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For sweet spot customers, consider the services you can provide to these IT consulting clients. In this article, you’ll learn some of the more popular ones.

IT Consulting: What Website Design Programs Should You Know?

You should be familiar with at least basic web authoring tools to set up a simple web site for your IT consulting clients and you should certainly have one of your own. At a minimum, you should be familiar with, Microsoft Front page. If you are going to do more high end websites, Macromedia or Dreamweaver could be a good programs for you to learn at some point.

IT Consulting: What about Terminal Services?

Real is still hot among small businesses. You should be familiar with what is built into the window server. The fax machine may be going away, but the concept of faxing over the network is just as important as ever.

You should be comfortable with performance monitoring so you can so some tweaking and tune-ups to find out what is going on with different thresholds. VPN and RADs, virtual private networking and remote access is still a real big issue especially with teleworkers and branch offices.

IT Consulting: What about Virus Protection?

You should be familiar with some of the more advanced virus protection applications - especially where they cross over multiple applications. When they are specifically working with something group-wide like Exchange Server or IAS, you should be familiar with how to automate that within the management server. You should also be familiar with some of the more sophisticated firewall and intrusion detection software packages

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Computer Consulting 101 Blog. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Joshua Feinberg, co-founder of Computer Consulting 101, helps computer consulting businesses get more steady, high-paying clients. Learn how you can too. Sign-up now for your free access to these field-tested, proven business strategies on the Computer Consulting 101 Blog.

[tags]IT consulting, IT-consulting, computer consulting, computer-consulting[/tags]

Computer virus is one of the dreadful demons that the present day technology is facing and it is very important for every organization or individual to have a basic remedy programme to overcome the slaughter. Computer viruses are one category of dreadful Programs. These, dangerous scripts can be divided into three different categories: “viruses”, “trojan horses” and “tapeworms”. These will be looked at we will see how to get rid of computer virus.

A computer virus may take different shapes and penetrate into the system causing a major collapse in the functioning of the key components. Not to mention, some time it may also prove fatal to the hard disk and the damage may also be irreversible. So regular care must be taken to have the system under control and maintenance of the computer is also a key factor when we discuss about virus. One cannot ascertain the origin of viruses since there are numerous possibilities of development of a virus. There are several kinds of virus and each virus has a specific functionality or damage that it may cause to affect the system. So it is very important to know their evil affects and how to rectify the damage caused by the virus. There are several anti-virus softwares available in the market which can be used in detecting the presence of the virus. It is also important for a user to keep updating himself on the latest explored virus and also the latest anti - virus software to destroy the virus.

It takes simple common sense and a lot of meticulousness to keep from launching viruses but it’s not hard if we have the necessary awareness on virus threats. Some of the most common ways through which virus attacks are possible are through e-mails, floppy discs, internet, LANs etc. Even a small carelessness may result in loss of data and time. So on the whole, a regular updation of softwares along with proper maintenance and care, can lead to the healthy growth of the technology and save time. There are a number of tools out there that are effective in the to get rid of computer virus.

It is highly recommended that you install reputable anti-virus software such as Get Rid Of Computer Virus. New Internet worms like Doom, Novrag and RPC are infecting thousands of computers worldwide. Systems have crashed and networks are slower than ever. MicroAntivirus effectively works by stopping all malicious viruses on the spot.

[tags]Get Rid of Computer Virus[/tags]

The Statlook system’s unique function is tracking the company’s computer usage mode. A wide range of cross-sectional reports illustrates the users’ activities in each period of time and in the context of used software. By means of the Statlook system you can practically control all employee activity, beginning from the registration of Internet site visits, through the usage of each application and documents opened statistics, control of software installed, as far as the ability to view the screenshot and counting the keystroke rate.

Miscellaneous reports present very clearly which applications were used most often as well as which of them and for how long were in the foreground. On one hand, it allows you to assess the applicability of software installed, and on the other hand it may be the basis for assessment of employee commitment in completing his tasks.

Statlook then combines two functions: it allows you to use your application licenses rationally and significantly enhances office labor efficiency.

