Anybody who is even mildly tech savvy probably has an account in one of the popular networking sites. The fact that you're reading this blog proves it as I've only posted it on Facebook. Such is their popularity that these sites (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter) have become the ideal platform to share messages, photos, videos and comments with family and friends. Best of all, they are cloud operated platforms requiring no aplication downloads on your own PC.
But for big business, what is the value of a social network?
Social networks are the natural evolution of the first collaboration productivity tools. Initially, these consisted of email and instant messaging. Later on, wikis, user forums and developer communities appeared on the scene allowing a greater level of interaction. Subsequently, these different productivity tools made their way into social networking sites offering all-in-one functionality.
One of the greatest benefits to end users of this evolution is the concept known as crowd sourcing - user forums or communities that share experiences on specific subjects. Nowadays, we no longer rely on sales hype to determine the cost-benefit of a product or service. We go online to see what type of experiences other users have had with the product and base our decisions on these personal assessments. It's the equivalent of customer testimonials on a massive scale.
Until now big business has not really known how to profit from or take advantage of social networks as these sites are available to anyone free of charge. Site revenues come mostly from advertisers wanting to maximize demographic reach. Facebook, for example, has 350 million registered users.
That is, until now.
Salesforce.com, founded in 1999, is the world leader in cloud computing CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solutions. CRM is an automated system that traces the life-cycle of sales, from lead generation to post sales service and maintenance. Residing in the cloud as Software as a Service (SaaS), Salesforce.com's CRM solutions require no downloads on the client's PC and is OS agnostic. Because of the flexibility of its CRM solution (highly configurable and secure modules), Salesforce.com pricing model is just as flexible (subscription or per-user basis). Since its incorporation, Salesforce.com has steadily grown and refined its product and service portfolio. Today, they have more than 50,000 customers and over 100,000 contributing developers.
In 2007, Salesforce.com launched Force.com, a new concept in cloud computing known as Platform as a Service extending the capabilities of CRM's SaaS model with the incorporation of collaboration tools in an integrated, flexible and secure suite of services. As with their CRM solutions, Force.com's mashable aplications offer a high level of user customization and configuration.
Peter Coffee, Salesforce.com's Director of Platform Research, states that Force.com has experienced impressive growth in the emerging markets of India, Brazil and Australia where there is a large concentration of outsourcing companies and developer communities. Companies like Infosys and Tata, for example, have had such a great success with Force.com that they have actually been able to export their processes to the US. In other words, the high level of efficiency (read cost minimization) these companies have achieved through the use of the Force.com platform has permitted them to export the whole process (sales, service, help desk)to countries where costs are considered to be prohibitive.
Force.com consists of four basic components: Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Custom Cloud and Chatter. These components are available as independent modules as well.
Sales Cloud - offers the main benefits of Salesforce.com CRM including mobile communications and real time updates including collaboration tools and analytics.
Service Cloud - is centered on client's technical support. Aside from consisting of its own knowledge base for the Help Desk, Service Cloud also incorporates user's experiences (crowd sourcing). The advantages are clear. Different regions offer variations of the same product. For example, A Honda Accord in the US may have very little in common with a European Honda Accord. This means that the propietary knowledge base does not have to be exported to different data centers all over the world. Only the commonalities are exported as each region develops its own unique set of events. The result is a leaner, more agile base freeing up valuable compute resources.
Custom Coud - is the application database created by the developer community. Custom Cloud not only offers all types of applications for use in client's systems, it serves as a direct link with developers to facilitate the modification or customization of Force.com applications.
Chatter - is the latest component of Force.com and is slated for release in the Spring of 2010. On Chatter's release, it will allow the integration of social networking sites into the company's realm. According to Coffee, "Chatter will provide real business value to the whole phenomenon of social networking. It will be the integration of partners, manufacturers, suppliers, customers, service and maintenance techs using existing social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Additionally, the networks will also provide professional tools such as forecasting and analytics. Everyone involved in the company's process will be connected at all times regardless of location providing instant feedback and results."
If your Help Desk or outsourcing partner is turning out to be a black hole of ever increasing costs and poor customer satisfaction, perhaps it's time to look into more viable alternatives. Specifically, Force.com.
For more information visit www.salesforce.com.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Novatel's MiFi - a new kind of wireless
I'm reprinting this article from the New York times verbatim because I've been using this device for a couple of weeks now and I plan to do a little lab analysis in a few days. However, that analysis will be in Spanish and will be totally irrelevant to anyone not residing in Spain.
Still, this article sums up nicely what Novatel's MiFi is capable of, and thought you might find it interesting.
The New York Times
May 7, 2009
State of the Art
Online Wherever You Like, in a Private Wi-Fi Hot Spot
By DAVID POGUE
Someday, we'll tell our grandchildren how we had to drive around town looking for a coffee shop when we needed to get online, and they'll laugh their heads off. Every building in America has running water, electricity and ventilation; what's the holdup on universal wireless Internet?
Getting online isn't impossible, but today's options are deeply flawed. Most of them involve sitting rooted in one spot - in the coffee shop or library, for example. (Sadly, the days when cities were blanketed by free Wi-Fi signals leaking from people's apartments are over; they all require passwords these days.)
If you want to get online while you're on the move, in fact, you've had only one option: buy one of those $60-a-month cellular modems from Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile or AT&T. The speed isn't exactly cable-modem speed, but it's close enough. You can get a card-slot version, which has a nasty little antenna protuberance, or a
U.S.B.-stick version, which cries out to be snapped off by a passing flight attendant's beverage cart.
A few laptops have this cellular modem built in, which is less awkward but still drains the battery with gusto.
But imagine if you could get online anywhere you liked - in a taxi, on the beach, in a hotel with disgustingly overpriced Wi-Fi - without messing around with cellular modems. What if you had a personal Wi-Fi bubble, a private hot spot, that followed you everywhere?
Incredibly, there is such a thing. It's the Novatel MiFi 2200, available from Verizon starting in mid-May ($100 with two-year contract, after rebate). It's a little wisp of a thing, like a triple-thick credit card. It has one power button, one status light and a swappable battery that looks like the one in a cellphone.
When you turn on your MiFi and wait 30 seconds, it provides a personal, portable, powerful, password-protected wireless hot spot.
The MiFi gets its Internet signal the same way those cellular modems do - in this case, from Verizon's excellent 3G (high-speed) cellular data network. If you just want to do e-mail and the Web, you pay $40 a month for the service (250 megabytes of data transfer, 10 cents a megabyte above that). If you watch videos and shuttle a lot of big files, opt for the $60 plan (5 gigabytes). And if you don't travel incessantly, the best deal may be the one-day pass: $15 for 24 hours, only when you need it. In that case, the MiFI itself costs $270.
In essence, the MiFi converts that cellular Internet signal into an umbrella of Wi-Fi coverage that up to five people can share. (The speed suffers if all five are doing heavy downloads at once, but that's a rarity.)
Cellular wireless routers, as they're called, have been available for years. The average person hasn't even heard of this product category, but these routers are popular on, for example, Hollywood movie shoots. On-location cast and crew can kill their downtime online, sharing the signal from a single cellular card that's broadcast via Wi-Fi.
Those machines, however, get no cell signal on their own; you have to supply your own cellular modem. They're also big and metal and ugly. But the real deal-killer is that they have to be plugged into a power outlet. You can't use one at the beach or in the woods unless you have a really, really long extension cord.
