Just Too Good To Pass Up

Hi All -

Working on a computer the other day, I came across: 

http://autos.aol.com/article/gps-thief-home-invasion?gsl=afc_b 

. . . for which, here's a suggestion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7Y60thUZyU

December 17 Tech Tip - Social Network Hacking

Good Morning All!

I'm Bud Freund, your BNI Tech Guy.

Today's tip is about Monday's New York Times article about hacking twits. . . I mean Twitter hacking.

Yes, it's true, if you don't create strong passwords for your Twitter or Facebook accounts, you could find yourself spamming the planet Earth with the golden opportunity of winning a $500.00 gift card from Victoria's Secret.

It's the newest way that cyber crime preys on low hanging fruit.

So if you'd like help securing your digital assets, please call Victoria's Secret. . . I mean Bud Freund, your BNI Tech Guy. Number 9, number 9, number 9.

December 10 Tech Tip - Firefox

As many of you know, in order to look at stuff on the internet, you need a computer, DUH!, and a piece of software called a browser. A browser is basically a motor. It takes information from "out there", churns it around and spits it onto your monitor in (hopefully) some coherent and attractively organized fashion. 

There are many browsers:

• Safari for the Macintosh
• Opera for people with really big propellers on their beanies
• Chrome from Google
• Internet Explorer, Microsoft's offering
  

. . . and then there's Firefox.

Ah jes loves Firefox! 

Here's why:

It works on multiple platforms: Macintosh, Linux, and Windows.

Unlike Internet Explorer, it's a stand-alone application. IE (pronounced just like the old horror movie shrieks, with good reason) is married to the Windows operating system through the registry - a database of everything on your PC. Hack IE and you can compromise the registry, blow-up your operating system and depending on the size and type of your computer, either make a nifty paper weight or a substantial door stop.

Using Firefox as your browser, chances of that happening are greatly reduced.

Firefox is free. That's right, no cost, zero, zip, nada. . . an unbeatable price.

The most important reason I love Firefox is because of all the great bells and whistles - known in Firefox-land as "add-ons" - you can incorporate. They "enhance the internet browsing experience". . . and they work on multiple platforms too.

Here's a list of "fav's" in no particular order: 

• Flag Fox - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5791?src=api - This puts a small flag of the the country from which you're receiving your web page. As internet crime becomes more prevalent from other countries, this can tip you off to fraud. In other words, if you were expecting a banking page from America, and you see a flag from Kazakhstan, close out. 
• Colorful Tabs - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1368 - Although IE now has tabs, this add-on makes finding pages even faster because rather than trying to read truncated text, you can look for the blue tab or the green tab.
•  IE Tab - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1419 - As previously mentioned, browsers are motors. That said, some web pages need to run through the Internet Explorer motor in order to look correct. IE Tab fools Firefox (on Windows machines only) into running the IE "engine".
• Download Statusbar - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/26 - This add-on allows you to see how quickly, or how long your download will take without going to another window. It also allows you to launch the file once it's on your computer.
•  Xmarks - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2410 - If you use multiple computers, this add-on will allow you to have one set of bookmarks everywhere.
• Forecast Fox - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/398 - This add-on will give you a weather report along the bottom of your browser window, and it will allow for multiple locations.
• Faster Fox - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/12878 - While this add-on doesn't make Firefox load any faster, it does help make pages appear faster once it's up and running.
• Ad Blocker - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/6826?src=api - As the name implies, the information you want from a web page will show up, not the solicitations.
• Quick Note - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/46 - A recent discovery that allows you to make one of your tabs a place to put notes. If you already use Google Notebook. . . and the Google family of freebies is a topic for another day, this is a great place to put little bits of information.
• FEBE - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2109 - allows you to create a backup of all your Firefox add-ons, which can then be loaded as a single chunk onto another computer, Mac, Win or Linux.
• Fox Clocks - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1117 - This one shows the time and date. . . and for whirled travelers, you can see multiple locations.

And if you're looking for a place that "defines" Firefox add-ons, try:

http://www.econsultant.com/i-want-firefox-extension/

So there it is, a great piece of free software with free add-ons that make it even better.

December 3 Tech Tip

Good Morning All!

I'm Bud Freund, your BNI Tech Guy.

Today's tip is about identity theft.

With the holidays just around the corner, consider giving the gift of music.

About 3/4 of the music purchased in the U.S. is downloaded from the internet.

To date, there have been over 6 billion songs downloaded from iTunes into hundreds of  millions of iTunes accounts. . . 

that all have credit card numbers. . . 

It's a hacker's dream.

So rather than giving Apple your credit card, you can give that special someone an iTunes card.

It will work just as well, and it will keep your identity just a little bit safer.

. . . and if you need help redeeming that iTunes card, just ask for Bud Freund, your BNI Tech Guy, number 9, number 9, number 9.