Biden PC's Small Business IT Blog

As great as it has been to work with Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003, SBS 2008 looks to be even cooler. There are a bunch of changes that are quite exciting.

1. The software works on 64 bit hardware. Only.
2. It deploys as Single-NIC only, with a router required as ISA Server will no longer be offered.
   
3. Setup automatically detects your router if addressed between at 192.168.x.1 and 192.168.x.255
4. A new Administrator account created during setup and the built-in is disabled out of the box. This means that the admin account can be locked out in the event that it is being bombarded with hacking attempts.
5. The system software versions have been updated to Windows Server 2008, Exchange Server 2007 SP1, Windows SharePoint Services v3, WSUS v3
6. "My Documents" redirection is no longer all or nothing. You can choose which users should have their "My Documents" redirected to a folder on the server
7. CALs for SBS 2008 Standard are now less expensive and you can get "Standard" CALs for users that aren't using the features in Premium.
8. CALs purchased in 1, 5, or 25 packs instead of just 5 or 20.

There are many more cool features in Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 200. And if this interests you, I highly recommend that you take a look over at Sean Daniel's SBS 2008 blog.

Happy Computing,
Tim

Labels: Computer Networks, Computer Upgrades, My Thoughts, SBS 2003, SBS 2008, software, Windows Server Tips

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Mozilla Firefox gives you many more options on how to deal with cookies than Microsoft Internet Explorer does. You have the options of:

• Accepting all cookies
• Not accepting 3rd party cookies
• choosing on a site by site basis which cookies to accept.

You also have options as to how long to keep the cookies that you do accept.

• Keep them until they expire
• Keep them until you close Firefox.
  

ITCSNY points out a few reasons why we should be more careful with the cookies that we accept.

So here are some easy instructions (for Windows Users) to change your default Cookie rules.

1. Go to the"Tools" menu and choose "Options".
2. Click under the "Privacy" tab at the top of the window and look under the "Cookies" section.
3. Choose your settings then click "OK".

Cookies can be very helpful so I don't delete them all but I do recommend AT LEAST removing the check mark from "Accept third-party cookies". I also choose "Ask me every time" under "Keep Until" just so that I can actually see who is requesting the cookies.

Remember, cookies help you log into websites and some absolutely require cookies so I don't recommend blocking them all, but you should at least learn about who is giving them to you.

Happy Computing,
Tim

Labels: Desktop Support, General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts, Tech Talk

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I recently got a call from a friend who said he was having troubles with the Windows Vista backup program. Not going into too much of that conversation, I decided to try it out myself.

I did a complete windows Vista Backup of my laptop and saved it to my USB Hard drive. No big deal so far. So next I installed Vista again and went to copy some files back. IT COULD NOT FIND THE BACKUP!!! I am not joking, everything I tried to do to get vista to recognize the backup files failed.

I could go to the drive and get into the files but the same backup program that created the backup couldn't retrieve a single thing. I was amazed.

If you really need to backup your data files or even your complete system, use a more complete backup system such as Acronis True Image. Acronis is what I use and I am quite happy with it.

So, as if I needed another reason, I have to say once again that Windows Vista IS NOT READY to be released to the wild.

Maybe I should have gone to SP1 before attempting to restore the files but with the troubles that I had with SP1, I decided I would rather not restore the files and just copy what I needed from my desktop PC.

Vista Backup... What a joke!

Happy Computing, (said with much sarcasm)
Tim

Labels: Computer Repair, Desktop Support, My Thoughts, Windows Vista Irritations

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I have a client who has a Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 system on his network and he is asking me to compile a list of his users' passwords. The problem is that even with administrator access to the server, I can't see the employees' passwords. I informed him of this and gave him these 3 options as to how he can achieve such a list.

1. He can ask his employees for their passwords and compile the list himself.
2. I can create the list and adjust the users' settings so they can't change their passwords. I can then give them new ones.
3. The most secretive way is to perform a brute force attack within the server to attempt to discover the employees passwords. I would then create the list. If they change their passwords, I will have to perform another brute force attack.

There are problems with each of these solutions and I will go about them in the same order.

