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Master Software Newsletter  
 

We Make Mouse Calls!                          410-922-2962

Helping you Master Your Computer September 1, 2007
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In This Issue...
Spyware Trickery
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Smile!...Selecting A Digital Camera
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Protecting Your Precious Data
September Specials
 
Here are a couple of  Specials made possible by some of our sponsors.
 
Kodak EasyShare Gallery is having a Mystery Month.  Every Wednesday there is a different special, for Wednesday Only.  Also, you can click here to Save 25% off photo products at the Gallery through October 19 with the coupon code PUMPKINS.
Kodak EasyShare Gallery
 
iPrint.com is offering a free custom Self-Inking Address stamp.  Absolutely Free!  All you pay is postage.  Get one for each family member.  Get one to stamp checks For Deposit Only with your account number.

FREE Address Stamp at iPrint.com!

eBatts.com still has a 10% off special.  They have al kinds of batteries.  Laptop, Camera, Cell Phone, Alkaline.  All kinds!  Free Shipping!  Save 15% - Use Coupon Code CJB2S at checkout.
Batteries, Chargers & Adapters
 
Dell Home and Dell Small Business have specials ranging from one day to a week or more.  We have created a special page at the Master Software website that we will try to keep updated with the Dell specials.  Remember, you don't have to be a business to buy from Dell Small Business!
 
Reminders
 
A couple of reminders from previous articles:
  • We can still build computers and laptops with Windows XP
  • Be sure to use adware and spyware protection such as AdAware and Spybot
  • Make sure your computer is set up for Daylight Saving Time changes
  • A 17" standard LCD monitor screen is taller than a 19" widescreen LCD!
  • Make sure all your computers have battery backups to avoid data loss and damage from sudden loss of electricity.
  • Rent a laptop for short term use, instantly.  See ad below.
  • Be sure to have backups of all your valuable data.
  • Fax us your business telephone bill to see if we can save you money.  We usually can!

Click for previous Newsletters

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communications and newsletters like this to YOUR clients.  Best of all, it has a free 60 day trial. All you need is something to say, and people to say it to!

Spotlight on Products and Services
 
http://www.instantlaptoprental.com 
Use Promo Code MSMD06 at checkout and save 10%
 
Get it at Staples
Fast and FREE delivery on all orders over $50 
 
Back up your important file on the Internet.  2GB for Free!
 
 
Order prints online and they will be ready for pickup when you get to the store!  RitzPix.

www.ritzpix.com

Photoworks has good prices on prints from your digital camera.

Links to Useful Stuff
 
Here are links for some products and services we have found very useful.  Feel free to click on any that interest you to find out more information.  No obligation, of course.
 
New Sponsor - Shop CompUSA

CompUSA Advertised Specials

 
New Sponsor - JoiPhone offers VoIP phone service.  Requires Cable or DSL Internet Service.

$14.95/mo - 2 Unlimited JoiPhone Lines

New Sponsor - voip.com also offers VoIP phone service.

Connect to your home or office PC from anywhere in the world with an Internet connection.  Get $10 off EVERY MONTH!

GoToMyPC Free Trial + $10 Off

Faxes sent right to your email!  Never miss another fax.  Never have to run back to the office!

CallWave Free Trial - Click Here!

 
Dell Small Business has computers and accessories for you
 
Good, inexpensive host for your web page.  Don't have a web domain?  They will get you one free.

Bluehost Web Hosting $6.95

Vista Print offers Free Business Cards, Free Rubber Stamps, Free....check it out!

VistaPrint - Save 30% to 60% Off!

Quick Links...
 
 
 
 
Call us at 410-922-2962
 
Fax us at 410-609-4677
 
Join Our Mailing List!
Dear Reader,
 
AVGLogoWell it's September, and the kiddies are back to school.  A number of things are happening this month:  Labor Day, the Jewish High Holy Days, the start of the new theatre seasons, new season of our favorite TV shows, Football is back, and the baseball season is winding down.  But we won't talk about any of that in this newsletter!
 
