I was disappointed to find out that there would be no BES service possible with these phones. We support many users on Exchange servers, so this was a huge downer. Blackberry Internet Service comes with the phone’s plan, but that doesn’t allow sync over the air with an exchange server.

i-SupportDesk has a wonderful solution, though. A sharp-minded company has figured out how to sync a Blackberry with an Exchange Server using the ActiveSync protocols. No need for Blackberry Enterprise Service anymore! We’ve been impressed enough to become resellers! We have already set up several users with the software, on our preferred hosted Exchange 2010 provider, 4SmartPhone, with great success. But none of them have been on the Boost Mobile service.

I bought a Boost Mobile Blackberry Curve for $249.00 and set up the monthly service in a snap. With a trial license key from i-SupportDesk, I had the service configured just a few minutes later. Video guides and screenshots are available and made it ultra easy to set up.

So when BoostMobile tells you that you won’t be able to Sync with an Exchange Server, just send us an email or give us a call, and we’ll prove them wrong. Ask us for a trial key and will send it right over by email and you can see for yourself how well it works!

To request a Trial License Key:

• by email:  support@i-supportdesk.com
• on the web:  http://i-supportdesk.com/Online-Support-Center.html

We’ll respond immediately with a download link and a key by email.

Don't be fooled by this nearly-clever spoof! (Click to Enlarge)

The Subject Line is an eye catcher (even though MS *never* sends update notices by email!) and the rest of the message looks “official” enough at first glance. But there are some easy tell-tale signs that this is a dangerous FAKE if you look a little closer.

In the screenshot, I have added some arrows to some of those signs.

1. Reply address is suspicious.
2. While the LINK TEXT looks like it will go to Microsoft, when you hold your mouse arrow over it, you will see the ACTUAL URL you will go to. NOT A SAFE PLACE!
3. MS never sends you update notices by email. You have Windows Update for that.  :)

There are also many testimonials and comments from our clients, too.

Please stop in a check it out. We’d love to get your feedback!

It acts like a virus, kind of, because it brings your computer to a virtual stand-still. But it’s just a buggy part of their program. And they know about it, too.

Here is an article on their knowledgebase on how to resolve this problem:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/944563/en-us

Disable support for QuickTime

The following batch file will automatically perform all the steps that are required to disable support for QuickTime.
To create and run the batch file that will disable support for QuickTime, follow these steps:

1. Copy the text the next section, “Batch file to disable QT support.”
2. Paste the text into Notepad.
3. Save the document to your desktop as “DisableWLPGQT.cmd,” and then exit Notepad.
4. Run the batch file. To do this, follow the appropriate step:
   1. In Windows Vista, right-click the DisableWLPGQT.cmd file, and then click Run as administrator.
   2. In Windows XP, make sure that you are logged in as a user who has administrator credentials. Then, double-click the DisableWLPGQT.cmd file.
5. Restart the computer.

QuickTime content is now disabled in the Windows Live Photo Gallery.

Use the link above to see the text you want to copy and paste into a text file. I would provide the CMD file here for you but that is not very safe. CMD files that are malicious can do some serious harm to your PC.

You can also call me at 602 412- 3478 and I can run the file on your PC for you.

AVG Anti-Virus Free 8.0, a new version with significant new features over 7.5 is coming to a desktop near you!

They have also launched a series of fun marketing videos on YouTube to herald the new version. This light-hearted approach to the serious topic of Internet Security is in no way a reflection of AVG’s commitment to making sure that everyone has protection against the ever-growing threats on the Internet.

Karl Obluk, CTO of AVG Technologies:

With the release of AVG Free 8.0, we are underscoring our belief that all computer users, regardless of their computer usage needs, have the right to a safe and worry-free computing experience.

As i-SupportDesk has already pointed out, AVG’s antivirus technology got the VB100% award in Virus Bulletin’s last three tests.