1. Asking the employees for their passwords could make them feel as though they aren't trusted and cause a feeling of resentment. It could also compromise the users' passwords for other accounts which is a complete lack of security.
2. If we state that we are changing the security policy and give the employees new passwords, it is a policy change and they have to accept that. Fortunately that would not compromise the employees' passwords for other accounts.
3. The brute force attack is costly. What it entails is essentially hacking his own employees accounts on his own server. It takes time to do this and if the employees find out, their trust in the company could suffer. And like the first scenario of asking for the passwords, this may end up in compromising employees' passwords for other their accounts.

My professional recommendation is to go with option number 2 because it has the fewest security options, is inexpensive and will create the least distrust within the company.

Having a Microsoft Windows 2003 Small Business Server on your network is a great way to increase the security and effectiveness of your small business computer network. It has many options to increase your network security. These options include maximum password life, minimum password complexity, how often you can reuse your passwords and in the event that you forget a password, the administrator can easily reset it. The administrator can't see the employees' passwords but they can reset them to something new.

I hope this helps.

Happy computing,
Tim

Labels: Computer Networks, General PC Advice, My Thoughts, Services Offered, Windows Server Tips

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I often get requests from people who are looking for ways to gain network administrator access on computers or servers. Do you think I'm stupid? I'm not going to give you that!

I will be the first to admit that in my line of business, there are times when using hacking tools is necessary. If a user has locked himself our of a computer, it is my job to give them access again. If a network administrator left (or was fired) and didn't give the business owners the password, the password can often be retrieved by using tools that are commonly available on the internet. If I need to discover how many devices are on the network or what a printer's IP address is, I may use a network enumeration tool.

In my toolbox I keep many network enumeration, wireless sniffing, and password retrieval programs but I am not going to give them to you just because you ask for them. I don't know who you are and therefore I can't know what your true intentions are.

So please, script kiddies and junior hackers of the world, give up and look elsewhere. I'm not going to tell you how to hack my system or anybody else's, even if you do tell me that its your own computer.

Tim

Labels: Computer Networks, My Thoughts, software

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As I have had 2 clients in the week that have Hard Drive Problems, I would like to talk a bit about what these problems are and how to recover data when they occur.

First, hard drive problems are typically bad spots on the internal platters (think of CDs inside a metal box with metal arms that run across them reading data) that can no longer be read from or written to. These spots are called sectors and when a sector cannot be accessed, your Operating System (probably Windows) ignores it and writes data around it instead of in it.

There are 2 different types of problems that cause bad sectors. We'll start with the type that is the most common and least problematic.

Software errors are exactly what they sound like, problems with the data on the drive. A software error can be caused by a small number of things. This includes:

1. a write-head not writing in the exact space that a sector is located in, therefore causing 2 sector errors.
2. a piece of data being written and the master record (for the drive) not being updated or incorrectly updated.
3. loss of power while writing data.

There are a number of ways to fix or recover data from these software hard drive problems. Lets go over those now.

1. Chkdsk - No that is not a typo. Chkdsk is short for CheckDisk and is a Windows native application that performs a scan of your hard drive and maps out bad sectors. This allows your drive to continue performing and reduces the probability of more sector problems. Click here to see how to run Chkdsk in Windows.
   
2. If data has been lost, there are many free programs that can be used to recover them with decent reliability. Many can be found on the Ultimate Boot CD 4 Windows. If you don't feel comfortable creating a boot cd, then check out Recuva. I have recently used to to recover many files from a client's PC.
3. As well as data recovery, the Ultimate Boot CD 4 Windows can also perform hard drive scans and fix many errors. If you need a copy, please contact me via my business website.
4. After recovering your data, I recommend backing up your data and completely formatting (Not a quick format) your hard drive. This will cause the system to ignore the problematic areas and rewrite the data elsewhere. Now, we hope, those hard drive issues should be gone.
   

There are also hardware errors that can occur in hard drives. These are more problematic but in most cases, data can still be recovered from the damaged sectors.

Hardware errors also have a number of causes that we'll discuss a few of those here.

1. There can be dust or metal flakes (caused by the movement of the internal parts) inside the hard drive that get onto a platter. This can cause a small magnetic blackout of a sector. If it moves along with the head it can cause small scratches like on a CD. Also, like a CD, the data can usually be read using different methods (Please don't use toothpaste inside your hard drive.).
   
