OK, Windows 7 it is.

A lot has happened since my last blog entry.  Mortgage approval, in-laws 7 week stay, birth of new baby, end of rental lease, moving back in with my parents and storing a houseload of stuff at a friend’s, oh and continuing to run our small business.  So you’ll forgive me for not posting earlier

I am getting back into the swing of things with my writing committments, amongst which is the customer newsletter distributed globally through our franchise.  With Windows 7 now released, our early Oct edition was a quick glimpse into why you might bother with the new OS … well, as much as a glimpse as you can get in 500 words.

I’m pleased to say that I finally installed it on my own laptop.  The performace is amazing.  I’m getting used to where things have been put (bit lost in control panel and the network properties still).  And my sound doesn’t work – time for a driver hunt.  But so far, so good – I’m impressed.

Here’s a copy of the article that went out to our customers:

From late October 2009, new computers will start to ship with Windows 7, the latest operating system from Microsoft.  This month we look at some of the features that may entice you to upgrade:

At Home:

Share nicely – With most homes now having multiple computers, the ‘HomeGroup’ feature makes it easier to share printers and files (including music, pictures and videos).  Entering a password connects your Windows 7 computer into the HomeGroup, and settings control which files are shared and which remain private.

Take the music with you – Windows 7 and Media Player 12 allow you to access and play media files from your home PC remotely via the internet on another computer.

Snap & Shake – Time to teach your mouse some new tricks!  Aero Snap activates when you drag a window to an edge of your screen.  Left or right edges automatically make the window resize to a full ‘top-to-bottom but half screen width’ size.  Drag to the top of your screen, and your window will retain its width but stretch out vertically to fill your screen from top to bottom.  Aero Shake lets you literally grab and shake a window to minimize all of the other open windows on your screen.   

At Work:

Find more – The speed of the Start menu’s search feature has improved significantly.  You’ll see search results from files and Outlook emails stored locally on your computer, including the text contained within email attachments.  Search also extends beyond just your PC and can be configured to include results from your company’s network drives and public websites, using search connectors. 

USB secrets – USB storage (in either keys or portable hard disks) has become more popular for people working at multiple locations or for storing backups.  With BitLocker To Go (in Windows 7 Ultimate edition), you can now secure files on these devices by encrypting them with a lengthy password.  This password can be remembered on your regular PC, and if it’s forgotten, a 48 character recovery key can be used on any Windows 7 PC to restore access to your files.  Just don’t lose your recovery key too! 

On The Go:

Performance – Windows 7 requires less horsepower to run than Windows Vista.  Independent publications have reported that ageing laptops running Windows XP have become more responsive with Windows 7.

Saving power – Numerous features have been added to automatically preserve battery life, such as shutting off power to unused network ports and reducing background activities.  There are also more tweaks for creating your own power-saving schemes, including setting the video quality and processor cooling options.

Talk to your local Computer Troubleshooter about your options for upgrading to Windows 7.   www.computertroubleshooters.com

Dear Mr Bank Manager (aka the ballad of the self-employed)

On most days I love being self-employed.  I like the control I have over how my business operates.  Whilst we’re still only a ‘micro business’ (read: no other ‘team members’ but us), it could be classed by some as a job.  However, I get to set my own salary, my own hours, my own work location, what products & services I offer, how I market & advertise and which customers I will (or won’t) deal with.

Running your own business also gives you an invaluable set of skills that you just don’t get when you are an employee, and a whole new ‘empathy’.  Share stories of having cashflow battles, nightmare customers or stellar employees with another business owner and you’ll get that look of “I understand, I’ve been through that too”.  It’s the best of times and the worst of times and you are only accountable to yourself.

But recently I had to deal with the wonderful world of banks and their mortgage approval process.  Credit to my mortgage broker who buffered as much of the stress and string-pulling as they could.  However, I have a banking background and know that the self-employed & lending approval is like water and oil.  For starters, if you go the ‘low doc’ option (where you sign a piece of paper that promises that your income is enough), you also have to provide a 20% deposit.  I know that the days of 110% mortgages are long gone with the global financial crisis, but finding a 20% chunk of cash in a hurry (e.g. when your renting circumstances change) is no easy feat for anyone, especially if it comes with strong caveats about proving a 6 month genuine savings history.

Self-employed people are seen as a much higher risk to lend to than a salaried employee.  As I turn on the TV each day to hear of consistently rising unemployment figures and job layoffs, I think it’s time to challenge that belief.