The MiFi is remarkable for its tiny size, its sleek good looks, its 30-foot range (it easily filled a large airport gate area with four-bar signal) - and the fact that it's cordless and rechargeable.
How is this amazing? Let us count the ways.
First, you're spared the plug-and-unplug ritual of cellular modems. You can leave the MiFi in your pocket, purse or laptop bag; whenever you fire up your laptop, netbook, Wi-Fi camera or game gadget, or wake up your iPhone or iPod Touch, you're online.
Last week, I was stuck on a runway for two hours. As I merrily worked away online, complete with YouTube videos and file downloads, I became aware that my seatmate was sneaking glances. As I snuck counter-glances at him, I realized that he had no interest in what I was doing, but rather in the signal-strength icon on my laptop - on an airplane where there wasn't otherwise any Wi-Fi signal. "I'm sorry," he finally said, completely baffled, "but how are you getting a wireless signal?" He was floored when I pulled the MiFi from my pocket, its power light glowing evilly.
If he'd had a laptop, I would have happily shared my Wi-Fi cloud with him. The network password is printed right there on the bottom of the MiFi itself. That's a clever idea, actually. Since the MiFi is in your possession, it's impossible for anyone to get into your cloud unless you show it to them. Call it "security through proximity."
The second huge advantage of the MiFi is that, as with any wireless router, you can share its signal with other people; up to five road warriors can enjoy the same connection. Your youngsters with their iPod Touches in the back of the van could hop online, for example, or you and your colleagues could connect and collaborate on a corporate retreat. Verizon points out how useful the MiFi could be for college
students working off-campus, insurance adjusters at a disaster site and trade show booth teams. (Incredibly, Verizon even suggests that you could use the MiFi at home as your primary family Internet service. Sharing a cellular-modem account was something it strenuously discouraged only two years ago.)
Some footnotes: First, the MiFi goes into sleep mode after 30 minutes of inactivity, to prolong its battery life. Yes, it means that a single charge can get you through a full day of on-and-off Internet noodling, even though the battery is supposed to
run for only four hours a charge. (it's rated at 40 hours of standby). But once the MiFi is asleep, your Wi-Fi bubble is gone until you tap the power button.
It's probably the height of ingratitude to complain about having to press a single button to get yourself online. But if the MiFi is flopping around somewhere in the bottom of your bag, just finding it can be a minor hassle.
Fortunately, you can turn off that sleep feature, or even change the inactivity interval before it kicks in. This gizmo is a full-blown wireless router with full-blown configuration controls. If you type 192.168.1.1 into your Web browser's address bar - a trick well known to network gurus - the MiFi's settings pages magically appear. Now you can do geeky, tweaky tasks like changing the password or the wireless network name, limiting access to specific computers, turning
on port forwarding (don't ask) .
A final note: If your laptop has a traditional cellular modem, you can turn on a Mac OS X or Windows feature called Internet Sharing, which rebroadcasts the signal via Wi-Fi, just like the MiFi.
But the MiFi is infinitely easier to use and start up, doesn't lock you into carrying around your laptop all the time, has better range and works even when your laptop battery is dead. (The MiFi recharges from a wall outlet; it still works as a hot spot while it's plugged in.)
It's always exciting when someone invents a new product category, and this one is a jaw-dropper. All your gadgets can be online at once, wherever you go, without having to plug anything in - no coffee shop required. Heck, it might even be worth showing the grandchildren.
Still, this article sums up nicely what Novatel's MiFi is capable of, and thought you might find it interesting.
The New York Times
May 7, 2009
State of the Art
Online Wherever You Like, in a Private Wi-Fi Hot Spot
By DAVID POGUE
Someday, we'll tell our grandchildren how we had to drive around town looking for a coffee shop when we needed to get online, and they'll laugh their heads off. Every building in America has running water, electricity and ventilation; what's the holdup on universal wireless Internet?
Getting online isn't impossible, but today's options are deeply flawed. Most of them involve sitting rooted in one spot - in the coffee shop or library, for example. (Sadly, the days when cities were blanketed by free Wi-Fi signals leaking from people's apartments are over; they all require passwords these days.)
If you want to get online while you're on the move, in fact, you've had only one option: buy one of those $60-a-month cellular modems from Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile or AT&T. The speed isn't exactly cable-modem speed, but it's close enough. You can get a card-slot version, which has a nasty little antenna protuberance, or a
U.S.B.-stick version, which cries out to be snapped off by a passing flight attendant's beverage cart.
A few laptops have this cellular modem built in, which is less awkward but still drains the battery with gusto.
But imagine if you could get online anywhere you liked - in a taxi, on the beach, in a hotel with disgustingly overpriced Wi-Fi - without messing around with cellular modems. What if you had a personal Wi-Fi bubble, a private hot spot, that followed you everywhere?
Incredibly, there is such a thing. It's the Novatel MiFi 2200, available from Verizon starting in mid-May ($100 with two-year contract, after rebate). It's a little wisp of a thing, like a triple-thick credit card. It has one power button, one status light and a swappable battery that looks like the one in a cellphone.
When you turn on your MiFi and wait 30 seconds, it provides a personal, portable, powerful, password-protected wireless hot spot.
The MiFi gets its Internet signal the same way those cellular modems do - in this case, from Verizon's excellent 3G (high-speed) cellular data network. If you just want to do e-mail and the Web, you pay $40 a month for the service (250 megabytes of data transfer, 10 cents a megabyte above that). If you watch videos and shuttle a lot of big files, opt for the $60 plan (5 gigabytes). And if you don't travel incessantly, the best deal may be the one-day pass: $15 for 24 hours, only when you need it. In that case, the MiFI itself costs $270.
In essence, the MiFi converts that cellular Internet signal into an umbrella of Wi-Fi coverage that up to five people can share. (The speed suffers if all five are doing heavy downloads at once, but that's a rarity.)
Cellular wireless routers, as they're called, have been available for years. The average person hasn't even heard of this product category, but these routers are popular on, for example, Hollywood movie shoots. On-location cast and crew can kill their downtime online, sharing the signal from a single cellular card that's broadcast via Wi-Fi.
Those machines, however, get no cell signal on their own; you have to supply your own cellular modem. They're also big and metal and ugly. But the real deal-killer is that they have to be plugged into a power outlet. You can't use one at the beach or in the woods unless you have a really, really long extension cord.
The MiFi is remarkable for its tiny size, its sleek good looks, its 30-foot range (it easily filled a large airport gate area with four-bar signal) - and the fact that it's cordless and rechargeable.
How is this amazing? Let us count the ways.
First, you're spared the plug-and-unplug ritual of cellular modems. You can leave the MiFi in your pocket, purse or laptop bag; whenever you fire up your laptop, netbook, Wi-Fi camera or game gadget, or wake up your iPhone or iPod Touch, you're online.
Last week, I was stuck on a runway for two hours. As I merrily worked away online, complete with YouTube videos and file downloads, I became aware that my seatmate was sneaking glances. As I snuck counter-glances at him, I realized that he had no interest in what I was doing, but rather in the signal-strength icon on my laptop - on an airplane where there wasn't otherwise any Wi-Fi signal. "I'm sorry," he finally said, completely baffled, "but how are you getting a wireless signal?" He was floored when I pulled the MiFi from my pocket, its power light glowing evilly.
If he'd had a laptop, I would have happily shared my Wi-Fi cloud with him. The network password is printed right there on the bottom of the MiFi itself. That's a clever idea, actually. Since the MiFi is in your possession, it's impossible for anyone to get into your cloud unless you show it to them. Call it "security through proximity."
