can restore your Outlook data file to replacement hardware in minutes.

You should also know that centrend can install an automatic process that will automatically backup outlook and all your other data as well and send it to an online backup facility for as little as $7/month without you having to give it a second thought. Your outlook data and all your other data is encrypted prior to transmission to the online, remote data center. Please remember that copying files and outlook data to external drives without encryption means anyone can take the USB Hard drive or memory stick and have your data.

If you need help setting up a backup solution for your personal computer or your entire organization, contact us for a free consultation. A link to the page where you can find detailed instructions and the the file to download and install can be found right here.

You’ve received them. It’s not really spam because it’s sent by someone you know and trust. It contains a heartfelt poem about troops in Iraq or something similar, followed by a request to, “Pass this along to ten of your friends. Don’t break the chain.” Maybe it’s the one asking you to join us all in boycotting a major oil company on a certain date, “…spread the word to everyone on your e-mail list". One of my favorites is the ridiculous story about spiders found under toilet lids and you better warn everyone you know! The e-mail messages I’m talking about all have one thing in common: the sender is requesting that you propagate the message as much as possible. That is the goal of chain e-mail campaigns.

These types of e-mail campaigns are a form of virus, and it bothers me every time someone I know falls for it. The problem is that most people forwarding these are innocent victims, with best intentions. The creators of these campaigns prey on our empathy, sympathy and ignorance. One of the most common is the virus hoax, typically a message sent to you containing a warning about some new computer super-virus that will wipe out your entire hard drive. The common thought among recipients is “better safe than sorry", so the message is forwarded to everyone on his or her contact list (which, incidentally, is another way spammers like to harvest valid e-mail addresses).

How much personal productivity and company resources do these e-mail campaigns consume? I know, some of these messages are darn cute, complete with pictures of smiling babies or playful puppies, but begin multiplying them, by the hundreds of thousands, and it soon becomes a noticeable burden on our networks. For most organizations, we find significant cause to warrant policy evaluation and perhaps some sort of administrative pro-action. Does your organization feel that this is just a part of the cost of doing business, or do you want to curtail it, conserve resources and improve productivity?

You may be asking if spam filtering programs can be set to filter out e-mail chain viruses. Some e-mail security filters can be set to block based on certain content. There are other proposed methods of capturing these e-mail chains with algorithms applied over networks based on sender-recipient traffic data, but there is always the danger of blocking legitimate, desired communications.

The best thing for you to do is to break the chain … do not forward these e-mails (I know some are tempting). Additionally, if you are willing to be vigilant, there are authorities on the web for you to consult which keep databases of known e-mail chains. If you’re not sure about this problem, then contact an IT consultant such as Centrend.

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Bill Bowman is the Senior Technology Advisor for Centrend, Inc., the IT Outsourcing Company focusing on the prevention of business related problems through effective technology solutions. For assessment of your e-mail system and its related policies, contact Centrend at 1-888-558-9550.

In a recent Technology Planning Session with a customer, it was discovered that they would really benefit from implementing a technology called SharePoint Services.

For those of you not familiar, SharePoint is a content management system that lets the end-users of a web site dynamically add and update content themselves. Administrative costs are low and when the SharePoint server is connected with the rest of the company’s information systems, a very high level of integration is achieved.

For example, suppose an organization is using the SharePoint site to store policies and procedures and to provide a kiosk in the cafeteria where employees can view the latest company information. Revision control is automatic and an email can be generated to a distribution list when a certain document is updated.

The participants in the session became so excited, they wanted us to end the meeting early and go start building them a template so they could create begin using it right away.

I had to put the brakes on! We didn’t know what needed to be built yet. Without slowing things down too much, I helped them take a step back and think about how the site would be used. Once they knew all the different things it could do, the planning team could make good decisions about what features would help their company, and what features would only add complexity and never be used. Some of the areas of discussion included:

1. Who will the users be?
2. Will some users need read-only access while others will have full control?
3. Will the users be internal or external to the organization?
4. What email integration is possible with the current systems in place?
5. Does the organization already have a server in place that can securely host the site?
6. Will the site be safe behind the firewall?

