Send Your Parents a ‘Care Package’ of PC Videos
Posted by admin on Apr 4, 2011
Taken from PC World Magazine, March 2011 Edition
It’s tough raising parents these days. Take it from me: My retired mom and dad are brilliant people, but they just can’t get the hang of copying and pasting.
Apparently they’re not the only ones, as evidenced by Google’s unofficial new Teach Parents Tech site (teachparentstech.org). It’s designed expressly for folks who want to help their parents (or anyone for that matter) learn computer basics.
All you do is complete an amusingly tongue-in-cheek form, the bulk of which involves choosing how-to-videos that you want to send to Mom and/or Dad (or other people in your life). The site offers a few dozen choices, with topics ranging from ‘Copy & Paste’ to ‘Make a Blog’ to ‘Attach a File to an Email’.
Once you’ve completed the form, you can preview your “tech support care package” before sending it. Teach Parents Tech is really ingenious. I doff my hat to the “few folks at Google” who came up with the idea.
Network-Attached Storage for Any Business
Posted by admin on Mar 21, 2011
Taken from PC World Magazine, February 2011 Edition
Network-attached storage can make your business easier to run and more efficient in multiple ways. Let’s look at some scenarios for NAS use in businesses of various sizes.
A small-office or home-office setup consisting of a few PCs, a multifunction printer or two, and perhaps a wireless, peer-to-peer network is far from optimal for sharing a accessing files. Data is scattered, and accessing it from outside of the local network requires a VPN or remote control. A NAS box puts important data in one accessible, easy-to-backup location. You can back up anything you’re working on off-site by logging in and uploading the files to the NAS box. Most NAS boxes have on-board backup utilities and USB ports for attaching drives.
If you collaborate with coworkers far away, a NAS box’s easy wide-area connectivity can consolidate and centralize your efforts. Like any other administered network-storage resource, your NAS will allow users to access only the contents you approve. To handle collaborative work arrangements, simply create folder for each project, give each person access to folders as needed, and give yourself access to all of the folders. A NAS box is self-sufficient, redundant, and task-specific. But some programs insist that their database reside on a local PC, and others require you to install a traffic-cop program for multiple users. For these programs, you need a NAS box that uses Windows Home Server.
When buying NAS hardware, focus on redundancy, capacity and speed. Don’t buy a single-drive NAS box: You’ll need at least a two-drive box for mirroroing one drive on the other so you won’t lose access when one drive fails. For help, ask the professionals at ICS Computers.
Clean Your Laptop or Desktop LCD Properly
Posted by admin on Jan 11, 2011
Taken from PC World Magazine, January 2012 Edition
When it comes to cleaning an LCD screen, there’s a right way and a wrong way. Let’s focus on the right way. For starters, turn your monitor off. In fact, to eliminate any risk of shock or electrical damage, unplug it. (Better safe than sorry). This cleaning will involve some moisture, and the last thing you want is for liquid to contact anything powered. Dampen a clean, soft cloth (a paper towel will do, but it isn’t the best choice) with water. Don’t soak it – just moisten it. And don’t use anything other than water. Ammonia- and alcohol-based cleaners can ruin an LCD. If plain water doesn’t do the job, make a 50/50 solution of distilled water and white vinegar. If you decide to use a spray bottle, don’t spray directly on the screen. Instead, spray the water or solution onto the cloth, and then wipe the screen. Use a circular motion, which is best for eliminating streaks, and apply only light pressure. Finally, let the screen air dry for a few minutes, or gently wipe it dry with a fresh cloth. Only when you’re absolutely certain it’s 100% dry, plug it back in and turn it on.
ICS Note: We sell a bottle of pre-moistened cloths that are perfect for cleaning all your electronics – at only $10 per bottle!
New Fees on Electronic Devices
Posted by admin on Mar 10, 2009
As of April 1, 2009 the Ontario Government has introduced a recycling fee for computer products. We at ICS will be charged a fee on certain items, and we will have to pass the costs along to the customer. The charges are outlined below. For more information, please check out the Ontario Electronic Stewardship website.
Desktop Computers **: $13.44 per system
Portable Computers **: $2.14 per system
Computer Peripherals **: $0.32 per item
(Mice, Keyboards, Hard Drives, Optical Drives)
Monitors(with no embedded TV Tuner): $12.03 per unit
TV (includes any monitors with embedded TV tuners): $10.07 per unit
Printing Devices: $5.05 per unit
** Computer fees do not cover costs for mice, keyboards etc. Any units
shipping with these peripherals will require the applicable peripheral
fee to be added and charged in a bundled price. Please contact us for further details as defined by the OES as to what is included in the above classifications.
Stuck Pixel on your LCD Monitor
Posted by admin on Mar 5, 2009
It does not happen very often, but some times a lone pixel on an LCD screen can get stuck “on”. When a pixel is stuck on, it usually shines a bright white or green colour. When a pixel is dead, it does not shine at all. A dead pixel cannot usually be fixed, but a stuck pixel can… some times. To get instructions, check out http://www.wikihow.com/Fix-a-Stuck-Pixel-on-an-LCD-Monitor. We have tried these suggestions a few times, and it almost always fixes the problem.
Use Google Alerts to your Advantage
Posted by admin on Sep 27, 2008
Google Alerts can be used to send an email to you whenever a search shows new results. For instance, you can use it to keep track of your personal identity. Go to www.google.com/alerts and serach for your own name, using the comprehensive search. You will also need to choose the frequency (I chose weekly) and enter your email address. You will be sent a confirmation email to approve the alert. Now, any time the search results change, you will be sent an email so that you can check out when your name is being used.
Another great way to use Google Alerts is to keep track of your website ranking in Google Search. In the search terms, enter your domain name (in our case, icscomputers.ca) and choose the comprehensive search. I again, chose weekly notification, and entered my email address. Whenever someone links to your site, or the search results for your domain name change in any way, you will be notified.
Maintenance & Backup
Posted by admin on Oct 2, 2007
Are you tired of worrying about your computer and backing up your data? We can take care of that for you. Arrange for one of our technicians to come into your home or business, at the interval you choose (weekly, monthly, quarterly). We will make sure the systems are virus-free, running at their optimum, and that all your software is updated. We can then perform either a system backup, or just the data only. If you are interested, let us know, and we can provide a price.