There has been some new information out on the tricks spyware uses to get you to install it, so we'll talk about that.  And we have articles on digital cameras and how to protect your computer-generated data.
 
Don't forget to check our sponsors in the lonely left hand column . . . you might find a bargain or something that you can really use.  And as usual, please let us know if we can help you with anything for your computing needs.
 
Please forward this newsletter to a friend who might be interested.  A convenient link is located at the bottom of the page.  And if you're not a subscriber (yet), just click the "Join Our Mailing List" button on the left near the top or bottom of the page and enter your email address for your free subscription.

Spyware Trickery

AVGLogoWe have covered adware and spyware in previous issues of this newsletter.  Both of these types of programs are parasites on your computer.  They get installed by tagging along with something you downloaded, or by tricking you into thinking they are something worthwhile.   Adware and spyware infestations can take hours to clear up, and that can get expensive.

 

Here are some quick definitions:  Adware is software that is used to generate pop-up ads or redirect your web browser to advertising sites.  Some adware tracks what websites you visit and targets ads to your interests in hopes of getting you to click on the ad or buy something.  Spyware collects information from your computer and sends it over the internet to the server belonging to the group that created the program.  It could be collecting information on websites you visit, or sending back credit card or bank account numbers or usernames and passwords of your accounts - whatever information its creators want to obtain.

 

Why do people write adware and spyware?  Unlike virus writers, it is to make money, of course.  Adware writers (or the companies that pay them) get a commission from every sale linked to the adware.  Spyware writers (or the people who pay them) can make money by fraudulent use of your bank or credit card information or other thefts of your identity.  Virus writers, on the other hand, do it mostly for the notoriety.

 

A recent article in the Windows Secrets Newsletter discussed what they call "rogue spyware".  They define this as spyware that promotes itself deceptively as software that will get rid of spyware for you, then runs a "scan" that turns up false positives (the program says it found spyware on your computer when in fact it didn't, and makes up the list of spyware it "found").  After that, the screens that show up try to convince you to buy their software, frequently using threats or scare tactics, so you are really spending money on something that you don't need and may actually be worse than worthless - it may cause harm to your computer.

 

Also, some of these programs, while saying they are antispyware programs, are actually spyware themselves, and downloading and installing them will only cause you more problems, not less.  They "install the very problems they claim to cure, generate false positives to trick users into buying a 'remedy', and use aggressive or misleading advertising".

 

According to the article, some of the popular search engines, including Yahoo and Google, accept paid placement ads from some of these "rogue spyware" companies and products, so that when you type a search for something related to spyware these misleading ads show up under Sponsored Ads or Sponsored Links, making you think they are really legitimate.

 

You may also see pop-ups that warn you that you have spyware on your computer, or your web browser may be redirected to a page that warns that your activity is being monitored or that your are infested with spyware.  Such messages use scare tactics to entice you to click on their links to download or purchase their software, which is, of course, spyware.

 

So, how do you know if you really have spyware?  And if you do, what programs are safe to install to help get rid of it?  If you are getting lots of pop-ups, if your browser is being redirected to strange search sites, or if your computer is getting very slow, you probably are infested with adware or spyware.  Don't ever click on a link or purchase anything until your have checked it out by doing a Google search on it and checking many of the results.

 

The two most often recommended adware and spyware removers are AdAware from www.lavasoftusa.com, (make sure you have the usa in the website name - a copycat site called lavasoft has look-alike junk software that is not free) and Spybot from www.spybot.com.  Both are FREE, so they won't cost you a dime.  You should install them both, and run them weekly, making sure to update them each week first.  You'll find information on these programs by clicking on the Master Software Website menu item for Windows Tips.