So, Dear Mr Bank Manager, here’s my case:

As a business owner, I understand risk.  I understand that there are good times and bad times, and just because I’ve had a stunning profit this month it doesn’t mean that next month will be the same – though I will do everything in my powers to try and achieve the same stunning result.  Because of this, I know that the ‘annual salary’ on my payslip is not a sure thing.  Fact is, it’s not a sure thing when you are an employee either, especially in the current economic climate.  Therefore, I understand that committing to borrowing money from you and being able to pay it back is a risky move.  And as that money relates to the roof over my head and indeed my family’s, I’m not about to put us in a riskier position than I am comfortable with.  Note: I’m not asking for enough funds to build a mansion.  I believe that many of the mortgagee sales that have contributed to the real estate crash in the USA are from genuine people in salaried employment, who have suddenly lost the security of their paycheck.  Why? Because the business owner terminated his employees to protect his business.

I own the business.  I know it intimately – in fact I wake up at night thinking about it.  I know on a daily basis whether things are going well or not and I’m able to adjust my actions accordingly.  I’m navigating and steering this ship, I’m not just along for the ride.  Ask a salaried employee how well the company is going and how confident they are of keeping their job and their pay check.  They’ll hope everything is fine.  Who do you think has a greater certainty about the stability and continuance of their income?  If things aren’t going well, I’ll be making adjustments immediately, to get the results I need.  As an employee, you’ll do what you can within your sphere of influence, but you aren’t able to make the kinds of decisions and actions that I can to change the outcome.

As the business owner, I have my own best interests at heart.  I know that sounds harsh, and I do truly lose sleep over how to keep my business performing to pay the salaries of my employees.  But in the cold, hard light of day, my primary responsibility is to my own family.  If things really aren’t going well, my second-to-last course of action will be to lay off my employees, in order to preserve my own income.  My last course of action will be to close up shop.  This means that my employees are at a greater risk of losing their jobs than I am.  And there’s little they can do about it (other than contribute as much as possible to ensuring that my business is profitable – but at the end of the day, I am the decision maker).  In all of the lay-off announcements, who has been losing their jobs?  The workers, not the business owners, not the CEOs or Company Presidents … unless the whole business has completely gone under, and I think that’s usually a result of management not acting soon enough.

And, heaven forbid, should my business wither away to an unprofitable, unviable mess, I think I have a greater chance of survival.  My business management skills and the lesson I have just learnt will make for a much stronger second attempt at running a business.  If I do decide to look for another job working for someone else, I think that my skills and experience would outshine that of another potential ‘employee-only’ candidate.  Not to mention the fact that my business currently services over 100 happy customers, many of whom would employ me in a heartbeat.  That’s 100 potential enployment opportunities that an employee may not have.

OK, end of rant, I’ve now stated my case.  I doubt that this will change the thinking or lending criteria of the banking world, but it’s made me feel better justifying my little place in the world economy.

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

-SCuffy

HP recalls some Australian laptop batteries

HP is recalling more than 3,000 rechargeable battery packs used in laptop computers due to a potential fire hazard.  The voluntary recall comes after the company received reports that a fault in the lithium-ion battery pack could cause it to overheat.  HP Australia estimates 3,405 potentially affected battery packs have been sold in Australia.

There have been 19 instances of overheating recorded worldwide but none in Australia.

The company is recalling battery packs sold individually or used in HP Pavilion notebook computer models:

dv2000

dv2500

dv2700

dv6000

dv6500

dv6700

dv9000

dv9500

dv9700

Compaq Presario models:

A900

C700

F700

V3000

V3500

V6000

V6700

HP Compaq models:

6720s

HP G6000

G7000 

 

Owners can contact HP Australia to arrange a refund or free replacement battery pack.

For help in identifying if your notebook is affected, visit the HP Notebook Battery Replacement website

Free search engine (SEO) tips from Google for small business

I’m going to keep this post brief so you can just get straight to the video on YouTube and watch.

Matt Cutts from Google gives you his search engine optimization tips:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gscFgaMTm48

-SCuffy

Update on Support On Click – Police alert to Scam

It’s official – the Queensland state Police have investigated complaints and found the Support On Click offering is a scam (when they call and pretend to be Microsoft).  Here is the official press release, with a link to the police website: http://www.police.qld.gov.au/News+and+Alerts/Media+Releases/2009/04/New+scam+targets+computer+users.htm

The Queensland Police Service has issued a warning about a new scam targeting computer users.

The scam involves people taking a call from a person working at a foreign call centre. The victim receives a call from the offender, who claims to belong to a software support company that has been requested by Microsoft to fix problems on the victim’s computer.

The offender confirms the victim’s computer has sent error messages to Microsoft regarding problems with their Windows Explorer.