The second huge advantage of the MiFi is that, as with any wireless router, you can share its signal with other people; up to five road warriors can enjoy the same connection. Your youngsters with their iPod Touches in the back of the van could hop online, for example, or you and your colleagues could connect and collaborate on a corporate retreat. Verizon points out how useful the MiFi could be for college
students working off-campus, insurance adjusters at a disaster site and trade show booth teams. (Incredibly, Verizon even suggests that you could use the MiFi at home as your primary family Internet service. Sharing a cellular-modem account was something it strenuously discouraged only two years ago.)
Some footnotes: First, the MiFi goes into sleep mode after 30 minutes of inactivity, to prolong its battery life. Yes, it means that a single charge can get you through a full day of on-and-off Internet noodling, even though the battery is supposed to
run for only four hours a charge. (it's rated at 40 hours of standby). But once the MiFi is asleep, your Wi-Fi bubble is gone until you tap the power button.
It's probably the height of ingratitude to complain about having to press a single button to get yourself online. But if the MiFi is flopping around somewhere in the bottom of your bag, just finding it can be a minor hassle.
Fortunately, you can turn off that sleep feature, or even change the inactivity interval before it kicks in. This gizmo is a full-blown wireless router with full-blown configuration controls. If you type 192.168.1.1 into your Web browser's address bar - a trick well known to network gurus - the MiFi's settings pages magically appear. Now you can do geeky, tweaky tasks like changing the password or the wireless network name, limiting access to specific computers, turning
on port forwarding (don't ask) .
A final note: If your laptop has a traditional cellular modem, you can turn on a Mac OS X or Windows feature called Internet Sharing, which rebroadcasts the signal via Wi-Fi, just like the MiFi.
But the MiFi is infinitely easier to use and start up, doesn't lock you into carrying around your laptop all the time, has better range and works even when your laptop battery is dead. (The MiFi recharges from a wall outlet; it still works as a hot spot while it's plugged in.)
It's always exciting when someone invents a new product category, and this one is a jaw-dropper. All your gadgets can be online at once, wherever you go, without having to plug anything in - no coffee shop required. Heck, it might even be worth showing the grandchildren.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Random Access Memory (RAM)
Before I get into other apps every system should have, I just wanted to add this piece of information as a result of a demo I witnessed the other day by the techies at Kingston Technology.
Kingston is the largest independent fabricator of system memory modules (RAM). You might be familiar with internal/external disc drives, USBs or memory cards (SD, SDHC, etc.) from other fabricators like SanDisk. They are not the same thing.
At the very beginning of this blog I said, "You can never have enough RAM." The reason is simple: new applications requiere ever increasing amounts of RAM to function properly. Even if can't use all your RAM capacity now, sooner or later, you'll need it.
RAM is volatile memory. It's not meant to store anything; when you turn off your computer, everything you have in RAM is lost. It's a temporary workspace applications use to access frequently used data.
Having said that, the other day the nice people of Kingston performed a demo of their latest RAM module: HyperX DDR3. RAM, like every other technology, has evolved. The very first computers (IBM PC, Apple IIe, Amiga) had 8-16KB RAM, a far cry from the 8GB systems of today. However, today's memory modules are not backward compatible with previous versions. In other words, DDR1 is not compatible with DDR2 which is not compatible with DDR3.
The first thing you notice about the new HyperX is its heat dissipator. It's huge! And that can only mean one thing: it generates a lot of heat. But that's not a bad thing because that also means it's fast. In fact, the whole demo centered around HyperX's capacity for overclocking. In plain English, the user's choice to configure data transfer between RAM and application faster and beyond its intended limits. Techies do this with resource-hungry video games to minimize or eliminate frame by frame latency and is configured from the system's BIOS. What this all boils down to is: if it's capable of seamlessly handling the most resource-hungry video games, it's capable of handling even your most demanding mission critical applications.
I can't give you all the technical details of how RAM works or the specs of HyperX, but Kingston's website does a good job of explaining the development and evolution of RAM modules with this Ultimate Memory Guide.
Kingston is the largest independent fabricator of system memory modules (RAM). You might be familiar with internal/external disc drives, USBs or memory cards (SD, SDHC, etc.) from other fabricators like SanDisk. They are not the same thing.
At the very beginning of this blog I said, "You can never have enough RAM." The reason is simple: new applications requiere ever increasing amounts of RAM to function properly. Even if can't use all your RAM capacity now, sooner or later, you'll need it.
RAM is volatile memory. It's not meant to store anything; when you turn off your computer, everything you have in RAM is lost. It's a temporary workspace applications use to access frequently used data.
Having said that, the other day the nice people of Kingston performed a demo of their latest RAM module: HyperX DDR3. RAM, like every other technology, has evolved. The very first computers (IBM PC, Apple IIe, Amiga) had 8-16KB RAM, a far cry from the 8GB systems of today. However, today's memory modules are not backward compatible with previous versions. In other words, DDR1 is not compatible with DDR2 which is not compatible with DDR3.
The first thing you notice about the new HyperX is its heat dissipator. It's huge! And that can only mean one thing: it generates a lot of heat. But that's not a bad thing because that also means it's fast. In fact, the whole demo centered around HyperX's capacity for overclocking. In plain English, the user's choice to configure data transfer between RAM and application faster and beyond its intended limits. Techies do this with resource-hungry video games to minimize or eliminate frame by frame latency and is configured from the system's BIOS. What this all boils down to is: if it's capable of seamlessly handling the most resource-hungry video games, it's capable of handling even your most demanding mission critical applications.
I can't give you all the technical details of how RAM works or the specs of HyperX, but Kingston's website does a good job of explaining the development and evolution of RAM modules with this Ultimate Memory Guide.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Try and Decide
OK. After a much deserved break, I'm back. That trouble with the IRS, as it turns out, was just a hoax. I got all riled up over nothing. Still, work committments have kept me from updating my blog and I must apologize for that. So, let's get back to where we left off.
Try and Decide is a neat little function in Acronis True Image Home 2009 that allows you to test a potentially dangerous application (drivers, apps, updates, upgrades, etc.) before you actually install it on your system.
Try and Decide creates a virtual workspace which isolates systems resources during the testing process. All the user has to do is click on the Try and Decide function from True Image Home's main menu, click on the 'play' button and the computer automatically enters into virtual mode.
Not sure of your latest P2P client, mp3 download or website? Go ahead and try/install it within Try and Decide. If the client, file or program is infected with any sort of trojan or malware, it won't affect your system. Try and Decide allows you to check on program compatibility. When you click on the 'pause' or 'stop' button, your system reverts back to its normal state and you can then discard the infected application.
Try and Decide works within Acronis Secure Zone (ASZ), that disk partition True Image advises you to create upon startup. However, I noticed that Try and Decide tends to use up a lot of the space reserved for ASZ, meaning that you may not have enough space left over for your backup chores. Because of this, I have since opted to save my backup chores on a separate disk partition, a purely arbitrary decision designed to minimize having to manage space requirements.
Next up: More apps you can't do without
OK. After a much deserved break, I'm back. That trouble with the IRS, as it turns out, was just a hoax. I got all riled up over nothing. Still, work committments have kept me from updating my blog and I must apologize for that. So, let's get back to where we left off.
Try and Decide is a neat little function in Acronis True Image Home 2009 that allows you to test a potentially dangerous application (drivers, apps, updates, upgrades, etc.) before you actually install it on your system.