PC Magazine reports:

ICSA Labs certifies it for virus detection. West Coast Labs goes further, giving it checkmark certification for both virus detection and cleaning, plus another checkmark for Trojan horse detection. European lab AV-Comparatives gave it their top rating for on-demand virus removal; it didn’t rate as high in tests of behavior-based detection. AV-Test of Germany rated it very good at spyware detection, good at virus detection, and merely satisfactory at cleaning up what it detected. The suite turned in decent scores in PC Magazine’s own tests of its ability to clean up malware and prevent it from attacking a clean system.

One of the most interesting improvements to the leading security program is the full integration of antivirus and anti-spyware scanning and cleaning, which makes the process of scanning much faster.

Another new feature is the LinkScanner technology that AVG added after they acquired Exploit Prevention Labs last year. Each time you search using Google, MSN, or Yahoo! it will check every link and flag any that are dangerous, and it works in real-time.

The product will be available for download from http://free.avg.com starting on Thursday, April 24.

( As Featured in The Network Marketing Magazine, April 2008 )

Please visit the magazine and give me 5 Stars on my article!

It’s that time of year again. Winter is finally over, and it’s time to open the Windows and let the fresh spring air come in. We clean the nooks and crannies, get rid of the dust, and probably even start treating for bugs and pests now that things are warming back up.

Don’t forget to take care of your most valuable business tool to a good cleaning as well – your Computer!

Your PC is truly your most valuable business tool, a vital life-line for your business. Sure, Network Marketing was done before PCs were around, but now that they are here, and in virtually every home, Network Marketers are maximizing their efforts by using technology to help them grow and maintain their businesses.

You can use your PC to go to your company’s back office, website, or web store. Almost every company in business has a website with a web-based presentation you can direct prospects to.

You use it to chat and email your prospects, downline, upline, and company. You can use it to keep track of your prospects, organize your tasks and meetings, create or display presentations. The list goes on.

You use a car to travel to business meetings, see prospects, and meet with your business partners. You change the oil regularly, keep up on the tires and brakes, and keep that vehicle running as smooth as possible, don’t you? Can you say the same for your computer? While it proves itself over and over again as your most powerful workhorse, it is often the most neglected tool you use in your business. Neglect to for too long and it will start to cause you some grief. It’s not that it gets jealous, mind you. But it will start to have problems if you don’t maintain it, and eventually stop working altogether, just like your car would if you ignored it, too.

One of the things that gets most neglected on a PC is dusting it out. Here’s a perfect story to illustrate why this is so important.

Since I run my own IT Company, I am often asked computer questions – family are no exception. My sister-in-law’s computer was running very slowly, so she called and asked how we could get it running faster. I used the company’s remote support technology to have her connect to my system so I could have a look, and after cleaning out the pests and bugs from her computer (spyware and a Trojan virus), I saw that her PC’s memory was only 128MB. I suggested upping that as high as her budget would allow.

With the price of RAM for her computer pretty cheap these days, she was able to get a full Gigabyte of RAM for about $45. Naturally, she asked if I could install it. A few days later, our family stopped in to visit and I popped open her computer to remove the old RAM and put in the new.

Yikes!

It has most certainly been quite some time since this computer had been opened…and perhaps my visit prompted the inaugural opening of the case. Whatever the case may be, it reminded me of an Indiana Jones adventure!

Your PC Can’t Take The HEAT!

Heat is your computer’s #1 enemy. Most of the technology in your PC is what is called “solid state” technology. This means they are computer chips with no moving parts, so they don’t wear out. But they can overheat! So you have to be sure that the temperature inside your PC doesn’t get too high. If it does, your computer chips will burn up. The hottest computer chips in your computer have metal attachments on them called heat sinks. These help draw the heat up, away from the chip, and disperse the heat into the air inside your computer. Some heat sinks have fans attached to them to make sure that there is air flowing across the heat sink to draw the heat out and away. Your CPU will have a large heat sink and fan on it.

Fans are one of the different kinds of mechanical items in your PC. Others are hard drives, power supplies, floppy drives, etc. Dust that gets into the bearings of a fan will cause them to start whining as it labors to spin. Eventually the fan will seize and stop spinning altogether. Fans are vital for keeping the airflow going in a computer, and to evacuate gathering heat. The flow of air goes from the front of your PC out the back.

