Fix Print Jobs with Stalled Printer Repair
Posted by admin on Aug 25, 2010
Taken from PC World Magazine, July, 2010
We had one laptop that suffered from a seriously annoying problem: Some times print jobs get stuck in the queue. I’m not sure if this is the result of a driver issue or if it happens because it was using a Wi-Fi connection to the printer – could be both. Even more vexing, Windows won’t let them delete the stuck print job, which blocks subsequent items from printing. (Talk about something that should have been fixed back in the XP days, Microsoft). Usually the only solutions is to reboot, and no one should have to endure that kind of hassle just to print a document.
Salvation! Stalled Printer Repair (find.pcworld.com/70059) is a free tool that detects and repairs stuck print jobs. Actually, it purges any stuck jobs it finds, meaning that you should be able to resume printing right away.
What I especially like about the utility is that it has nothing to install (if you download the .zip-file version that is): Just run the app, click Purge Print Jobs and you’re done. If you’ve been plagued by stick print jobs, I definitely recommend giving Stalled Printer Repair a try.
Used Copiers Can Contain Personal Information
Posted by admin on May 6, 2010
In 2010, the photo copier will celebrate its 50th birthday. That great time-saving machine has come along way since its humble beginnings – not always for the better. I recommend that everyone take a moment and watch this short news broadcast from CBS News regarding information that can be found on used copiers. These machines are shipped all over the world and sold to people that may be able to access this information.
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6412572n&tag=mg;mostpopvideo
Bill C-27, the “Anti-Spam Bill”
Posted by admin on Dec 19, 2009
Taken from The Business Blink newsletter of the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce, written by Michael Chong, MP
E-mail is a wonderful technology which, in just over a decade, has completely changed our lives. However, many of the benefits of e-mail have been offset by the problem of spam (unwanted and unsolicited commercial e-mails). According to a MessageLabs report of September 2009, spam accounted for as much as 86% of global e-mail traffic. Unfortunately, Canada is, in part, responsible for this problem. Canada ranks as one of the top originating countries for spam; the Cisco 2008 Annual Security Report ranked Canada fourth on the “Spam by Originating Country” list.
The high volume of spam in recent years has negatively affected the productivity of Internet technologies like e-mail. When a high volume of e-mail is spam, networks slow down, people waste time (at home and work as they delete unwanted e-mails), and companies are forced to spend considerable money on systems to prevent spam from entering their networks.
The high volume of spam in recent years has also impeded the full potential of the Internet as a platform for commercial use. Spam is more than just unwanted e-mail; it is often used as a vehicle to perpetrate fraud on Canadians. It can lead to online fraud by luring individuals to counterfeit websites (phishing), the theft of personal data to rob bank and credit card accounts (identity theft), the collection of personal information through illicit access to computer systems (spyware), and false representations in the online marketplace. Canadian businesses also suffer. Businesses are the victims of the counterfeiting of their websites to defraud individuals and other businesses (spoofing). Spam-borne viruses and other malicious software (malware) are used to operate networks of “zombie” computers (botnets) without their owners’ knowledge. This undermines confidence in the Internet as a platform for personal and business use.
The government is acting to combat spam and related threats by introducing Bill C-27, a piece of anti-spam legislation entitled the Electronic Commerce Protection Act (ECPA). The proposed legislation will deter the most damaging form of spam from occurring in Canada and will help drive spammers out of Canada.
Bill C-27 was in front of the Industry Committee, the Committee I have the privilege of chairing. We have heard from a wide range of witnesses and the legislation passed our Committee at the end of October. Recently the bill has entered third reading and debate in the House.
If adopted by Parliament, Bill C-27 will go a long way to combating spam and spam-related threats. Based on the experience of other countries with similar legislation, a reduction in spam is quickly expected. While the legislation will not eliminate spam entirely, Canadians will see a reduction in the amount of spam received. Equally important, the legislation will decrease the most damaging forms of spam from originating in Canada, and will help drive spammers, along with the associated illegal activity, out of Canada.
The Internet has become the primary platform for online commerce and general communications. Canada has had a long history of global leadership in the communications sector. E-commerce is now a major part of the Canadian economy, with billions of dollars of goods and services being sold over the Internet each year in Canada. This legislation will allow Canada to continue that leadership, ensuring we remain a secure locale for e-commerce and for Canadians. It’s time for Canadian law to catch up to the Internet age.
If you wish to find out more or have any enquiries, please contact me at chongm@parl.gc.ca or at (866) 878 5556. Hon. Michael Chong, M.P. Wellington-Halton Hills
PC Performance Myths
Posted by admin on Dec 15, 2009
Taken from PC World Magazine, January 2010
You have lots of good ways to speed up your PC, but you’ll encounter plenty of bogus tips too. Here are three tactics that don’t do the trick.
Cleaning the Registry… Hard-core Windows users love to tweak via the Registry Editor. This, the thinking goes, improves efficiency, saves the OS energy at bootup, and makes it run faster. But we have never need any significant increase in speed… plus you can do more harm than good, if you don’t know what you are doing. If you want to do a bit of cleanup, but don’t want to use the Registry Editor, you can use CCleaner… read about it here… http://blog.icscomputers.ca/?p=85
Disabling System Restore… Many supposed Windows gurus say that disabling System Restore can speed up your PC by freeing hard-drive space and preventing it from kicking in while you work. But since System Restore activates only when you install apps or when your PC is idle, and since it uses only a small fraction on your drive, turning it off robs you of a valuable safety measure without providing any benefit.