Normally, the first tangible results can be noticed right after the implementation of Statlook. The employees’ awareness of the presence of the Statlook system on their computers is enough to obtain measurable effects within a very short period of time. Many non-productive activities will be reduced drastically as soon as Statlook is installed.

Due to its reasonable price, universal appeal and operating ease, Statlook gains popularity in Europe and the United States. The number of the companies that apply this tool exceed 5000 at present.

An internationally operating company A plus C Systems is now creating its authorized partner system. Negotiations are conducted with several leading IT companies, among which are software resellers, network integrators, and hardware providers. They are engaged in implementing safety procedures as well as Software Asset Management. By the end of the year, A plus C Systems intends to gain 50 partners all over the world, offering them very good business conditions as well as full technical and commercial support.

Bartosz Lewandowicz: IT specialist dealing with SEO and Internet Marketing. Provides IT companies with high level services regarding sales, marketing and PR activity. More information: http://www.aplusc-systems.com

[tags]work,efficiency,employee,tracking,user,activity,control,time,internet,it,asset,management,statlook[/tags]

An operating system (abbreviated OS) is essentially the path through which a computer accesses files, games, the Internet, and all vital stored information. The OS is the most important program on a computer because it runs all of the other programs. The major operating systems are Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Unix. The operating system is essential to the computer, and so extreme care should be taken when choosing an operating system.

Consider Its Use

Consider what operating system will be used for. If the OS is for a business, an operating system that can handle important business data should be selected. If the OS is for a college student, one might consider an OS that is optimal for gaming, yet still has a nice word processor. Finally, if the operating system were for a new computer user, then a user-friendly, simple OS would be best. Knowing this, one must also consider what software is available for the operating system. Some software is only available on certain computers. This often leaves Macintosh OS X, Linux, and Unix in the dark because most of the computer market runs on Microsoft operating systems. Most computers come standard with a certain operating system (Apple computers have Mac OS X and most PCs have Windows XP). Therefore, it is sometimes important to consider the OS even when selecting a computer.

Security

Security is the biggest priority for many computer users, especially businesses. Some OS have stronger security than others. Macintosh has been called “the iron man of operating systems” because of its ability to keep hackers out, while Windows has been criticized for being easy to hack. Do not let security completely deter you, however. Most operating systems can be “hardened” and with constant security updates, made safer from hackers.

Pros and Cons of The Big Four

Every operating system has its positive and negative elements. There is no perfect operating system. Keeping this in mind, consider the most common operating systems (Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, and Unix). Mac OS X is great for keeping out hackers and for graphic design. However some problems are the fact that certain software is not available for Macs. If the OS is for a college student who would rather play Half-Life 2 than study, then Mac OS X is not the best choice. Windows is very good for compatibility, since most consumers use Windows. Windows also comes with applications like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Internet Explorer. Unfortunately, Windows is weak against viruses and can get bogged down easily. Unix is good for networks, especially if for businesses. Unix has also been around for almost 30 years, so it is quite dependable. One drawback of Unix is the cost, which can sometimes be a bit expensive. Unix is also complicated, which can confuse beginners. The final OS, Linux, is free and completely customizable. However, one major drawback is the extreme scarcity of applications for Linux. Microsoft and other software developers are often very reluctant to release their products for Linux.

Conclusion

Whatever operating system one chooses, it needs to be the system that will best fit the needs of the consumer. All operating systems have good and bad elements. Understanding how each system works, and the system’s pros and cons is a must for anyone deciding on a computer and OS. An OS selection based on research and understanding will certainly yield the highest satisfaction.

Josef Delinga loves writing about computers and CEOs, especially Steve Jobs and Apple Computers.

[tags]operating, system, steve jobs, microsoft, windows, apple, linux, unix, macintosh, OS, Mac OS X[/tags]

Nowadays, VoIP became one of the hottest technologies following up on the explosion of high speed Internet access. PC-to-PC calls, ATA phones, IP phones the existence of VoIP had changed how people think about long distance calling plan. As predicted by some of those experts, VoIP might be the technology that kills off the traditional telephones.