Try and Decide creates a virtual workspace which isolates systems resources during the testing process. All the user has to do is click on the Try and Decide function from True Image Home's main menu, click on the 'play' button and the computer automatically enters into virtual mode.
Not sure of your latest P2P client, mp3 download or website? Go ahead and try/install it within Try and Decide. If the client, file or program is infected with any sort of trojan or malware, it won't affect your system. Try and Decide allows you to check on program compatibility. When you click on the 'pause' or 'stop' button, your system reverts back to its normal state and you can then discard the infected application.
Try and Decide works within Acronis Secure Zone (ASZ), that disk partition True Image advises you to create upon startup. However, I noticed that Try and Decide tends to use up a lot of the space reserved for ASZ, meaning that you may not have enough space left over for your backup chores. Because of this, I have since opted to save my backup chores on a separate disk partition, a purely arbitrary decision designed to minimize having to manage space requirements.
Next up: More apps you can't do without
Friday, May 8, 2009
Time out
A thousand apologies...I know I've been remiss in my blog duties but I have a damn good reason for it.
It tax time once again and I just found out I have to pay a bunch of taxes this year because of capital gains. Plus, I have a Hacienda (IRS equivalent in Spain) audit this Monday. Now I don't know about you folks but I HATE having to pay taxes to any government, especially this one. My hard earned money is just gonna end up in the pockets of some crooked socialist politician. I'm an anarchist at heart and I detest any kind of government intervention on private personal gains. I pay more than enough with social security and taxes withheld at source. Why can't they leave me the damn hell alone?
So it was off to the shrink and anti-depressants for me. SIGH......
I promise to be back after my audit next week. Thank you for your understanding.
It tax time once again and I just found out I have to pay a bunch of taxes this year because of capital gains. Plus, I have a Hacienda (IRS equivalent in Spain) audit this Monday. Now I don't know about you folks but I HATE having to pay taxes to any government, especially this one. My hard earned money is just gonna end up in the pockets of some crooked socialist politician. I'm an anarchist at heart and I detest any kind of government intervention on private personal gains. I pay more than enough with social security and taxes withheld at source. Why can't they leave me the damn hell alone?
So it was off to the shrink and anti-depressants for me. SIGH......
I promise to be back after my audit next week. Thank you for your understanding.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Back ups and recovering from disasters
Backup and restore 'best practices'
I started taking about apps you can't do without and 'best practices'. One of the things I forgot to mention, as part of best practices, is that everyone should get into the habit of creating restore points after any major event, usually the installation of an application, driver, patch or update. I got into this habit with Windows XP and I've extended it into Vista.
Windows allows you to create 'restore points' which are basically 'images' or 'snapshots' of your computer's configuration at certain points in time. Windows ordinarily creates these points automatically, although I usually do it manually.
If a problem should occur in your system after the installation of an app, you can always go back to the point before the installation to restore your computer to the most recent working state. However, this is not a foolproof method since some security products like Kaspersky and Norton prevent the proper functioning of this tool. These products have a Self-Defense mode activated by default that interferes with the system restore tool. Read it here.
Nonetheless, in Windows (XP and Vista), go to Start Menu-All Programs-Accessories-System Tools-System Restore. You'll then be presented with an intuitive, self-explanatory dialog box that will allows you to restore your system or create and label your restore points. Now you can go back in time, as it were, to the last known working state. In theory, the Restore System function does not affect any stored files such as documents, music or videos. It only deals with applications, drivers, registries and libraries. However, just to be safe, store your personal files on a separate disk partition as mentioned previously in this blog. Read the full process as explained by a Windows expert. Pay careful attention to the sections that deal with Device Drivers and Compatibility Issues.
This expert, Joli Ballew, also recommends using the Restore System function as a last resort. Usually, a malfunction can easily be fixed by a system reboot. If that doesn't work, the other option is to press the 'F8' key when you boot your system. This brings up a DOS menu with several options. Use the arrow keys to highlight 'Last known good configuration' and press 'Enter'. This method usually works well most of the time.
If you have any experience with Windows, then chances are you've used some or all of these techniques in the past. On a difficulty scale of 1 to 10, I give this process a rating of 3-4 for anyone with average computer skills: more than a beginner but less than an expert and able to locate and use basic system tools such as changing the desktop themes, the disk defragmenter, or the most common word formatting funtions.
The second to the worst case scenario is that the operating system may need to be repaired, NOT reinstalled. This requires the original Windows OS installation disk. There are several forum sites that discuss the procedure which is too lengthy to describe here. However, this one is well illustrated and quite easy to follow and understand.
The worst case scenario is a complete system reinstall, something we want to avoid at all cost because you lose everyting. The plus side is you start with a totally clean system.
As mentioned earlier, the Restore System function may cause errors due to antivirus programs. Because of this, I have since decided to deploy a different solution.
Acronis True Image Home 2009
Because of my line of work, I'm always installing and uninstalling software products to try out. This causes great havoc with the registry entries and library files. Often, I'm left with orphaned entries that affect my computer's performance.
So, instead of having to depend on Windows to get me out of a fix, I chose to go with Acronis True Image Home 2009 for my new laptop. Acronis is a company that specializes in disk management, backups and disaster recovery both at the consumer and enterprise level.
ATIHome 2009, like Windows' Restore Point function, creates an image of your entire system. But that's where the similarity ends. Acronis, as opposed to Windows, is a comprehensive solution offering a wide array of options and a high degree of of granularity.
The main dashboard layout presents the user with 4 four backup tasks and chores (Backup, Manage and Restore, Task Management and Try and Decide) and 6 disk management utilities (System Information, Protection Tools, One-Click Protection, Clean Utilities, Search and Help).
Below, I outline the procedure I followed.
1. System Information
The first step is to go to System Information and get a visual of your disk partitions and their current state. The top part of the interface lists the first 3 tasks that have to be carried out to get started: System Volume Backup, Acronis Bootable Media and Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. These three tasks will have a red 'Not Initiated' tag right next to each one. To start the individual tasks, simply click on each one.
The most important of the 3 tasks is the System Volume Backup which creates a FULL backup of your system including application configuration and settings. You will be asked to save your backup file (.tib) in your choice of folder and partition.
The Acronis Bootable Media is not necessary if you've already created the Windows Recovery Disks. Otherwise, create a bootable DVD/CD.
The Startup Recovery Manager allows you to boot and recover your computer in case of system failure.
To be on the safe side, I executed all three.
Below these three tasks, Acronis presents a visual of the status of your disk. Right below, the user can create Aconis Secure Zone (ASZ). ASZ os a hidden, unaccessible partition that Acronis creates (if you so choose) to store your different backup files. When you create ASZ, the program will automatically determine the amount of disk space needed. In any case, you are allowed to manage (increase, decrease, remove) this disk partition via the Protection Tools feature of the program found on the main screen.
2. Schedule backup tasks
Once the System Volume Backup has been created, you can now set up the frequency of your backups (manually, daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) via the Task Management utility on the main screen.
The nice thing about Acronis is that it is intuitive and easy to navigate. Task Management presents you with a three month calendar and 3 tabs: Scheduled Tasks (planned backup schedules), Unscheduled Tasks (backups performed manually) and Log (a register of the backup actions taken). Clicking on any of these tabs changes the contextual menu on the title bar (top of screen).