2. Dropping Computer or Laptop - If you drop your computer, in many cases it will be safe from harm but there is the chance that the read head (which is kind of like the needle and arm on a record player) can scratch the surface of the platter. These will require special Data Recovery facilities to retrieve the data.

Here are a few ways to fix or recover data from more serious hard drive problems.

1. You've heard me say it before and you'll hear it again, the Ultimate Boot CD 4 Windows is a godsend and the same programs that can retrieve software error sectors can also retrieve hardware error sector. TestDisk and Disk Investigator (both on the UBCD4Win) recently saved my hide.
   
2. SpinRite - Gibson Research Corporation makes a great piece of software that can fix the drive so you can retrieve data from damaged hard drives. I have used it quite successfully many times.
   
3. If the above tools can't do it, I would recommend sending the drive to a data recovery specialist. There are many to be found. Simply google "data recovery" and you'll find plenty. As I've never had to use one, I really can't recommend one.
   

Now that you have recovered your data, I recommend backing up your data and completely formatting (not a quick format) your hard drive. This will cause the system to ignore the problematic areas and rewrite the data elsewhere. Now, we hope, those hard drive issues should be gone.

May all of your hard drives have long lives,
Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, Hardware, How To, My Thoughts

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As a professional computer technician, I always have people describing different problems to me. Due to a lack of details, I often have no idea what they are trying to tell me and that just makes things more difficult for everyone. In light of this, I want to help you describe your issues to a technician.

Here are a few things to consider when thinking about how to describe a technical problem.

1. How often does it happen? Timing can be a big help when trying to figure out what is causing a problem.
2. How long has the problem existed? This could signal a change to your system that can be removed or fixed. Maybe a new program was installed or a new PC was added to the network.
   
3. Can you reproduce the problem at will or is it random? If it seems random, it is harder to find. If it can be reproduced by following a series of actions, that narrows down the issue quite quickly.
4. Is there an Error Message? If there is, please note exactly what it says, not just the color. The color tells us very little except for the fact that there was an error. The message will usually tell us at least something about the error.
   
5. What caused the error to occur? If you had just opened or closed a program and the error appeared, odds are the problem is with that program.
6. Are there any common factors that make it happen? For example, does it only happen when you're connected to the Internet or when you change your speaker volume?
   
7. Has someone else or another company worked on your computer? Believe it or not, computer technicians often have their own ways of doing things and if we know the other technician, we may know what programs they use and how they do their work.

These are just a few ideas to help you communicate with your computer technician. The more details you can give him or her, the less time it will take them and the less you spend. Being more exact can save you money.

Happy computing,
Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts, Tech Talk

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An invaluable piece of test equipment for any Computer Repair company is a POST Card. I'm not talking about the piece of paper with a picture on it that requires a postage stamp to send, I mean a P.O.S.T. Card.

P.O.S.T. is an acronym that stands for Power On Self Test.

Have you ever noticed the beeps your computer makes when you start it up? That is a small part of the internal part Power On Self Test. The number and length of the beeps tell you if you have hardware problems and what the (general) problem is.

A Power On Self Test Card goes through hardware diagnostics and shows error codes on the display. Different codes mean different things on different motherboards but some are the same. For example, "FF" or "00" means there is a problem with the CPU. "C1", "C6", "31", and "3E" are typically memory errors.

Some of these hardware errors can be difficult to diagnose without tools that tell you what the error is. That is why I recommend having a P.O.S.T. Card, they have diagnose many errors and a good one also comes with a book to give more details about the error code.

I am not endorsing any specific brand or manufacturer, just the type of card. I would recommend googling "power on self test card".

Good luck and happy computing,
Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, My Thoughts

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So you're probably wondering why I called this post Anti-Virus instead of Virus... Well, the wrong antivirus software can slow your computer down immensely.