Blocking that airflow is bad news for your computer! Putting your PC inside a poorly ventilated cabinet will stifle your PC and eventually cause it to overheat. Blocking the front or back of your PC will have the same effect.

And so will DUST! As air flows through your computer, dust particles can settle inside. They can be drawn in the front, but never make it out the back. They may gather around computer chips and expansion cards. The may clog up your heat sinks and fans.

Indiana Jones and The Temple of DUST

So there I was staring at a computer filled with dust! Wow! A thick layer of dust and cobwebs were trapping heat all throughout this computer. Here is a picture of it:

I was curious when the last time this computer was dusted, and my sister-in-law said that she had just blown it out about a month ago. I got more details on that fact, and discovered that what she had been doing was using a can of compressed air to blow dust off the back of the computer that was accumulating there. She had never opened the case! Effectively, she was just blowing the dust that was trying to escape right back into the computer.

We took the computer outside carefully like we were members of the bomb squad. We didn’t want the dust to spread throughout the house. Outside, I took a leaf blower to it. No can of compressed air could handle this job! The cloud of dust that billowed from it was nothing short of amazing!

Here is what it looked like afterward:

There is a dramatic difference when you see the pictures side by side!

Before	After

Coming up in future articles, I’ll go over other simple things you can do to lengthen the life of your computer, make it run faster and better than before, and offer reviews of different tools you can use in your business to really maximize your time and energy in growing your business!

i-SupportDesk is an authorized AVG Reseller, and we can quote, sell, and deliver a new AVG Security Solution for you in just a few hours. We don’t kid around with PC and Network Security!

Remember, home users (people who aren’t using their PCs to make money) can use the FREE version of AVG, too! It is not power-packed with all the features of the commercial product, but offers some pretty solid protection for home users. But for everyone interested in top-notch protection, home users included, AVG is a great product to have watching your back.

What You Need to Know:
Scam artists exploiting tax season have devised a range of new online cons: fake tax documents that contain malicious surprises; mass distribution of keyloggers aimed at snatching the identity of PC-based tax filers; and e-mail messages containing links to Web sites that promise new tax code information but instead push malware onto your PC.

What You Need to Do:

1. Make sure your computer is updated and scanned regularly (as scheduled or done manually) with the INVISUS security suite.
2. Ensure that your Windows desktop protection is current by going to Windows Update. Confirm that you have an updated antivirus software program running on your PC.
3. Don’t click links or call telephone numbers included in suspect messages. Instead, contact the bank or the IRS directly by using phone numbers or addresses listed in published directories.
4. Don’t open e-mail attachments. In particular, e-mail attachments with ".scr," ".com" and ".exe" file extensions are likely malicious.
5. If you receive a dubious e-mail message that claims to have been sent by the IRS, report it to the tax agency at phishing@irs.gov. To check the legitimacy of any e-mail communication or phone call from a person who claims to be an IRS agent, call the IRS (1-800-829-1040).

Other Important Information:
This year, identity thieves are not just trying to gain access to your bank account or to open lines of credit in your name. Scammers are on the prowl for ordinary citizens’ identities that they can use in filing phony tax returns and fraudulently claiming refunds, as well as to swipe rebates associated with the 2008 federal economic stimulus package.

Several states are warning that con artists are using the highly publicized rebate checks associated with the 2008 federal economic stimulus package as a ploy to get you to divulge personal financial information.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley says that some state residents have received bogus e-mail messages that purport to be from a government agency such as the IRS or Social Security Administration. The messages request personal information that supposedly would expedite the turnaround time of either a tax refund or a stimulus rebate check.

For the record, the federal government expects to issue economic stimulus rebate checks sometime in May or June. IRS refund checks typically arrive within three weeks of the date when you file your return electronically.
Another tax scam involves e-mail messages that target accountants, businesses and individuals, notifying them of supposed changes in tax laws. These phishing messages direct the recipient to download "updated" tax documents that reflect the new tax laws.

The IRS reports having received numerous complaints from people who have downloaded bogus documents to their computer — only to discover that the documents contained malicious code designed to transfer control over the PC to a third party.