Click on the Scheduled Tasks tab and select the 'Create Backup Task' icon on the title bar. You will then be presented with several options: My Computer, My Data, System State, My Email, and My Application Settings. Below each is an explanation of the kind of backup that will be created. Ordinarily, choose My Computer which creates an image of the entire disk, and thus, is the most comprehensive of the options.
The utility then takes you through a process to specify the destination disk of the backup file (this is where you can designate ASZ to store backups), the frequency (dates and times) of backups, and the type of backups (full, incremental or differential).
In my case, I configured Acronis to perform an incremental backup every Monday morning at 2:00 am,and to store the consolidated file in the ASZ partition. By default, Acronis chooses the Incremental Backup method, provided you've created the Full Backup mentioned above. Whether you choose Incremental or Differential, you will need the Full backup to proceed.
So what's the difference betwen Incremental and Differential?
Incremental backups record only the changes made to the system since the last incremental backup, which in turn is based on the first full backup. In other words, if we were to number the logical sequence of the backups, it would look something like this:
I started taking about apps you can't do without and 'best practices'. One of the things I forgot to mention, as part of best practices, is that everyone should get into the habit of creating restore points after any major event, usually the installation of an application, driver, patch or update. I got into this habit with Windows XP and I've extended it into Vista.
Windows allows you to create 'restore points' which are basically 'images' or 'snapshots' of your computer's configuration at certain points in time. Windows ordinarily creates these points automatically, although I usually do it manually.
If a problem should occur in your system after the installation of an app, you can always go back to the point before the installation to restore your computer to the most recent working state. However, this is not a foolproof method since some security products like Kaspersky and Norton prevent the proper functioning of this tool. These products have a Self-Defense mode activated by default that interferes with the system restore tool. Read it here.
Nonetheless, in Windows (XP and Vista), go to Start Menu-All Programs-Accessories-System Tools-System Restore. You'll then be presented with an intuitive, self-explanatory dialog box that will allows you to restore your system or create and label your restore points. Now you can go back in time, as it were, to the last known working state. In theory, the Restore System function does not affect any stored files such as documents, music or videos. It only deals with applications, drivers, registries and libraries. However, just to be safe, store your personal files on a separate disk partition as mentioned previously in this blog. Read the full process as explained by a Windows expert. Pay careful attention to the sections that deal with Device Drivers and Compatibility Issues.
This expert, Joli Ballew, also recommends using the Restore System function as a last resort. Usually, a malfunction can easily be fixed by a system reboot. If that doesn't work, the other option is to press the 'F8' key when you boot your system. This brings up a DOS menu with several options. Use the arrow keys to highlight 'Last known good configuration' and press 'Enter'. This method usually works well most of the time.
If you have any experience with Windows, then chances are you've used some or all of these techniques in the past. On a difficulty scale of 1 to 10, I give this process a rating of 3-4 for anyone with average computer skills: more than a beginner but less than an expert and able to locate and use basic system tools such as changing the desktop themes, the disk defragmenter, or the most common word formatting funtions.
The second to the worst case scenario is that the operating system may need to be repaired, NOT reinstalled. This requires the original Windows OS installation disk. There are several forum sites that discuss the procedure which is too lengthy to describe here. However, this one is well illustrated and quite easy to follow and understand.
The worst case scenario is a complete system reinstall, something we want to avoid at all cost because you lose everyting. The plus side is you start with a totally clean system.
As mentioned earlier, the Restore System function may cause errors due to antivirus programs. Because of this, I have since decided to deploy a different solution.
Acronis True Image Home 2009
Because of my line of work, I'm always installing and uninstalling software products to try out. This causes great havoc with the registry entries and library files. Often, I'm left with orphaned entries that affect my computer's performance.
So, instead of having to depend on Windows to get me out of a fix, I chose to go with Acronis True Image Home 2009 for my new laptop. Acronis is a company that specializes in disk management, backups and disaster recovery both at the consumer and enterprise level.
ATIHome 2009, like Windows' Restore Point function, creates an image of your entire system. But that's where the similarity ends. Acronis, as opposed to Windows, is a comprehensive solution offering a wide array of options and a high degree of of granularity.
The main dashboard layout presents the user with 4 four backup tasks and chores (Backup, Manage and Restore, Task Management and Try and Decide) and 6 disk management utilities (System Information, Protection Tools, One-Click Protection, Clean Utilities, Search and Help).
Below, I outline the procedure I followed.
1. System Information
The first step is to go to System Information and get a visual of your disk partitions and their current state. The top part of the interface lists the first 3 tasks that have to be carried out to get started: System Volume Backup, Acronis Bootable Media and Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. These three tasks will have a red 'Not Initiated' tag right next to each one. To start the individual tasks, simply click on each one.
The most important of the 3 tasks is the System Volume Backup which creates a FULL backup of your system including application configuration and settings. You will be asked to save your backup file (.tib) in your choice of folder and partition.
The Acronis Bootable Media is not necessary if you've already created the Windows Recovery Disks. Otherwise, create a bootable DVD/CD.
The Startup Recovery Manager allows you to boot and recover your computer in case of system failure.
To be on the safe side, I executed all three.
Below these three tasks, Acronis presents a visual of the status of your disk. Right below, the user can create Aconis Secure Zone (ASZ). ASZ os a hidden, unaccessible partition that Acronis creates (if you so choose) to store your different backup files. When you create ASZ, the program will automatically determine the amount of disk space needed. In any case, you are allowed to manage (increase, decrease, remove) this disk partition via the Protection Tools feature of the program found on the main screen.
2. Schedule backup tasks
Once the System Volume Backup has been created, you can now set up the frequency of your backups (manually, daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) via the Task Management utility on the main screen.
The nice thing about Acronis is that it is intuitive and easy to navigate. Task Management presents you with a three month calendar and 3 tabs: Scheduled Tasks (planned backup schedules), Unscheduled Tasks (backups performed manually) and Log (a register of the backup actions taken). Clicking on any of these tabs changes the contextual menu on the title bar (top of screen).
Click on the Scheduled Tasks tab and select the 'Create Backup Task' icon on the title bar. You will then be presented with several options: My Computer, My Data, System State, My Email, and My Application Settings. Below each is an explanation of the kind of backup that will be created. Ordinarily, choose My Computer which creates an image of the entire disk, and thus, is the most comprehensive of the options.
The utility then takes you through a process to specify the destination disk of the backup file (this is where you can designate ASZ to store backups), the frequency (dates and times) of backups, and the type of backups (full, incremental or differential).
In my case, I configured Acronis to perform an incremental backup every Monday morning at 2:00 am,and to store the consolidated file in the ASZ partition. By default, Acronis chooses the Incremental Backup method, provided you've created the Full Backup mentioned above. Whether you choose Incremental or Differential, you will need the Full backup to proceed.
So what's the difference betwen Incremental and Differential?
Incremental backups record only the changes made to the system since the last incremental backup, which in turn is based on the first full backup. In other words, if we were to number the logical sequence of the backups, it would look something like this:
- 1st full backup: filename.tib(1)
- 1st incremental backup: filename.tib(1)1
- 2nd incremental backup: filename.tib(1)1.2
- 3rd incremental backup: filename.tib(1)1.2.3 and so on...
As you can see, each succeeding backup is based on the previous one. Incremental require less space since they only record the latest changes. However, to restore from an incremental backup file, it is absolutely necessary to have ALL previous incremental backups and the original full backup, since the backups are all interdependent.