As you may or may not know, you have many different options for antivirus software. You of course have the big 2, Symantec (Norton) and MaAfee. Then you also have antivirus programs from

• Microsoft
• Panda
• TrustPort
• Sophos
• AVG Grisoft
• Trend Micro
• Dr Web
• ClamAV
• ZoneAlarm
• AVK (G Data)
• Avast
• Avira Antivir
  
• Kaspersky Labs
  

There are tons of antivirus programs and they all catch different viruses and different percentages of them. Yes, some are better than others.

Symantec (Norton) and MaAfee (and probably many others) have a bunch of background process happening at one time, therefore reducing the speed of your computer. They do this to provide as many services to you as is possible. They provide a firewall, active virus scanning, active spyware scanning, online child protection, online personal data protection, and others. Expect to see them protecting you from traffic accidents and the flu in future releases. (Just kidding about the traffic accident and flu protection.)

There are other AntiVirus programs that find and remove more viruses than they do and they do it faster without the large strain to your system resources. Check the most recent test results from av-test.org at Virus Bulletin.

So there is a lot of data at the above sites. You're probably wondering which ones I use or recommend. In the past I have recommended Grisoft's AVG but I've recently switched to Avira Antivir and I've been quite happy with it. It performs active scanning on every file that is written and read from any drive but doesn't slow the computer nearly as much as the big 2.

If you think you would like to try another product, I encourage you to examine the test results from av-test.org at Virus Bulletin and make your own informed decision from them. But if your subscription has not yet run out, I would recommend you keep your current anti-virus software so you can save your money until the subscription runs out.

Also Norton and Symantec can be difficult to remove and if you do so, you do it at your own risk. Click here to remove Norton and here to remove McAfee.

I hope this has been informative for you. If you have any questions or feel that this may be best left to a computer service professional, please email Biden PC here.

Happy Computing,
Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts, Services Offered

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Though it may seem obvious, or it may not, the more programs and services you have running at one time, the slower your computer will be. This is much like you having to get to work. If all you have to do is drive there, you might get to work in 5-20 minutes, 2 hours if you live in Los Angeles. Now let’s add on to that amount of time all the other things you may have to do on your way to work.

1. Low speed limit - 2 Minutes
2. Too many cars on the road, causing traffic - 10 Minutes
3. Drop the kids off at school - 15 Minutes out of your way
4. Traffic lanes merge together - 3 Minutes

Now your commute has increased by 30 minutes. But why?!?! Because you had other things to do and factors you couldn't control. A computer is no different. But you can have more control if you read on

A computer has a few factors that dictate its speed.

1. Processing Speed - How many GHz it runs at. (I am not going to get into the difference between different chip manufacturers and their different processes, this is general information.)
2. Bus Speed - This is how fast one component can send data to another component. (It is often the largest bottleneck in the computer.)
3. Amount of RAM - This is how much general info can be placed in a "To Do" folder for the computer. Remember, too much RAM is not possible, more than what can be used is possible.
4. Speed of RAM - This is how fast a component can send data to the RAM and later receive it back. (It is the other large bottleneck in the computer.)

So you're wondering, "What does this have to do with my computer being slow?" I'm glad you asked.

Just like you, your computer can only do a limited number of things at one time. Fortunately, if they're running right, they can do many more things at one time.

Did you notice that each list has 4 issues that slow us down? Each number correlates to the same number in the opposite list. This means the processing speed is like the speed limit.

1. Your car can only (legally) drive the speed limit. The same is true with computers. The CPU can only (supposedly) process information at (whatever your processing speed is) GHz. This speed is not easily (or safely) changed. I’m not going to tell you how to change this.
2. Though you can’t tell everyone else to get off the road when you want to drive, you can do this with computers. Close all unused software programs and startup programs. Also spyware and hard drive fragmentation problems can add to this issue and slow a PC down. I’ll tell you how to fix and repair these in my next post; How to speed up your computer for free.
3. If you can’t decrease the number of things that you have to do, increase how many things you can do at one time. This is like increasing the amount of RAM in your computer. It will allow you to do more and do it faster. (Some computers may already have the maximum amount of RAM available to the computer so this is not an option. But it can’t hurt to check it out.)
4. Find a shortcut or a route that has a higher speed limit to your kids’ school. If you can also increase the speed at which you do things, you can get them done faster. This is like increasing the processing speed of your RAM. (Some computers may already be at the fastest speed available to them so this is not an option. But it is worth a look.)