What is VoIP?

If you never heard of VoIP, be equipped for a radical change on current telephony systems and long distance calling plans.

Voice over Internet Protocol, or in short, VoIP, is a simple method that takes ordinary analog audio signals and transform it into digital form and traverse in distance through the Internet. Several ways are used for VoIP calls: Analog Telephone Adaptors (ATA), IP phones, and PC-to-PC calls are some of the common ones. While ATA and IP phones will cost you a certain amount on the initial setup and monthly costs; PC-to-PC calls are absolutely free for any distance calls.

The impact of VoIP technology is huge. With VoIP, you can simply enjoy much cheaper phone calls by utilizing your existing PC set up and data networks. For those of you who are already paying a monthly fee for an Internet connection, this means that you can use that same connection to place free long distance phone calls. This process works by using already available VoIP software to make phone calls over the Internet, essentially circumventing phone companies and their service charges.

Besides, VoIP gives a greater flexibility to business travelers. Make VoIP calls from anywhere with Internet connections thru your laptop. With VoIP, you can also enjoy enhanced calling features such as calls forwarding, caller ids, call blockings and voicemail calls function.

How VoIP works?

We already knew when making VoIP calls, caller’s voice in analog form are collected; transformed into digital form; transmitted through Internet; and transformed again into analog voice for the listeners to listen.

However, how does the digital voice signal travel? Unlike conventional phone system that relies on circuit switching; voice signals in VoIP calls are transfer through packet-switching.

Packet-switching is the same method that you use when you view a website. For example, as you read this website, your PC does not maintain constant connection to the website. Instead, connections are only made to send and receive information on an as needed basis. It works the same for VoIP calls as this system allows the transfer of information over the Internet to work so quickly. While circuit switching (conventional telephone calls) maintains a constant and open connection; packet-switching builds a connections that is just enough for sending/receiving bits of data in the VoIP conversations.

By utilizing this special way of data sending, VoIP calls can be done with very little data transmission. This in turn allows voice signals to be sent on the least congested lines and thus a cheaper calling plans.

Drawbacks on VoIP calls

While most analysts consider it will be at least a decade before companies and telephone providers make the full switch to VoIP, the hidden power for the technology’s applications nowadays are very impressive.

Not to mention the emergency call issue on VoIP calls; there are quite a few VoIP’s drawbacks that need to be solved in order to have VoIP calls replace our conventional telephones. The power problem of VoIP phones, the security of the VoIP calls, as well as the compatible-ability of VoIP phones with other electronics appliances are some of the major problems that need to be solved.

Bottom line

Undeniable, VoIP is now a very powerful communication way that you can’t close the eyes to. To replace the traditional telephone system or not, VoIP service is here to hang about. Millions in United States are using VoIP calls nowadays and the numbers seem growing rapidly. With the savings and flexibility that the technology already offers, and new advances just ahead on the horizon, we can expect those numbers will only increase in the future.

The author, Claudia Walters, is an expert writer in office tools and VOIP technologies. View her latest writing assignments on Internet answering machine at http://www.MyCallWave.com Learn how you can avoid missing calls while online with CallWave call alerts and save up the cost for an extra phone line.

[tags]callwave, voip calls, call wave, internet calls, ata, ip phones[/tags]

Since the DOS days, batch files have been one of the most convenient and immediate ways to accomplish certain tasks. Even today it’s possible to find some remarkably sophisticated utilities written as command-line batch files.

On the downside, batch files are easily hacked, edited, and reverse-engineered, making them problematic to rely on in certain situations.

I’ve written before about some ways around this, such as using elevated or deprecated privileges, but one of the more interesting tools I’ve seen for working with batch files is a program called Quick Batch File Compiler (QBFC).