Keep the horse before the cart! To attain a successful implementation of any type of information system, it’s important to ask the right questions. To ask the right questions, you have to know the right questions to ask - and then be able to translate the answers into a technology solution. This is Centrend’s specialty.

In this blog entry, I’ll dispel a myth about how long PCs should last and how we can predict when you’ll need to upgrade or replace office PCs…and how making the right decision will result in big dividends for your business.

First, the myth…”By the time I get all my software installed and the machine set up the way I want, it will be time to replace my PC already.”

This statement is a myth because if PC technology is purchased correctly and strategically for your environment and for the specific users that will be on the systems, machines should last several years without needing significant upgrade or replacement. So, how has this myth impacted your business?

The myth only holds true for those that buy the cheapest department store PC or Dell’s cheapest online special. Those machines are engineered for a low price point and are usually not going to hold up well in a business environment. Acquiring sub-performance machines for your business will not only result in a drain on productivity compounded over time, but there will be other financial impacts as well.

It’s also possible to overbuy technology, which is just as costly to the organization. While it’s true that when you buy much more than you need you end up with a fast computer that cost much more than the average PC, you run the risk of the inevitable shift in core technology that occurs every couple years. Part of you’re investment is lost because you are left with a fast computer that still can’t run the latest applications because of technology advances in areas such as processor (CPU) or graphics chipsets (GPU).

The costs of buying incorrectly are quite high, so it’s very important to make the right purchasing decisions at the right time. So, the question you should be asking is, “How do I buy PC technology appropriate to my needs and user environment?”

Centrend has an extensive process for analyzing our customer’s environment which we call our Technology Assessment. While the scope of our technology assessment results in much more than a guideline for purchasing PCs, here a few of the key areas that we look at in the assessment that provide valuable input for making the right PC technology upgrade and replacement decisions:

1. What is the age and type of existing equipment?
2. What maintenance plan has been followed to prolong the serviceability of the machines operating system and components?
3. In what departments and for what specific power users is the best technology required? (Likely strategy is to replace these users computers first and push their machines down the line)
4. What software upgrades of critical systems are anticipated or what new software technology is expected within the planning horizon?

The best advice I can offer is, don’t wait! Take the time now to explore and discover your PC technology situation and have a replacement plan in place so you don’t get blindsided with the sudden requirement to replace a lot of your machines all at once.

Will your organization need to upgrade some or all of your PCs and server or networking technology soon? Do you need help determining when to upgrade and what kind of investment to make? Contact Centrend today for a free consultation and for more information about our Technology Assessment program.

Many organizations use instant messaging (IM) to facilitate communication between employees and to make themselves more accessible to key contacts outside their company. For example, a purchasing agent can send an instant message to a customer service representative (CSR) and ask if a product is in stock. The CSR will receive the message on her screen and be able to instantly reply. If the CSR is not at her desk when the message arrives, the message will be placed in a queue for review upon return to her desk.

Instant messaging has become a great new standard for taking customer service to the next level – it enables fast response, efficiency through multitasking, and the ever-increasing concern that today’s aggressive spam filtering is sending more and more email into an amorphous black hole.

Unfortunately IM’ing is also of the riskiest things you can do on your computer, your network, and your data.

Instant messengers such as AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) or Yahoo Instant messenger expose you to numerous perils you need to be aware of. The nature of some of these threats may surprise you.

Instant messaging clients that are not properly secured can be used;

• To infect your computer with Viruses
• To extract information from your computer by spyware infections
• To send you spam.
• By predators to lure children

If you don’t have the right configuration and message security software in place, your systems are at risk when you use instant Messaging tools. Contact Centrend to learn how you can successfully and safely leverage IM technology in your organization.