So to speed up your computer, the way we mentioned here is either adding more RAM or replacing it with a higher speed of RAM. For an easy way to see what you have and could use, go to crucial.com.

Be sure to check my next blog post: how to speed up your computer for free. I’ll tell you how to reduce the number of programs that run without your knowledge.

Happy Computing,
Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts

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I'm noticing a new pattern, Windows XP Service Pack 3 seems to be as messed up as Windows Vista is, just in a smaller package.

Microsoft originally released XP SP3 to manufacturing on April 21, 2008 and to end users to download on May 6, 2008. It was then recalled due to issues with "office program incompatibilities". Once re-released, it is having troubles with Norton/Symantec Antivirus, AMD hardware (which I use almost exclusively), as well as connection problems with Windows Home Server. I think I'll stay away from it for a few weeks. I really don't need to send my computer into a never-ending reboot loop.

A Toshiba laptop computer that I saw today (I should have paid more attention to the hardware configuration) has been freezing at the loading screed in Windows since loading SP3. After removing Service Pack 3, it seems to be running perfectly.

Here's an interesting take on it from Chad Weirick at Hot Hardware, "With the campaign to keep Windows XP alive, one has to wonder if glitches like this were a product of a less than complete testing cycle. If customers began viewing XP as less than rock-solid, they might be willing to take another look at Vista." Thanks, Chad!

Tim

Labels: My Thoughts, Windows Vista Irritations

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Did you know that you can view your FTP files like a normal Windows folder?

Instead of using a standard program to do FTP, you can map a network drive to your FTP account and view your files like you would a normal Windows folder.

Since CyberNet already posted excellent instructions and pictures on how to map a network drive to FTP (primarily in Vista), I'll post about how to do it in XP.

1. Important: First install this fix from Microsoft.
2. Open “My Computer”
3. In the “Tools” menu, go to “Map Network Drive…”
4. In the Setup Wizard, select the “Sign up for online storage or connect to a network server” link at the bottom.
5. Another Wizard will pop up, choose “Next”.
   
6. The new screen should have an option highlighted to “Choose another network location”. Click “Next” again.
7. Enter in "ftp://your-domain.com" as the network address.
8. Unclick "Logon Anonymously" and enter your account logon when asked for a username.
9. Now create a name for the drive, maybe something like "Work FTP" or whatever you would like.
10. To open your new network drive/FTP site, go to “My Network Places”. You will see a drive with the name you gave it in the previous step.
11. If prompted for your username and password, again account details and click "Save Password".

To access it again is simple!

1. Go to your Window "Start Menu" and click on "My Network Places".
   
2. Choose the object with the name that you entered previously in step #9 and double click on it.
3. You are now looking at your FTP account like it is a normal folder in Windows.
   

Happy Computing,
Tim

Labels: Computer Networks, General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts

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I believe that the most important thing that you can put into your small business computer network to ensure its security is time. Yes, I said time.

Windows Small Business Server 2003 has recommended security measures that should be taken called "Best Practices". Another measure that should be taken is running MSBA (Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer) and following the suggestions it makes. Most of these must be done only once or infrequently.

Another feature called the "Server Performance Report" tells you what features aren't functioning properly and not working as well as who has had failed attempts at logging into your server.

So what does this have to do with time? This report is emailed to you every morning at 6:00 and I seriously recommend that you read it.It takes time (just a couple of minutes) to read it and see who is having password problems or whose account is being hacked.

Hackers and script kiddies (junior hackers) have enumeration tools that can scan a network to find out what operating systems networked computers are running as well as what accounts are on those computers. Yes, they can tell if you're using Windows XP Pro or XP Home. They can tell if your server is Windows Server 2003 or Windows Small Business Server 2003. They can even tell if you have an account on your server that is still called "administrator" and if the notes designate it as the main admin account.

These tools are dangerous because they can see what accounts are on your server. As a small business, you probably don't have the funds to spend on a large intrusion detection system. You also can't afford to have your server to have your server hijacked and your data stolen.