 

To help protect your computer on an on-going basis, we recommend AVG AntiMalware.  A 2-year license (with updates) for 1 computer costs $44.95, and it runs in the background like a typical antivirus program protecting your computer from both viruses and ad/spyware as you use it.  (Be sure to uninstall any other antivirus / antispyware programs before installing AVG.)

 

And of course, if your computer gets infested, you can always call on us to clear up the mess.

 

So don't get caught in the spyware trap.  Use good sense and don't ever click on ads and pop-ups.
Smile!  Selecting A Digital Camera
 

AVGLogoNow that summer is over and the Christmas rush has begun (!), you might be thinking of choosing a digital camera for yourself or someone else less deserving.  Roxio recently published an article on choosing a digital camera that you might find interesting.  Even if your digital camera is only a few years old, you might be surprised at the new features that are available for a reasonable price.

 

The first camera spec that most people talk about is megapixels, which determines the resolution of the pictures you take.  Anything in the 6 to 10 megapixel range should provide you with enough resolution for reasonable cropping and up to 8 x 10 enlargements.  The higher the megapixels, the more you can enlarge your picture if you are going to print it.  If you want to make 16 x 20 prints, you should have at least 8 megapixels, maybe more.

 

When comparing cameras, look at the specs on the lens.  The 'f' # (like 2.8, 4, 5.6) tells you the maximum amount of light the lens allows into the camera.  A lower number is better. Each of the numbers above lets in twice as much light as the following number (f2.8 lets in twice as much light as f4, etc).  The zoom range tells you how much the lens magnification changes between wide angle and telephoto.  Only look at (and use) the optical zoom.  Digital zoom is like enlarging the picture a lot.  The picture gets very fuzzy or blocky.

 

Look at the type of memory card the camera uses to determine how easy it is to transfer images to your computer.  Do you have to use a special cable?  Does the memory card come out easily so you can use a card reader?  Will it work in the card reader that may be included in your computer or printer?  What size memory cards are available?  For a 6 megapixel or greater camera, you should use at least a 512 MB or 1GB memory card in order to have room for enough images.  The number of pictures that will fit on the memory card depends on the number of megapixels in the image (the resolution you set on the camera:  higher resolution pictures take up more memory).

 

Other factors to consider are how fast you can take picture after picture, whether it uses a viewfinder or LCD display (some LCD's are hard to see in the sun - check it out), battery size and how long it lasts, how it handles flash, and what picture (and movie) modes it has.

 

You can read the complete article from Roxios's website by clicking here.

 

Digital cameras are economical and fun to use, so get one, or get a new one, and snap away.  Staples and CompUSA have an assortment of digital cameras to choose from.

Fast and FREE delivery on all orders over $50        Share the memories with digital imaging.

 

Print Your Pictures?

 
All of the printer (ink) manufacturers recommend printing your pictures at home.  Modern printers and inks are designed to give you superb photo prints, especially when printed on photo-paper.  The software that comes with the cameras and printers is pretty good at letting you adjust and manipulate the photos so you get great results.
 
However, printing your pictures at home can get very time-consuming and very expensive, depending on how many you need to print.  Home printing is fine if you need copies for a relative leaving for the airport (better yet, email him the picture files and let him print them himself when he gets home), or if you need just a few copies.  But the ink and photo paper can really run up the bill fast, and you don't even notice it.  A better option would be to use some of the commercial printing services available over the internet.
 

Ritz, Kodak EasyShare, and Photoworks are great places to have your digital photos printed.  You can upload your pictures and pay by credit card, and your photos arrive in the mail in a few days.  Kodak EasyShare has a special this month every Wednesday, and 40% off of photo products (see the ad in the left column of this newsletter).

 

Can't wait a few days?  Ritz lets you upload the pictures to their server and pay for the prints online, and they are ready for you to pick up when you get to the store.  What could be more convenient?

www.ritzpix.com

   Kodak EasyShare Gallery

Let us know if you have any questions about digital comers, ordering prints, or installing the digital camera software on your computer.