The offender will then direct the victim through a process on their computer ultimately giving the offender remote access to the computer to download Trojans or gain access to personal information.

Once the offender has gained access, they will then give or sell the victim software in order to prevent this problem in the future. The victim, instead of downloading anti-virus software, will unknowingly be installing a virus on their computer which may be used to gather credit card data.

Ms Julie Inman Grant, Asia-Pacific Director for Internet Safety for Microsoft, confirmed that the company is not contacting its customers in regards to the matter and has advised computer users to exercise caution.

“Microsoft will never cold-call a customer and request access to their computer system. Nor do we direct third-party support companies to do so,” said Ms Inman Grant. 

“In this case, the callers are misrepresenting that they are from Microsoft when in fact they are not,” she said.

Detective Superintendent Brian Hay of the State Crime Operations Command Fraud and Corporate Crime Group said this new scam was just another example of offenders preying on the vulnerabilities of victims.

“This scam has the potential to work, as the victim may let down their guard when told by the offender they have specific knowledge of error messages on their system. This gives the victim confidence in the caller, which in turn opens the door to fraud,” Detective Superintendent Hay said.

Members of the community are reminded to do their homework before buying from people who call on the phone or make contact via the internet.

For more information on fraud prevention, including hints and tips, visit the Queensland Police website at www.police.qld.gov.au

Support On Click (aka reading the fine print)

It’s that time of the night (usually around 6:30pm) and the phone rings.  A lovely Indian voice from Support On Click tells you that your computer has serious problems which must be fixed by paying them a subscription fee for a remote support session.  Would you be suspicious?  What if the caller told you that they were actually from Microsoft, or that they were calling on behalf of your internet provider (even mentioning BigPond by name)?

On first glance, the Support On Click website seems to be for a legitimate, remote support business.  As a provider of remote support services, I understand the value of this kind of support and how it really can benefit someone with computer problems.  But like most human beings, I struggle with handing over my credit card details over the phone to a company I’ve never heard of, especially when they then will gain remote access to my computer and the rest of my personal files and identity details.  Does this mean that the company is in fact a scam?  Well, it was worth investigating further anyway.

Google revealed many people talking about similar marketing/direct calling tactics.  More than anything, that’s the part that worries me.  Even if they were randomly going through the phone system drumming up business, the practice of pretending to be another company (especially Microsoft) or stating to be sanctioned by your ISP is deceitful if not illegal.  But dose this make them a scam?

Their website pitches that they will deliver a remote support service in return for an agreed fee.  If they do indeed provide this service, then they are a legitimate business.  So, next step – is there anything in the fine print?

To save you having to read nearly 6,500 words of Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions, I’ve done it for you.  Here are the highlights that rang alarm bells with me:

You agree that beyond the Personal Information identified in the Privacy Policy, any information or data disclosed or sent to SUPPORTONCLICK.COM over the telephone, electronically or otherwise, is not confidential or proprietary to you.  – Hmm, so I have to agree that my information is NOT confidential.

IN NO EVENT SHALL SUPPORTONCLICK.COM ANDOR ITS RESPECTIVE SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM LOSS OF USE, DATA OR PROFITS, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF SERVICES, MATERIALS OR SOFTWARE, FAILURE TO PROVIDE THE SAME, OR INFORMATION AVAILABLE IN THE MATERIALS. – And I have to agree to a big liability waiver that says they are not responsible for anything.

f) Sharing.  We will share aggregated demographic information with our partners and advertisers. This is not linked to any personal information that can identify any individual person. – So they will pass on my demographic details to advertisers, gee thanks.

g) Log Files.  We use IP addresses to analyze trends, administer the site, track user movement, and gather broad demographic information for aggregate use. IP addresses are not linked to personally identifiable information. – Big brother is watching me.

And to save you the boring details, both the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions can be changed without notifying you, and it is your responsibility to visit their website and review the 6,500 words to become aware of any changes.

The internet is a very faceless way of doing business and, as seen with many email & virus scams, some people believe what they read or hear without giving it a second thought.  That doesn’t mean it is wrong to do business this way though.  But personally, when something like my computer is involved, I’d rather have a relationship with the people that will be fixing it, even if they then do use remote technology.  At least I will have met that and built some level of trust with them.  To me it would be like handing over my banking details or discussing my financial plans – you know I want to meet and trust that kind of service provider in person too.

I’m not going to leave you with a verdict on Support On Click, but at least I’ve uncovered some more of the facts to enable you to make uo your own mind.  If indeed you do feel you have been scammed by this company, let me know.