This is where the time and "Server Performance Report" come into the picture. Take the time to:

1. Perform the "Best Practices"
2. Run MSBA
3. Enable password requirements
4. Require passwords to be changed on a regular basis
   
5. Enable account lockout policies
6. Rename and change the description of the "administrator" account
7. Setup (once) and read the "Server Performance Report" (daily)

If you don't read the report, it does you absolutely no good and it becomes just another piece of spam... But this one you send to yourself.

Happy computing,
Tim

Labels: How To, My Thoughts, Windows Server Tips

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How many times have you called the tech support line for the company who manufactured your computer and they tell you to do this and that without ever telling you what they are doing?

One of the manufacturer's favorite tricks is to "Restore" your computer. This will format the hard drive to take it back to factory settings and eliminate all software issues. Sounds good right? What if you have MP3 files or pictures that you don't want to lose? Even worse, what if you have your 30 page term paper on that computer? If they "Restore" your computer you'll lose it all. Your computer will be exactly like it was when you bought it. You'll lose your MP3s, JPGs, Excel files, Word Documents... You'll lose everything that isn't backed up to another drive.

Don't let that happen to you! Your local computer repair shop or an online tech support company can fix your computer without compromising your important data.

If you don't want to use the local company or an online service to fix your computer and still want to use the manufacturer's technical support, back up the entire "My Documents" folders for each of the accounts on the computer to separate drive. If you don't have access to your Windows Desktop, your local computer repair shop should be able to access them for you so they can be saved elsewhere. And just to specify what local is for Biden PC, we gladly service the areas of We gladly provide computer repair services to the following cities: Azusa, Baldwin Park, Brea, Chino, Chino Hills, City Of Industry, Claremont, Corona, Covina, Diamond Bar, Duarte, Glendora, Guasti, Hacienda Heights, La Puente, La Verne, Mira Loma, Montclair, Mt Baldy, Norco, Ontario, Placentia, Pomona, Rancho Cucamonga, Rowland Heights, San Dimas, Upland, Walnut, West Covina, Yorba Linda.

Trust me; the big companies don't care about your data. They just want to get you off the phone as quickly as possible so they can help the next person and save on their bottom line.

Always back up your data!
Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, My Thoughts, Services Offered

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Irony as defined by webster.com: incongruity between the actual result of a sequence of events and the normal or expected result

As ironic as it may seem, IBM, the creator of the personal computer, has started giving Apple laptops to its employees.

What? You think I'm joking? Ok, so they started with a roll-out of only 24 laptops... Still, check this link. 22 of the 24 people responded to a questionnaire and 19 wanted to keep the Apple laptops. Only 3 out of 22 wanted to go back to Windows. They'll soon start a new roll-out of 50 laptops and in the second half of 2008 add another 50 laptops to the test.

Comments on the questionnaire include: “I have been a true PC stalwart for 2+ decades, but after trying Vista, I’m ready for a change,” and "It has been easier learning the Mac than learning Vista.” What a smack in the face to Microsoft!

Even though the numbers aren't large, this must be exciting for Apple. I wish I had some Apple stock. =)

Tim

Labels: My Thoughts, Windows Vista Irritations

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There is some nasty "extortion-ware" on the loose that neither SpyBot nor AdAware can get rid of. If you have it, in your taskbar (the icons at the bottom right corner of your screen), there is usually a red circle with a white "X" in the middle. It will pop up a warning that says "Warning! Potential Spyware Operation. Your computer is making unauthorized copies of your system and Internet files. Run full scan now to prevent any unauthorized access to your files. Click here to download spyware remover...."

DO NOT CLICK ON IT OR CLICK YES!!! The creators of this are trying to get you to buy their software through extortion. They create a problem, tell you that it's there and then want you to buy their software to make the problem disappear. That is illegal and you shouldn't have to pay them to remove the problem that they created.

What you need to do is download a program called ComboFix. Instructions for using it can be found here and the program can be downloaded here. How much does it cost? Nothing. ComboFix is a free software created for the purpose of removing spyware (software that shouldn't be on your computer in the first place).

There is disclaimer that says approximately 1% of the computers that use this software aren't repaired correctly. The case is similar with most malware repair software. There are always computers that are overly infected and can't be repaired. If that is the case, your only options are to buy a new computer or have everything, including Windows, reinstalled. But before you throw your computer out the window, try the ComboFix free software.