Differential backups, on the other hand, only record the changes made to the Full backup. It requires less space than a full backup but more space than an incremental backup. Differentail backups are almost as reliable as full backups since the backups are not dependent on each other but only the original full backup. The logical numbering sequence would look something like this:
- 1st full backup: filename.tib(1)
- 1st differntial backup: filename.tib(1)1
- 2nd differential backup: filename.tib(1)2
- 3rd differential backup: filename.tib(1)3 and so on...
As you can see, each backup is based on the original full backup and not the preceeding differential backups. To restore from a differential backup, you only need the latest differential backup and the original full backup.
SUMMARY:
- Partition your hard disk to safeguard personal files.
- Secure your system with a comprehensive security solution.
- Create 'Restore Points' after the installation of any application, driver, update, plug-in, patch or Internet download.
- If you require a more comprehensive backup solution, choose an application that creates volume images rather than one that simply creates copies of files and folders.
- Employ a 'best practices' approach to your computing and surfing habits.
Next: Acronis Try and Decide function
Sunday, April 12, 2009
General care of desktops and laptops
Applications you can't do without...
Now that you've got your wireless connection working, you're ready to surf the 'Net and fill your laptop with all kinds of downloads, right? Wrong! If you're anything like the millions of computer users around the world, you probably use your system to store everything from pictures to music to videos to emails to contacts. In other words, your life. On top of that, if you transact business online (banking and purchases) without adequate protection, you leave yourself open to the possibility of identity theft (bank acount, credit card and social security numbers). The loss of any or all of these can cause great anxiety and depression.
So the first thing you need to do is SECURE your system. It's easy to protect a system if you apply a strategy of 'best practices' which I outline below. Many users think that by activating Windows' built-in Firewall and keeping systems updated, computers are protected. Nothing could be further from the truth. Microsoft is not a security provider (at least, not an experienced one), even though they have ventured into the field with their Windows Live One-Care product.
Viruses and other infections, collectively known as malware, can only come from three sources: Websites embedded with malicious code such as porn sites, fake bank Websites that solicit confidential info such as passwords or credit card numbers (phishing), P2P sites (spyware) and other free download sites that have occult harmful payloads that register keystrokes (keyloggers) or allow third parties to take control of your system (botnets); infected email attachments with programs that install themselves when opened; and infected files downloaded from external media such as USBs, DVDs and CD-ROMs.
Incidentally, an authentic bank site would NEVER ask you to divulge confidential information, so if you get an email notice from your bank asking for account number confirmation, it's surely fake. If in doubt, call your bank. Better safe than sorry. Lately, there's also been a lot of concern over the security of social networks like Facebook. So be careful of the type of information you put out there and who you allow to see it.
Indeed, the bad guys are always one step ahead because there's a lot of money to be made (http://tinyurl.com/techweekpanda) from all kinds of scams.
So let's go step-by-step.
1. Partition your hard disk
The first thing you have to do is partition your hard disk. Normally, viruses and other malware will target your computer's C: drive boot sector because that's where the operating system, registry and applications reside. Most people don't bother to partition their disks so most data files and personal information also reside on the C: disk. Create a partition (a virtual disk) for your stored data and personal files. That way, even if your entire C: drive is infected requiring a complete system reinstall, your files will remain unaffected and safe. Windows Vista comes with a basic built-in disk partitioning tool that is fine for end users. However, if you manage several physical internal or external disks, I suggest you use a good partitioning application such as PowerQuest's Partition Magic, a company specializing in disk management acquired by Symantec in 2003.
In Windows Vista, simply right click the My Computer icon and go to Administer/Manage (my OS is in Spanish so I'm translating directly) - Storage - Disk Administrator/Manager. On the right pane, you will have a visual of how your disk is partitioned. Normally, your hard drive will have two partitions, C: (system) and D: (recovery) which are factory set. This is true for most systems sold in Europe. Right click on disk C: and select "Reduce Volume" and specify the size by which you want to reduce the C: drive (normally half the original size is good). What this does is reduce the size of your C: drive creating a new virtual drive with the amount of disk space which you can designate with any letter and name. Make sure this new virtual disk is an NTFS (NT File System) partition. Once created, you can store all your personal files (pictures, music, videos, contacts) in this new partition.
2. Surf safely
Your laptop/computer probably came with an antivirus program when you purchased it. If not, you need to get and install a comprehensive solution before you surf the Web. Today's solutions have evolved and most include a combination of antivirus, antispam, antiphishing, antispyware, firewall and intrusion prevension system (IPS) features designed to provide a safe Internet experience. There are many diferent security providers including free antivirus applications. However, security is one THE one aspect of computers you cannot put a price on, just as you would not be able to put a price on the safety of your children. When it comes to security, don't scrimp, be conscientious. Remember the old adage: Better safe than sorry.
Nowadays, most security providers offer variations of the same solutions, Internet Security. I've tried several in the past and some were better than others. Over the past two years I've been using Kaspersky's Internet Security on my desktop not only because it does a good job and offers a lot of granularity (fine tuning), but because it is light on system resources - you hardly notice it working in the background.
This new HP laptop I'm using came with a 60 day license of Norton's Internet Security 2009, and it is the first Norton product I've used that is lightweight. My experience with previous editions of Norton security products was negative as they were all resource hungry. I remember being severely hampered by my Norton-protected, limited capacity workstation at work. However, I was truly surprised by this version of Internet Security. In addition to providing total web surfing protection (all the features mentioned above), NIS 2009 provides a neat little feature that stores your credit card information for online purchases. When you're ready to complete a purchase, you simply call up the Identity Safe function and NIS 2009, together with its antiphishing feature, evaluate the validity of the page requesting your credit information. Once NIS 2009 assures you of the site's authentication, it supplies your credit card details to finalize the purchase upon your approval.
Which brings me to another point. If you are fond of online shopping, rather than having to enter your credit card information everytime you make a purchase, I suggest signing up with a third party provider such as Pay Pal. Signing up with Pay Pal is free and transactions cost you nothing. The service manages your credit information (encrypted) for you and charges the seller a commission. You enter your credit details only once and when you're ready to make a purchase, Pay Pal guarantees payment to the seller. This eliminates the need of entering your credit details in multiple sites reducing the risk of identity theft.
Next up, backing up your data...
Part deux...
According to the Quick Installtion Guide, after you’ve connected the laptop to the AP, type http://192.168.2.2 in Internet Explorer’s (IE) address bar to call up the security configuration interface. The SMCWEB-N, with four Ethernet LAN ports, requires no application or driver downloads, all software is preinstalled in the Access Point itself.
I have to admit that I’m one of those guys that never reads a user manual because, like any big kid, I can’t wait to start playing with my new toys. If the instruction manual is longer than three pages, I don’t even bother reading the table of contents. I just dive right in. This attitude must be something innate in men and somewhat akin to never asking a woman for directions or stopping to read a map when you’re on a road trip. It’s hardwired into our genetic code to know machines. And I admit I should have read the CD manual because there was no way to get the AP interface up and running.
Finally, after reading the manual (there’s a reason why manufacturers include instructions), I realized that the configured IP address (Control Panel – Networks and Internet – Shared Resources and Networks Center – Manage Network Connections – Local Area Network Connection – Internet Protocol version 4 – Properties in Windows Vista) must be within a certain range of values to access the AP’s configuration interface. Normally, the IP address is obtained automatically or the ISP gives you a fixed value. Whichever the case may be, all that’s required is to select the box marked: “Use the following IP address” and enter a value between 192.168.2.3 and 192.168.2.254, and a “Subnet Mask” of 255.255.255.0.
