Tag Archive for: Windows 10

Microsoft Windows 10: We’re Here To Help

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As of July 29, 2015, Microsoft launched Windows 10 for PCs and tablets, which is a free upgrade to Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users.  According to Microsoft, Windows 10’s features include:

 

  • Cortana: A personal digital assistant tool that learns individual preferences to provide users with recommendations and access to information. In addition to voice commands, you can use Cortana to set reminders and add calendar events.

 

  • Microsoft Edge: A new, customized browser that offers content and results based on individual interests and preferences. It features a text-only reader mode, annotation tool, and Cortana integration.

 

  • Windows Hello, Microsoft Passport, and Windows Defender for anti-malware and spyware protection.

 

So how can we help with all of this?  Partnering with an MSP can maximize usage, and smooth out your transition to Windows 10.  The most important benefit is to make sure the network and operating system is ready for Windows 10.  The personal touch and customer service of a Managed Service Provider can facilitate that transition and give you peace of mind when it comes to not only transitioning your operating systems, but also your employees.

 

What We Can Do:

 

  • MSPs can help you stay organized and ahead of the game by letting us, the experts, control the computer and network aspects of your business.

 

  • System compatibility. Are the PCs in your office ready for Windows 10? Having an MSP proactively monitor and maintain the network will aid in making sure your system is ready to be upgraded.  Regular network assessments will also prepare you for not only Windows 10, but other technological transitions you may have.

 

  • Questions or Concerns. MSPs can showcase their Windows expertise, and customer service, by answering customers’ questions and concerns about Windows 10.

 

In conclusion, having an MSP on your side during this transition is beneficial for your business as it allows you to focus on your business critical functions that help you grow.  Let us, the experts, help you get organized and prepared to prevent downtime and confusion for you or your fellow employees.

Internet Surfing Best Practices

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  • Use Google Search

Before you start to type the name of a website you have never been to before, try googling it first. Google actively scans just about every website and looks for malicious (harmful) code. If it finds something, it will warn you in the search. Google will also ensure that you end up at the page you are looking for. After googling, be sure to read the information provided below the link in order to learn about the website.

  • Don’t click ANY advertisements

First of all, there is no such thing as a coupon printer. Plain and simple; they do not exist. Secondly, there is no such thing as a good advertisement. Sure, some will take you to the place you want to go to see some golf club or purse, but it is safest to assume that all ads are bad. If you find that ads are starting to market directly to you that means you have been clicking on them and they are tracking what you are interested in.  It may seem easier to click a well-targeted add to see the new fall lineup or a new car, but the more you click ads the more likely you will run into malware. Just google the new fall lineup or car and view it directly on their site.

  • The “YOUR COMPUTER IS INFECTED” banners

No website can tell you what is on your computer. You have to allow a program access to scan your computer before it can tell you what is there. Completely ignore any banner or website that tries to tell you how many things are wrong with your computer. These banners are the birthplace of most adware and malware. More often than not they will infect and slow down your computer and never fix any real issues.

  • Check the address of the site you are on

Does it look like the site you should be on? “Phishing” or “Spoof” websites are designed to look exactly like another website. Here is an example:

phising

This site is setup to look as much like Citibank as possible in an attempt to get credit card information. A foolproof way to ensure you are on the correct website before entering secure information is to review the address bar where the webpage link is located. As you will see in the example, the address is https://web.da-us.citibank.com/… Does this look familiar?  Try to google Citibank and see what google reports as their webpage.  After googling, you will notice that Citibank’s website looks like this: https://online.citibank.com/US/JPS/portal/Index.do. Also, take a hard look at the website itself, does it look official? If you are in question at all, close the window and try Google searching to find the correct location for a website.

  • Check for a SSL Cert

Without getting too technical, SSL certs provide a secure (protected) connection from your computer to the website you are on. That is to say, any data or communication passed from your computer or the website cannot be read by anyone else along the line of communication. You will want to check for these certs on every site that you are entering any confidential information. Below you will see examples of where to check for SSL certs on the common browsers:

Chrome– Chrome

IEHTTPS – Internet Explorer 11

firefox– Firefox

opra – Opera

safari– Safari

Essentially what you are looking for is the ‘s’ at the end of http’s’://www.google.com. Some browsers represent the secure connection as a green lock. If you don’t see the ‘s’ or the green lock, do not enter in any confidential or even personal information.

  • Password use

This can be covered in a topic all by itself but I will touch on it slightly. If you are someone who does not like to keep different passwords for every site, I urge you not to use the same password for everything. Something you can try is to keep a few different passwords and use them for varying levels of security. For example, there will be some sites that ask you to create an account just to view their items for sale. Do not use the same password as your online bank account. Use a password you would not mind if it got stolen and continue to use that password for all sites you could care less about. Another note, if you save your passwords in your browser to ‘Auto-Fill’ realize that someone with access to your computer can now log into every place that has a stored password. If you sync your passwords using google so that all devices have the same saved passwords, realize that your google account password now needs to be the most secure. Someone just needs that one password to

1st Test Drive : Windows 10

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So I spent some time last night researching the new Windows 10 beta that Microsoft released to the public.  The reviews overall seemed good, although people mentioned that for some, it did completely crash their system and they were required to re-install.  (I guess it is the same risk as any other Windows Update then!)  Most people are recommending that you do not do this on your primary computer.  Since I am primarily functioning on my Surface Pro 3 now, and all of my files sync with our awesome Stratoshare program, I figured I could risk it on my home PC.  I decided to attempt the install via the Windows Update to try and keep all of my stuff!

First Impressions

I really like the overall look and feel.  I think it looks like a perfect mesh between Windows 7 and Windows 8.  My start menu did not initially work until I rebooted, but when it did finally show up I was impressed.  It is a mixture of the original start menu, but then has the tile look next to it.  The tiles are shrinkable and the area for them is able to expand to full screen.  The background of the menu is also partially transparent, which is a nice look.

Next to the start button, there is a Search the web and Windows box.  I have only dabbled with this a bit, but so far it seems pretty powerful.  I tested it by just typing Google in it.  My Chrome browser immediately opened up.  I also like the taskbar icons.  They put a lighter shade of the icon when it is open and a little line underneath.  The look is very clean.

The settings & other functions seem to be clean and easy to navigate as well.  The right click on the start menu also seems to give you about every option you would want, which is great for us tech guys that do not really need ease of use, but are looking for more speed and function.  So far, every application I have attempted to use has worked normal without any patching or upgrades.

windows 10

Install

So for the installation, I went to https://insider.windows.com/ and clicked Get Started.  From there the rest of the steps were very easy and explained well.  The beta wanted me to link my Live ID, and the download was about 2.4GB total.

Since I have only had it installed a few hours, I will post a follow up in a week or two.