Happy Computing!

Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts

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Biden PC has enlisted the assistance of Crossloop to perform remote desktop support. Crossloop is a website that has an amazing service that enables us to work on your computer over the internet. It is much easier and quicker than the other programs that we've tried. And its great for the environment because we don't have to drive to your office or home to work on your computer!

The image shown above is the Crossloop badge that allows you to see our profile and ratings, as well as contact us. Please check it out. Or you can go to our CrossLoop webpage.

Below I've posted a small list of FAQs or Frequently Asked Questions.

Is this secure? Yes. It is secure because they encrypt all communications with Blowfish Encryption. Also, there is no way for someone to take control of your computer without having a live person at your computer. You have to provide us with a unique code in order to conduct the support session.

Can you actually see my screen? Yes. This is a way that Biden PC can see your desktop and work on your computer without actually driving to your location. Because of the rising price of gas, this will save both everyone money.

How much does it cost? You will save 30% off our retail rate when we are able to work on your computer by using Crossloop.

How does it work? It is actually quite easy. You can download the small file here. Then contact us and we'll ask you to run the program and click the share button. You will then give us the 12 digit access code and within a minute, we'll be working on your computer.

How do I contact you? You can call Biden PC Toll-Free at 877-243-3601, click the "Contact" button on the image below or email sales@bidenpc.com.

How do we pay for this service? Please contact us so that we can work that out in advance.

Labels: Ecological, General PC Advice, My Thoughts, Services Offered

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This is obviously not a computer-centered blog post. I still hope you enjoy it.

I went out to Joshua Tree National Park on Saturday and had a blast. It is something that my wife's family loves to do and I've since fallen in love with the place.

Admittedly, when you get to Joshua Tree, your first thought will probably be "So… What's the big deal?" Yes, it's in the middle of the desert and there are these huge, strangely placed rock formations. Those huge, strangely placed rock formations (links here and here) are exactly what make Joshua Tree so great. You can climb all over them and just act like a kid. It's a blast trying to figure out your way to the top and then, once you're at the top, figure out a different way down. Only once have we had to take the same way down that we went up.

So, on to the part about aching everywhere… I'm not 16 years old anymore. It is now Tuesday morning and we went to Joshua Tree on Saturday. That gives me a whole 36 hours since I stopped climbing and I feel worse today than yesterday. I tried a hot tub, massage, stretching. I just have that ache that says "I worked hard at having fun."

Growing up, I had no idea that you were actually allowed to go off the path at a park. I thought parks were just like an art gallery where we are supposed to look but not touch. How wrong I was. Admittedly, if I wasn't allowed to climb around on the rocks, I'd probably never go back to Joshua Tree. But I am allowed so I go back as often as I can. I'm glad that someone in the government had enough foresight to know that such an arid stretch of land should be preserved for future generations.

Tim

Labels: Ecological, Entertainment, My Thoughts

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When you purchase a new store-bought PC, it comes with the Operating System and other software preinstalled. But, how many CDs does your computer come with? Probably just 1. If you call the manufacturer immediately after you buy it and ask for the OS (Operating System) discs they'll send them to you for free. They don't want to give you the discs because it costs the manufacturer more money (about 1 dollar) but you are entitled to them.

In order to save money, they put a "restore partition" on your hard drive so that if you corrupt your system you can restore it. But what happens if your hard drive dies and you lose both partitions? You're out of luck because you don't have any CDs to restore from.

Of course you should always back up your system but we all know that not everybody does this.

So Contact the manufacturer as soon as possible. Below are phone numbers for different computer manufacturers.

HP or Compaq: (800) 474-6836

Dell: (800) 879-3355

Toshiba: (800) 457-7777

Gateway: (800) 369-1409

Emachines: (408) 273-0888

Sony: (800) 282-2848

I hope this helps you all. Don't forget, these companies are just trying to save themselves about a buck and you shouldn't have to be short-changed just to keep their stock prices up.