 

-SCuffy

MYOB pictures on email & pdf forms

OK, let’s ignore how long it’s been since my last post and just rejoice that due to my great filing system I managed to find my wordpress login details

Strangest thing in MYOB accounting software – customise a form and insert your own picture/graphic (eg company logo), use the ‘Send to email’ or ‘Send to Disk’ to create an electronic version of your document (invoice/statement etc) … and no picture images appear.

The solution?  Install Apple’s free Quicktime software http://www.apple.com/quicktime/, which must be at least version 5.5.  You’ll most commonly find this occurs if a computer is rebuilt, with it’s software reloaded from scratch, and someone forgets about Quicktime.

This has to win the award for one of the most illogical solutions to a problem, though I’m sure MYOB have some great reason for the quicktime dependancy.  It can also be a little challenging to find this solution in the official MYOB knowledgebase (though if you are paying for support, the call centre are pretty quick with this answer).

Until next time .. which hopefully won’t be as long as last time!!

-SCuffy.

HTC Touch Pro plays up …

No, not the ‘naughty child hiding your car keys’ playing up, but an ominous ‘reboot loop’ playing up on any inbound or outbound phone call connection.  Had I managed to get a dud?

Thanks to the google search of a friend, a hard reset was attempted (after the usual I.T. trick didnt work of removing & replacing the SIM and battery).  The procedure is posted here for a couple of reasons … to make it easy for me to find should I need it again .. to add another page on the internet with this info for anyone googling to find … and to boost my google results

HTC Touch Pro Hard Reset Procedure:  WARNING You will lose all of the data on your phone, so make sure you have a backup copy of any photos, contacts, emails etc!!!

1. Pull out the stylus.

2. With the device turned on, press and hold the VOLUME DOWN and ENTER (round circle on the front)

buttons, then press the RESET (tiny little dot under the headphone symbol at the bottom of the phone next to the USB/power jack) button with the stylus tip.  (This finger contortion act is easiest performed with the phone held upside down… or you upside down and the phone the right way up, whichever you find easier!)

3. Release the RESET button, but continue pressing the VOLUME DOWN and

ENTER buttons until you see a message on a grey screen telling you about the hard reset procedure.  If you get the HTC Touch logo then Windows Mobile booting, you haven’t done it right – try again!

4. Release the VOLUME DOWN and ENTER buttons, then press the VOLUME UP

button to perform the hard reset, or press any other button to cancel the

reset.

OR…

You can also use Clear Storage to reset your device back to factory default settings.

1. On the Home screen, slide to the Settings tab and then tap All Settings.

2. On the System tab, tap Clear Storage.

3. Enter “1234″ and then tap Yes.

Said phone is now behaving once more – now to reload my data and settings!

-SCuffy

UPDATE *** Well, this worked for a while, but now my phone is doing it again   Thanks to Google, I’ve found several people mentioning it might be a data/voice issue when roaming.  Apparently when not on your home network, if your data syncs when your on a call, the voice and data streams manage to crash the phone.  Turns out my home is in a shocking coverage area so I often pick up a roaming network.  I’ve turned off the data connection until I need it, so will keep testing and see how it goes.

 

HTC Touch Pro!!!

I’ve been excited about the HTC Touch Pro phone since somebody showed me it on a website in about July. 

http://www.htc.com/au/product.aspx?id=62326

Holding out for news of an Australian release date was marred by Telstra picking up exclusive rights to the HTC Touch Diamond – the Pro’s little brother without the keyboard.

After seeing an Oct 14 release date on an Australian retailer site, I checked with my current telco (3) and they have it listed!!  Customer Care will send me one today, to arrive on Tuesday, whilst the 3 stores dont have their stocks yet. 

So excited!!!!! 

Will let you know what I think of it when I’ve had a chance to use it.

-SCuffy

MYOB update download corrupting registry?

Thanks to the team at First Class Accounts for passing on their experience with a downloaded update from MYOB.  Could have been due to the file becoming corrupted during the download process.

After downloading and installing the new MYOB from the internet (Accounting Plus V18 or Premier V12), someone went to shut down her computer and found it would not reboot.  Looked like the MYOB download had severely damaged her Registry.  The IT guy repaired the problems, but not without 36 hours downtime on her system!!!  He said that hers was the second system that he had seen with similar problems after downloading the new MYOB!!  

I wasnt there to experience it firsthand, so I dont know if reverting to a previous system restore point could of helped (or indeed was the solution).

Another reminder though to ensure your critical information is backed up and can be restored – just in case a software upgrade turns nasty!!

 

-SCuffy