It doesn’t have to take hours and hours. Schedule it in, even it its 5 minutes a day on a new gadget until they are done, just do it. Here are some helpful tips for getting your gear clean efficiently and keep them running longer and better.

Blast them out. Anything you can physically open (primarily your desktop PCs) should be cleared of dust. (If they are on the floor instead of on a desk, they are even more prone to gathering dust). Unplug your computer and remove the case, and take it outside. Get a can of compressed air and blow out all the dust bunnies, paying special attention to any fans in the case. Use quick, short bursts to avoid condensation.

You would NOT believe one I cleaned out last week. No kidding, this gal had been using compressed air to ‘clean’ and I use that word loosely, her Computer without removing it from the floor or taking off the cover. Only from the back, for 4 years! When I got there and took that outside, it was no longer a case for a can of compressed air. We pulled out her yard blower, no kidding, and blew spider webs, 1/4 of dust from parts that were amazingly still working, ( I have no idea how they weren’t fried years ago), and took pictures as this thing took 2 solid minutes of a yard blower to scare out the nasties in this. Folks, you HAVE to clean the insides out.

Use the straw attachment to blow out the vents on your notebook computers, the inside of your printers, the subwoofers, keyboard, fax machines, (open them up and even remove the ink cartridges) Cleaning your laptop is especially important, as laptops have far less room for airflow and can overheat if they aren’t kept free from dust. Happens all the time. An ounce of prevention…..You would be amazed at what will come out of some of these things. (Keyboards are farms for the nasty germs, crumbs, dust, and no-seeums that are under your fingers daily).

Shine and De-germ. If you have children, this may seem laughable, and we tend to ignore their existence since it is a daily dealing of smudges. However,  when people touch my laptop screen or TV it makes me nuts, because of the smudges their dirty fingerprints leave. But fingerprints can quickly turn from mere annoyance to permanent nuisance if they’re left there for long, as the oils from these adorable or irritating prints have an uncanny habit of setting in and eventually becoming impossible to remove. (“Nothing will ruin your HDTV experience faster than a bunch of kids’ handprints overlaying your video, forever.” Christopher Null) Purosol, is a cleaner of choice it seems for cleaning off LCDs, but any store-bought LCD screen cleaner should work as long as it is alcohol-free. I suggest getting an extra for the shelves so that you are tempted to grab your bathroom variety when your in a pinch for a cleaning. While your doing your Gadget Spring cleaning don’t forget to add cleaning your camera displays, cell phone screen, iPhones, Flips, GPS screens, and car video players as well. We tend to forget these things, but they gather up nasty germs and prints all the time. Ick.

Repair your media. Scratched CDs and DVDs can be mended. A variety of solutions are available on the market, but the cleaning-paste-and-towel method has always provided the best results for me. Clean the surface of your CD with dish detergent and water. If scratches remain, use a commercial scratch repair kit that includes a thick paste and a microfiber cloth that you rub into the media, then wipe off. You can try the motorized version of cleaners, but you might have better results from your local game and DVD rental store. They have the time, experience, and equipment to try and get those scratches out. I personally have a great deal with my monthly DVD rental store near my home, than trying to do them at home myself. I drop them off, pick them up and pay about $1 each for the service. Well worth it to me.

Renew Your Personal CD’s & BackUps. If you have any CD’s or DVD’s that you have created, don’t we all, it is probably time for a new copy. If they have been hanging around for 2 or 3 years, you should create a new copy on a fresh new CD or DVD.  Consider consolidating some of your CD’s into just one. It might take some time to do all this, but older non-professional recording media (what 99% of the world uses) is made defective so that after “X” years, the internal chemistry of the recording media changes and you end up with what everyone calls “laser rot” or “CD rot”. Usually you may be good up to 5 or 6 years, BUT sometimes the media dies after only 2 or 3 years. Temperature extremes and humidity of the storage area also count heavily. What the disc rests against for years also counts (cloth, plastic, vinyl, air gap, another disc, etc.). And get some cases on your CD’s. If you are one of those that has a stack of dozens of caseless CD’s you are running the risk of scratches and unnecessary wear and tear.