 
Happy snapping!
Protecting Your Precious Data

AVGLogoThe 'D' word (DATA) may sound a bit nebulous or pretentious to some of us, but every item we create or copy or download or receive using our computers and other digital devices is really data.  That picture of Aunt Mary with a lamp shade on her head, your book report, the drawing of how to hook up your stereo system, the presentation for your customer, the email with directions to Joe's bachelor party are all data that we don't want to lose.

 

No matter how the electronic data is stored, we really want to make sure that we don't lose it.  The 21st century version of "My dog ate my homework" might be "I accidentally erased the file", "My memory stick broke", "My CD melted in the sun", or "My dog at my floppy disk".  None of us want to lose a file that is irreplaceable or something that we spent a lot of time and effort developing.

 

We had an article in our June 1 issue about backing up your computer, but this article is mainly to give you some food for thought about the perils that can befall your data and some tips on how to make sure you don't lose your latest presentation or term paper.

 

Even though we take our computers for granted, the media where electronic data is stored is inherently non-permanent.  That's why you should always (ALWAYS!!) have copies of important files in more than one place.

 

Magnetic media includes floppy disks and hard drives, which consist of a thin layer of magnetic material coated onto a (hard or floppy) surface.  These surfaces are subject to wear and tear, and the data can be permanently damaged by being subjected to a magnetic field (including placing "refrigerator" magnets on your computer case -- a definite no-no).  Zip disks and tape backups are also magnetic media.

 

In addition, floppy disks can be bent or creased if carried in a back pocket, or water damaged if dropped into the pool or sent through the washing machine.  Hard drives are electro-mechanical devices that will fail at some point (nothing lasts forever) due to the high-speed spinning of the disk and the very close proximity of the read-write head to the surface.  Dropping your computer or laptop can cause a "head crash", which is when the read/write head "crashes" into the disk surface, damaging it.

 

Optical media includes CDs and DVDs.  While commercially produced CDs and DVDs will last for a very long time as long as they are treated properly, CDs and DVDs that are writable in your computer use a different process and will probably not last forever.  All types are susceptible to physical damage and scratches, which can make the data on the disk (files, photos, or videos) unreadable.

 

Flash media includes memory cards that typically work in digital cameras, and jump drives or thumb drives that connect to the USB port of your computer for portable storage.  Static electricity can damage these storage devices, as well as breakage.  Since they are so small, they are also subject to easily being lost.

 

All of these devices can have their data scrambled, and therefore lost, if the computer loses power while writing to the device or if the computer gets a huge power surge while writing.  An uninterruptible power supply, known as a UPS or battery backup, can help eliminate this problem.

 

So, the bottom line is that any file that is important to you should be stored in more than one place.  Copy files from your home computer and take them to your desk at work.  Bring copies of work files to store at home.  Files from your computer can be backed up to CDs or DVDs.  Files on floppy disks can be copied to other floppy disks, and files from disks, optical media, and flash drives can be copied to your home computer.

 

If you are a student, for example, and you transport your doctoral thesis from one computer to another to work on it, you could periodically email a copy of the file to yourself.  This will store that copy on your email server so in case of loss, you can always download it from your email.  If your school or business offers network storage, find out if they back up the network and if so, how often.  With the network backed up, you should be able to have a backed up copy of the file restored by the network administrators.

 

If the worst happens, there are data recovery services like Ontrak Data Recovery that may be able to recover your data, but they aren't cheap.  So, practice good file backup to make sure your computer doesn't eat your homework.

Well, that wraps it up for this month.  Hope you found something interesting.
 
As usual, please let us know what you think of our newsletters.  Are they too long, too short, not interesting enough, too deep?  And
we always welcome suggestions for articles.  Please don't forget to visit our sponsors lurking way over there in the left hand column.

 

And now it's time to watch the Orioles lose another game!
Steve Leven
Master Software
   
Master Software | 410-922-2962 | Randallstown | MD | 21133