Happy Computing,
Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts

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As a computer networking professional, I keep lots of private data on my USB Flash Drive and I can't have it falling into the wrong hands. I have been looking for a good, quick program that I can use from my jump drive, doesn't require admin rights on other PCs and is secure.

Just the other day I found FolderLock. It is exactly what was looking for. You have different options on how to use it. You can hide, scramble or encrypt folders. Even the encrypt option, which they say is a little slow, is MUCH faster than the other programs that I found. It is compatible with Windows Vista, Server 2003, XP, 2000, NT, Me, 98, and 98SE and works on all kinds of disk types like FAT16, FAT32, NTFS.

FolderLockhas the ability to use it in free version. It has a short waiting period of approximately 5 seconds before you can enter your password to view your files but this is certainly acceptable. If you do decide to purchase it, the cost is only $35 and you get the advantage of additional options that include Stealth Mode, Hacker Attempt Monitoring, Shred files, AutoLock, Auto Shutdown PC, Lock your PC, Erase PC tracks, 256-bit Blowfish Encryption and Context Menu in Explorer.

Always keep your personal or business data safe.

Tim

Labels: General PC Advice, How To, My Thoughts

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E85 Ethanol and Windows Vista, you're probably thinking "what's the connection?"

Well, a few weeks ago I pulled up to one of my vendors to pick up networking supplies and I saw another customer. He was there in his work van that had the "FlexFuel" sticker on it so I asked him about it. "Do you know where to get the E85 fuel for this thing?" His reply was essentially "no, I just use it for work." That got me thinking about how often I see the "FlexFuel" stickers on vehicles and how many stations there are that sell it. So I did what any computer geek would do… I googled it. Apparently there is only 1 station in the greater Los Angeles area that sells E85 fuel. And it really isn't worth the drive from where he was to where you can get the gas.

Also, E85 also doesn't have the same amount of power per gallon as gasoline does. You lose approximately 20-30% when using Ethanol. Therefore you use more E85 than gasoline. However, we can create Ethanol here so we may not be quite so dependent on the Middle East for our oil. And this would be good for all of us.

Now on to Windows Vista… Vista came out over a year ago and there weren't many programs that worked for it. Software manufacturers just weren't ready for it. It was also put out before the IT industry was ready to support it. And the product wasn't ready for the mass public. Windows Vista is about to hit its first Service Pack and hopefully when it does, it'll remove some of the bugs that prevent Vista from being the first-class OS that Microsoft wants it to be.

And back to the E85… Please, for those of us who want to use E85, make it more readily available. Once it is, I want to buy a FlexFuel vehicle too.

Labels: My Thoughts

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I hate taking my car in to be serviced. I know very little about cars and even less about their internal workings. That's just not interesting to me. So when a mechanic recommends I get this part or that cleaned, I have to rely on how much I trust that person. I often say something to the idea of "I can't do it now but maybe soon." Then I go to someone else and see what they say. I have yet to find a mechanic in California that I really trust. Recommendations are welcome!

Many people feel the same way about computer professionals. I have a few clients that aren't certain whether or not to trust me. Unfortunately one man's distrust recent lead him to go against what I told him and cost him a few hundred dollars extra.

I recommended that he create a single sign on for each computer and allow his employees to share those while giving individual access to specific programs. He disagreed and wanted everyone to have individual access to each of 5 computers with the individual access to the program set up on each one.

It would have cost him $100 or $200 to do it my way but he paid $400 to do it his way. The saying goes "The customer is always right" so I did what he wanted. Just before I finished, he asked why we didn't do a single sign on to the computers and individual access to the programs. I explained it and he looked embarrassed. I wish it didn't have to be like that but it wasn't my choice to make.

I understand that not everybody is going to trust service workers because we have to make a living at what we do. Upselling is expected. But, please, at least consider what we have to tell you. It could save you a lot of money and headaches.

Thanks for reading!
Tim

Labels: My Thoughts

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My name is Tim Biden and I own Biden PC. We are a small-business IT Support service located in California's San Gabriel Valley.

My goal for this blog is to give you a glimpse into my work life and hopefully a bit of help when conquering that computer system in your office. If at any point you decide that your office network is beyond your capabilities, we are at your service.

Thank you!
Tim Biden

Labels: My Thoughts

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