QBFC takes any command-line batch program and compiles it into an encrypted executable or .EXE file. An .EXE file is much harder to casually reverse-engineer, so this could be a way to conceal a particular batch file’s operations from an end user. For instance, if you had a network environment where a batch script was run at logon, and you wanted key information in the script hidden, the script could be converted to an .EXE and protected from prying eyes a lot more easily than a conventional batch file. (.EXE files also run faster than batch files, of course.)

QBFC can create two types of applications: a standard console application, which accepts conventional command-line parameters, or a “ghost” application, which opens no windows and provides no feedback. The latter is best for security or for when you want to perform an install or modification silently. QBFC also lets you set various resources in the .EXE file, such as its description, the company name, version information and even the application icon.

QBFC’s shareware version is unrestricted, except that all .EXEs produced by the program flash a brief note at startup. The registered version does not have this limitation.

Program’s Home Page: www.battoexe.com

Serdar Yegulalp sells multimedia software from http://www.abyssmedia.com

[tags]bat to exe, cmd to exe, bat2exe[/tags]

A cell phone user can download polyphonic ringtones to his handset from various sources like the Internet, other cell phone users, ringtone providers, etc. Most of the ringtone providers offer downloading of ringtones for a charge. The ringtone providers need to pay royalties to the recording companies for the original tune and spend money for the coding of the ringtone. Moreover, they have to pay the network provider to make the ringtones available for the end-users.

Polyphonic ringtones can easily be pirated, as they can be transferred easily via infrared transfer through the network or by manually coding the notes in phone with a composer. Free polyphonic ringtones, the first choice of every end-user, are the most popular. The reason, obviously, is that that they are free. Paid polyphonic ringtones are available from a number of ringtone providers. Most of the premium providers charge much more for polyphonic ringtones than for monophonic ringtones. However, there are some who provide cheap polyphonic ringtones.

Web.tiscali.it has thousands of cheap polyphonic ringtones in its database. The site adds hundreds of new tones every week, and the tones are available for nominal prices. Another site, www.plusone.com, is treasure of high quality affordable ringtones; www.comparestoreprices.co.uk offers the lowest of prices among all of the polyphonic ringtone providers. Another major provider of inexpensive polyphonic ringtones is www.gaiaworld.com.

For a mobile phone user, the most inexpensive way to acquire a polyphonic ringtone is via infrared transfer. It costs him/her nothing but a little power. Conversion software available on the Internet allows a user to convert mp3, wave, and MIDI files to cell phone polyphonic ringtone or to compose his own polyphonic ringtone on a PC. These tones can be transferred to the phone using a data cable or IR port.

Polyphonic Ringtones provides detailed information on Polyphonic Ringtones, Free Polyphonic Ringtones, Download Polyphonic Ringtones, Cheap Polyphonic Ringtones and more. Polyphonic Ringtones is affiliated with Mini DV Decks.

[tags]Polyphonic Ringtones, Free Polyphonic Ringtones, Download Polyphonic Ringtones, Cheap Polyphonic Rin[/tags]

The trend with technology seems to be going small and mobile. You would probably think that is where the manufacturers got the idea of making external hard drives. These are hard disk drives (HDD) that are literally placed outside of the computer case. An external HDD does not only give you more space, but it provides you with mobility. With the option to remove this HDD, you are able to take all your data with you.

There are external HDD that are built to be external, meaning the HDD has built-in cables that allow you to interface with your computer. Older connectors would use SCSI or SATA cables that connect to a type of HDD connector inside your computer. Newer versions of external HDD uses a simpler method by simply connecting via the USB or the FireWire. Some external HDD provide you with the ability to backup the data from your computer. Although an external HDD gives you the mobility, they tend to be more expensive as compared to the internal versions with the same capacity.

As an alternative to these external HDD, manufacturers have developed an HDD casing that allows you to convert your internal HDD, whether it is a 3.5″ drive or a 2.5″ drive, to external HDD. You would have to purchase this casing separately, but the advantage is that with this type of casing, you can easily upgrade your HDD without hassle. What differentiates an external 3.5″ drive from a 2.5″ drive is that normally, the larger device would need an extra power source, while the 2.5″ can be supported by the power coming from the USB or FireWire.