And voilá! When you type http://192.168.2.2 in IE’s address bar, SMC’s configuration interface pops up. The interface is intuitive and easy to use. All the user has to do is enter “admin” for the name and “smcadmin” for the password to launch the security configuration wizard, Wireless Network Setup, with five tabs: Basic, Advanced, Tools, Status and Help.
Basic: Click the Basic tab to setup the AP. If you currently do not have wireless access (and I’m guessing that’s why you bought the access point to begin with), setup the SMCWEB-N as a wireless Access Point using the Add Wireless Device wizard. This device comes with a switch that gives you the choice of using the unit as an access point or client. By default, it’s set to AP. All the user has to do is give the unit an SSID name that identifies the device in nearby wireless networks. In my case I used “SMCWEB-N”, but you can use any name you want.
Next, the wizard will prompt you for the type of security you want to implement and suggests several options: WEP, WPA, WPA2, etc. What do these initials stand for? All I know is that they are encryption standards offering varying degrees of authentication security, the most recent and advanced being WPA2. That’s all I have to say about it since I’m not that technical anyway. At any rate, the device suggests WPA2 TKIP encryption and I figure that, in these matters, the machine knows more than I do. So after selecting this option, you are asked to enter a password to prevent third party clients (PDAs, laptops, cell phones, etc.) from accessing your network connection when they are within reach of your access point. Write down this password and keep it in a safe place in the event that you are asked to re-enter it, which could happen during a system failure or power outage. With respect to passwords, choose an adequate length alphanumeric string using a combination of numbers and upper and lower case letters.
And voilá! When you type http://192.168.2.2 in IE’s address bar, SMC’s configuration interface pops up. The interface is intuitive and easy to use. All the user has to do is enter “admin” for the name and “smcadmin” for the password to launch the security configuration wizard, Wireless Network Setup, with five tabs: Basic, Advanced, Tools, Status and Help.
Basic: Click the Basic tab to setup the AP. If you currently do not have wireless access (and I’m guessing that’s why you bought the access point to begin with), setup the SMCWEB-N as a wireless Access Point using the Add Wireless Device wizard. This device comes with a switch that gives you the choice of using the unit as an access point or client. By default, it’s set to AP. All the user has to do is give the unit an SSID name that identifies the device in nearby wireless networks. In my case I used “SMCWEB-N”, but you can use any name you want.
Next, the wizard will prompt you for the type of security you want to implement and suggests several options: WEP, WPA, WPA2, etc. What do these initials stand for? All I know is that they are encryption standards offering varying degrees of authentication security, the most recent and advanced being WPA2. That’s all I have to say about it since I’m not that technical anyway. At any rate, the device suggests WPA2 TKIP encryption and I figure that, in these matters, the machine knows more than I do. So after selecting this option, you are asked to enter a password to prevent third party clients (PDAs, laptops, cell phones, etc.) from accessing your network connection when they are within reach of your access point. Write down this password and keep it in a safe place in the event that you are asked to re-enter it, which could happen during a system failure or power outage. With respect to passwords, choose an adequate length alphanumeric string using a combination of numbers and upper and lower case letters.
And with that, your SMCWEB-N Access Point should be ready to use, as mine was. I won’t go into the other Tab options because, frankly, when I saw that my AP was working fine and securely, I left it at that. No point in lookin’ to fix what ain’t broke!
The only thing left to do is disconnect the Ethernet cable from your laptop, connect it to your broadband modem, and connect your desktop (previously connected to your modem) to the LAN2 port of your AP device.
Lastly, don’t forget to reset your laptop’s IP address (3rd paragraph of ‘part deux’ above) to “Set IP address automatically” in the properties section of your TCP/IP version 4 Protocol.
When you reboot your laptop, go to “Connect to” in the Start menu (Windows logo button). You should see a list of all the wireless networks in the vicinity, among them ‘SMCWEB-N’. Double click on this network and if you are prompted for a password, use the one you wrote down and (hopefully) kept. The AP will recognize it and connect you automatically.
The only thing left to do is disconnect the Ethernet cable from your laptop, connect it to your broadband modem, and connect your desktop (previously connected to your modem) to the LAN2 port of your AP device.
Lastly, don’t forget to reset your laptop’s IP address (3rd paragraph of ‘part deux’ above) to “Set IP address automatically” in the properties section of your TCP/IP version 4 Protocol.
When you reboot your laptop, go to “Connect to” in the Start menu (Windows logo button). You should see a list of all the wireless networks in the vicinity, among them ‘SMCWEB-N’. Double click on this network and if you are prompted for a password, use the one you wrote down and (hopefully) kept. The AP will recognize it and connect you automatically.
I have to say that I am very pleased with my SMCWEB-N device. On a scale of 1 to 5, with five being the most difficult, I give this device a mark of 2 with respect to the difficulty of its setup. It was rather simple to configure and its 802.11 draft N protocol gives my laptop better performance than my desktop. Of course, the fact that my laptop is a 64-bit system with 4GB of RAM, as opposed to my 2GB 32-bit desktop, also helps. Nonetheless, I’m very pleased with it and it has helped dispel my cynicism of wireless devices.
NOTE: The AP is not a router meaning you won’t be able to access your home printer from your laptop unless your printer has an Ethernet port. But that’s a whole other configuration story.
Next up: Applications you can’t do without…
NOTE: The AP is not a router meaning you won’t be able to access your home printer from your laptop unless your printer has an Ethernet port. But that’s a whole other configuration story.
Next up: Applications you can’t do without…
Then…
Ten years ago, my sister gave me an iBook (Apple), a laptop without Wi-Fi or Bluetooth capability and full of compatibility problems with Windows applications (Excel never worked liked it should have and the Apple store was charging me more than the price of a new one to get it fixed). After that, I never took the iBook seriously and parked it in some corner of the house to gather dust. Since then I’ve been strictly a desktop model user.
Three years ago, I decided to check out the ‘triple-play’ (TV, phone calls, Internet) package of one of the biggest ISPs in Spain. The techs came to the house and changed my PC’s 1MB ADSL modem with a 3MB wireless router and a TV decoder. After that, everything went downhill fast! I experienced constant connectivity problems, and the times I could connect to the Internet, the speeds were waaay below those advertised. I was constantly calling tech support (which, incidentally, were not free calls at all as they had me believe) for some kind of explanation, but none was forthcoming. I tried everything short of signing up with a new service provider, something I regret not doing sooner. In the end, the techs gave up and washed their hands off the whole incident saying the problem lay with my PC since their dashboard gauges were all showing positive results. The problem, according to the tech, was my computer was too old; I needed to get myself a new one.
Like an idiot, I believed them and marched straight out to buy myself a new desktop PC, a system I still use at home. After more than 700 euros and an additional six months of extremely bad or absolutely no service from the same provider (they never did figure out the cause of my poor connectivity), I decided to call it quits and angrily gave these guys the pink slip for having wasted my time. I changed my service provider and hooked up with a company that offered 20MB bandwidth and free local calls (no TV).
Thanks to that wireless experience that had me wired to tech support at all times, I decided to forego venturing into wireless products other than my cell phone. That is, until now.
…and now
A few weeks ago I was given the opportunity to buy a laptop at bargain basement prices. In addition, a manufacturer offered to let me try out a wireless Access Point (AP) which I could keep in exchange for a write up. As a technology journalist, these are the few perks of the trade we enjoy. So, I thought, why not? I’ll document the whole process in a blog.