Defragging Your Drive… Back when drives were small and OSs were simpler, doing this was necessary. But Windows XP, Vista and 7 all have automated disk optimization, and it’s rare for a drive to become so fragmented that it hampers performance. While defragmenting isn’t harmful, it’s usually a waste of time. We recommend running Defraggler once or twice a year to fix things that the automated optimization might have missed. You can read about it here… http://blog.icscomputers.ca/?p=85
If your system is running sluggish, there are many possible causes. The obvious culprit is usually a virus or a program running in the background. A simple and inexpensive memory upgrade can also give your system a bit more zip. We recommend a yearly visit to our workbench for a tuneup.
XP Mode in Windows 7
Posted by admin on Dec 15, 2009
First of all, you should know that XP Mode is only part of Windows 7 Professoinal or Ultimate. If you have the Home Premium version, you will have to look at other virtualized XP options (see the end of the article)
There are pros and cons to using XP Mode, but if you do your homework properly, it can be a real life saver. You may have a program that only works in XP, and there is no update for it yet. We have found that many industry-specific programs have not make the leap to Vista or Windows 7 yet.
XP Mode Advantages…
– It allows you to run XP apps on Windows 7
– It allows you to run multiple versions of incompatible software
– It is integrated and launches seamlessly
– It provides a way to run 32-bit apps on a 64-bit operating system
– You can easily delete it and reinstall it (in case of a virus infection)
– Windows XP License is automatically included
XP Mode Limitations…
– It is resource intensive (uses lots of CPU and RAM)
– It needs a CPU with virtualization technology
– It is slow… up to a minute or two to launch the first time
XP Mode Alternatives…
– Virtual PC 2007 from Microsoft
– xVM Virtual Box from Sun
– VMWare
To use any of the above alternatives, you will require an XP License and installation CD to get it up and running. One benefit is that these programs will allow for multiple installations of XP (or older Windows versions) and even Linux.
Of course, if this project seems a bit out of your technical realm, please feel free to bring in your system and we can do it for you. We can even help you decide what solutions is the best for you.
Canada as “Most Connected Nation”
Posted by admin on Oct 2, 2009
Taken from CRN Magazine, September 2009 Edition
Ten years ago, the government of Canada set itself the goal of leading the Internet revolution by making this country the world’s “most connected nation”. With a legacy of telecommunications innovation, from telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell through to the world-leading Anik A satellite, Canadian policymakers saw few obstacles to reaching this goal. Under the banner of “Connecting Canadians”, the government launched six initiatives: Canada Online, Smart Communities, Canadian Content Online, Electronic Commerce, Canadian Governments Online and Connected Canada to the World. Not to be outdone, provincial premiers and territorial leaders meeting in August 1999 acknowledged in their post-conference statement “the importance of the ongoing construction of th ‘information highway’ to Canada’s future development and to its global competitiveness is clear to all premiers and territorial leaders. Today, according to the International Telecommunications Union, about 85% of Canadians use the Internet – almost 30 million people. However, according to the World Economic Forum’s measurement of “technological readiness”, released in July, Canada only ranked 13th.
Moore’s Law In Action
Posted by admin on Oct 2, 2009
Taken from CRN Magazine, September 2009 Edition
Ten years ago, Time magazine wrote that computer prices were plummeting so fast, vendors were “practically giving them away”. An article cited a Compaq desktop (without monitor) selling for $560. Average retail prices were about $1000. Today, of course, personal computers are almost free. Last year, Royal Bank was giving away netbooks to customers who signed up for certain kinds of accounts, while this year, telecom providers are bundling netbooks with mobile internet packages. Those deals may not be free, strictly speaking, but they do illustrate the point that more and more, computers are just the wrapper – the candy is in the content.
RIM Changes Everything
Posted by admin on Oct 2, 2009
Taked from CRN Magazine, September 2009 Edition
Ten years ago, a Waterloo startup called Research in Motion Ltd., formally launched a new product which it described as a “two-way pager with a real-time link to desktop email”. The device had a 32-bit processor, 2 megabytes of onboard memory, a complete if compact keyboard and ran on a single battery. There were already a number of two-way wireless handheld email devices ont he market, but RIM had the advantage of a seamless, secure connection to corporate Microsoft Exchange email servers. Today, with annual revenue of more than $11 billion in 2008, an increase of 84% from the previous year, RIM sells more than 25 million BlackBerry devices annually.
Speed up the Internet with OpenDNS
Posted by admin on Jul 9, 2009
OpenDNS is a replacement DNS server for your computer or router. In a nutshell, DNS is the phone book for the Internet. It translates an internet address (www.icscomputers.ca) into a routable IP address, which your computer then uses to navigate the Internet. Each time you visit a new website, a DNS query is issued in the background, and you’re none the wiser. Internet service providers supply DNS to all their customers, but these servers tend to be overpopulated. Generally, the OpenDNS server is faster and more stable than the one provided by your ISP.
Change your current DNS settings to…
Primary: 208.67.222.222
Secondary: 208.67.220.220
Each operating system and router is different, so it is difficult to put how-to instructions in the post. Sorry.
Networking has been made easier
Posted by admin on Jun 26, 2009
If you can plug in a power cord and ethernet cable, you can set up a powerline network. Start by plugging a powerline adapter into a wall socket. Don’t use filtered power strips or surge protectors, though, because they will interfere with the network connection. Next, run an ethernet cable from the powerline adapter to a free LAN port on your router.
Now plug a second powerline adapter (or a powerline switch containing multiple ethernet ports) into a wall socket in an y room where you want access to the powerline network. After a few seconds, the two powerline devices will recognize each other and become connected.
You can then connect any device that has an ethernet port to your network. In the living room, for example, you can hook up a video game console, DVR, Windows Media Extender, or network media player. You can even hook up a Wi-Fi access point to bring coverage to a previously dead area.
The only installation issue you are likely to have is poor performance due to bad circuitry. In an older home, outlets that do not have proper grounds or shielding may have severe interference problems.
Click her for more information…