A more corporate version of an external HDD is a Network Access Storage (NAS). This device is connected directly to you network so you do not need to have a host computer to access the data in it. NAS also allows multiple users to access the data concurrently without using the resources of a host computer.

Hard Drives provides detailed information on Hard Drives, External Hard Drives, Hard Drive Data Recovery, Format Hard Drives and more. Hard Drives is affiliated with Hard Drive Recovery Software.

[tags]External Hard Drives[/tags]

Role-playing games, or RPGs, are quite popular among those who play computer games. This is because such games allow you to take on different characters and use the capabilities that these characters have as you play the game.

Some of these characters include being warlocks and wizards who have magical powers, military generals that command a large number of forces, and even wealthy tycoons who can purchase anything they want. There is a thrill in taking on these characters and using their powers to achieve a mission or solve a mystery.

The plots of these role-playing games are also as varied as the characters that players play. In these games, military generals are tasked to create empires; tycoons are encouraged to make more money; and wizards are tasked to do accomplish a mission or go on quests. The plots of these games, which started out as the classic battle between good and evil, have now evolved into games that also deal with the gray areas of life and other situations outside the conventional.

Apart from being available in computer games stores, these RPGs have also become available on the Internet. There is also a large number of websites that offer these games for free, and most of these can be played while the user is online. RPGs have also been a good avenue for different players to play with each other using a network. This has enabled players from different countries to play the same game with each other and has added to the popularity of this type of game on the Internet.

Role-playing games have become a popular download among fans of games that let the player take on different roles, be in different time periods, and interact with various people across the globe. The popularity of such games is increasing, as evidenced by the number of players who actually download and play the games. As technology continues to improve, innovations in these types of games can only further fuel its popularity.

Free Online Games provides detailed information on Free Online Games, Free Online RPG Games, Free Online Kid Games, Free Online Multiplayer Games and more. Free Online Games is affiliated with Free Mobile Games.

[tags]Free Online RPG Games[/tags]

You might think you don’t need a firewall because windows XP has one

but read on for a plain-english explanation why this isn’t enough.

Before broadband and cable connections were common most people didn’t need a

personal firewall because they weren’t connected to the Internet for extended

periods of time.

Every computer that connects to the internet has an IP address. This is like

a sort of phone number, and is issued either to an individual computer or to

a “gateway” that connects a private network to the ‘net.

Domestic dial-up internet connections normally use a system called Dynamic

IP Addressing where people are issued with a sort of “new identity” every

time they connect, so it’s difficult to find and attack an individual computer

- Dynamic IP addressing is a bit like having your phone number change every

time you use the phone, which makes it difficult for the bad guys to find you.

But the longer you keep a particular “phone number” the more chance

there is of someone finding you and that is why high-speed always-on connections

need handling with care.

In particular, with “always on” DSL and cable connections you are

connected for extended periods of time which give the attackers more chance

of finding you if you’ve got an unprotected connection.

In these days of identity theft and with more and more security holes being

uncovered in commercial software it is vital that you have a good firewall

if you use a high-speed connection.

You may already have a firewall, either in a device called a “Broadband

Router” which goes between your computer and the Internet or the very

basic firewall built in to Windows XP Service Pack 2 and you might think that’s

all you need.

But there’s another reason that you won’t have thought of.

Basic firewalls will tell you, and hopefully protect you if someone is trying

to get in…. but they won’t tell you if something is trying to get out!

That’s right! Certain spyware and viruses can gather your personal information

and send it out of your machine without you knowing.

A good firewall will spot these attempts to send stuff out and will warn you,

quite possibly before your Antivirus or Spyware application notices the problem.

Which gives you time to get the problem fixed.

Steve Blampied lives in Jersey in the Channel Islands and has been an

independent IT consultant for around 10 years.

He is currently putting together a web site solely about free software.

http://www.freesoftwareadvice.com

He also has a small IT company in Jersey.

Technology.je Limited

[tags]firewall,XP,DSL,internet,connection[/tags]