And this blog is it: what I did, how I did it, and why I did it.
1. The laptop
Ten years ago, my sister gave me an iBook (Apple), a laptop without Wi-Fi or Bluetooth capability and full of compatibility problems with Windows applications (Excel never worked liked it should have and the Apple store was charging me more than the price of a new one to get it fixed). After that, I never took the iBook seriously and parked it in some corner of the house to gather dust. Since then I’ve been strictly a desktop model user.
Three years ago, I decided to check out the ‘triple-play’ (TV, phone calls, Internet) package of one of the biggest ISPs in Spain. The techs came to the house and changed my PC’s 1MB ADSL modem with a 3MB wireless router and a TV decoder. After that, everything went downhill fast! I experienced constant connectivity problems, and the times I could connect to the Internet, the speeds were waaay below those advertised. I was constantly calling tech support (which, incidentally, were not free calls at all as they had me believe) for some kind of explanation, but none was forthcoming. I tried everything short of signing up with a new service provider, something I regret not doing sooner. In the end, the techs gave up and washed their hands off the whole incident saying the problem lay with my PC since their dashboard gauges were all showing positive results. The problem, according to the tech, was my computer was too old; I needed to get myself a new one.
Like an idiot, I believed them and marched straight out to buy myself a new desktop PC, a system I still use at home. After more than 700 euros and an additional six months of extremely bad or absolutely no service from the same provider (they never did figure out the cause of my poor connectivity), I decided to call it quits and angrily gave these guys the pink slip for having wasted my time. I changed my service provider and hooked up with a company that offered 20MB bandwidth and free local calls (no TV).
Thanks to that wireless experience that had me wired to tech support at all times, I decided to forego venturing into wireless products other than my cell phone. That is, until now.
…and now
A few weeks ago I was given the opportunity to buy a laptop at bargain basement prices. In addition, a manufacturer offered to let me try out a wireless Access Point (AP) which I could keep in exchange for a write up. As a technology journalist, these are the few perks of the trade we enjoy. So, I thought, why not? I’ll document the whole process in a blog.
And this blog is it: what I did, how I did it, and why I did it.
1. The laptop
With so many different makes and models to choose from, the decisive question always reverts to ‘What use will I make of my laptop?’ And depending on the answer, you can narrow down your options. I wanted an all-in-one (professional, personal and entertainment) robust laptop with the latest wireless technologies at a price within my budget, between 600 and 900 euros. My other requirement was that it be small and light enough for road warrior duty. As a journalist, I get to travel around quite a bit and I wanted something light and easy to lug around. If on top of that I could find something that would be the envy of the office, then so much the better.
I finally opted for an HP Pavilion dv3550es with the 64-bit version of Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (very quick), 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo dual-core processor (quicker even), 4GB of DDR2 RAM (you can never have enough RAM), 13.3” WXGA 1280x800 resolution Brite View wide screen monitor (very sharp), Nvidia GeForce 9300M GS graphics card (for gaming power), 320GB SATA HDD (I would have wished for 500GB, at least), Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, integrated webcam and mike, Altec Lansing speakers, remote control, biometric digital reader, 5-in-1 memory card reader, with HDMI output (easy connect to your HD flat screen TV) and other doo-dads. Total weight: 1.87 kilos or approximately 4 pounds.
On the inside, the Pavilion includes a 60 day license of Norton Internet Security 2009, a 90 day license of Microsoft Office 2007 Home Edition, Microsoft Works (the cheap, unlimited-use version of Office), Windows Mail (the Works version of Outlook Express), Adobe Reader 5.0, and HP MediaSmart and HP ProtectSmart, a media center management application and hard disk protector, respectively.
This laptop is cool both inside and out. It has a nice bronze-finish metal carcass (I don’t know that it’s titanium) and a very thin profile footprint.
The only thing bad I have to say about it is the keyboard. The keys, like the frame are bronzed metallic with a smooth touch and solid feel unlike the cheap, jerky plastic keys on most of today’s laptops. However, the markings are in black which makes the keys hard to distinguish in dim light conditions. Were it not for this oversight on HP’s part, I would have given this Pavilion an A+ on everything from looks to size to performance to price. As it is, the best I can do is give it an A-.
2. Access Point configuration procedure
I finally opted for an HP Pavilion dv3550es with the 64-bit version of Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 (very quick), 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo dual-core processor (quicker even), 4GB of DDR2 RAM (you can never have enough RAM), 13.3” WXGA 1280x800 resolution Brite View wide screen monitor (very sharp), Nvidia GeForce 9300M GS graphics card (for gaming power), 320GB SATA HDD (I would have wished for 500GB, at least), Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, integrated webcam and mike, Altec Lansing speakers, remote control, biometric digital reader, 5-in-1 memory card reader, with HDMI output (easy connect to your HD flat screen TV) and other doo-dads. Total weight: 1.87 kilos or approximately 4 pounds.
On the inside, the Pavilion includes a 60 day license of Norton Internet Security 2009, a 90 day license of Microsoft Office 2007 Home Edition, Microsoft Works (the cheap, unlimited-use version of Office), Windows Mail (the Works version of Outlook Express), Adobe Reader 5.0, and HP MediaSmart and HP ProtectSmart, a media center management application and hard disk protector, respectively.
This laptop is cool both inside and out. It has a nice bronze-finish metal carcass (I don’t know that it’s titanium) and a very thin profile footprint.
The only thing bad I have to say about it is the keyboard. The keys, like the frame are bronzed metallic with a smooth touch and solid feel unlike the cheap, jerky plastic keys on most of today’s laptops. However, the markings are in black which makes the keys hard to distinguish in dim light conditions. Were it not for this oversight on HP’s part, I would have given this Pavilion an A+ on everything from looks to size to performance to price. As it is, the best I can do is give it an A-.
2. Access Point configuration procedure
After creating the user accounts and configuring the biometric reader, the first step in the life of any computer is configuring Internet access. For me, this was the moment of truth as my past experiences had made me rather cynical and apprehensive.
SMC Networks manufactures a whole line of Internet access devices from routers to Access Points. They gave me a choice between a router and an Access Point, and after relating my previous experiences, they suggested I try their easy-to-configure SMCWEB-N wireless Access Point (AP) with the new ‘draft N’ standard of the 802.11 wireless communications protocol. The AP
also includes the ‘b’ and ‘g’ standards.
According to the quick installation guide, the only thing the user has to do is connect the laptop (via Ethernet cable provided) to the LAN1 port on the rear of the AP, start Internet Explorer, and type http://192.168.2.2 on the address bar. I’m one of those guys who makes it a point to get by with the least amount of effort. In other words, I never read the instruction manual. Usually, I make do with the quick installation guide.
SMC Networks manufactures a whole line of Internet access devices from routers to Access Points. They gave me a choice between a router and an Access Point, and after relating my previous experiences, they suggested I try their easy-to-configure SMCWEB-N wireless Access Point (AP) with the new ‘draft N’ standard of the 802.11 wireless communications protocol. The AP
also includes the ‘b’ and ‘g’ standards.According to the quick installation guide, the only thing the user has to do is connect the laptop (via Ethernet cable provided) to the LAN1 port on the rear of the AP, start Internet Explorer, and type http://192.168.2.2 on the address bar. I’m one of those guys who makes it a point to get by with the least amount of effort. In other words, I never read the instruction manual. Usually, I make do with the quick installation guide.
Next: Part deux...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)