Why You Should Use a Password Manager: Our Computer Tip of the Day

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A password manager is a practical way to keep track of your passwords and improve security. In today’s computer tip of the day, you will learn why and find useful links and suggestions on how to use a password manager.

You should have long, complex passwords that are different for each website. However, passwords like these are often hard to remember. A password manager lets you keep all your passwords in a secure vault. You will only need to memorize one strong password that gives you access to the vault when you need it.

Use a Password Manager

Why is it better to use software than to just write your passwords in a notebook? Consider what happens if you lose this book or it gets destroyed. Resetting all your passwords is an arduous task, especially if you don’t have the password to your email account.

A password manager securely stores all your passwords offsite. Additionally, you can use it to generate very secure passwords, such as a 15-character random password containing a mix of letters, numbers, and symbols. You can save a secure password for each individual website. As you log into the website, the username and password will be automatically filled in for you.

A good password manager, such as LastPass or Dashlane, also has procedures in place to protect you when there is a known breach. You would receive a notification and suggestion to change your password for the compromised site. Furthermore, most password managers can run a security check to make sure all your passwords are appropriately secure.

While many password managers have a free version, some of them require payment for certain uses. Consider determining if the security benefits of a password manager are right for you.

Please contact us for more information on technology.

Cloud Computing Services: How Much Should You Rely On The Cloud?

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Cloud Computing Services

With the use of cloud computing services on the rise, businesses face numerous, often complex choices about which services to rely on currently or plan for in the future.

A recent article from Tech.Co discusses three ways for businesses to manage their cloud computing decisions and make a successful transition to using different services.

One of the points they emphasize is that businesses have to figure out in advance how much they want to use the cloud, versus relying more on local storage and on-site solutions.

The answers aren’t always straightforward. It depends on a number of factors, including the following:

  • Your business’ current needs. Maybe what could really benefit your company now is relying more on different Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions, for example. Some areas of your business, such as accounting or marketing, may be best served by a transition to the cloud. You also have to keep in mind what’s cost-effective for you and fits your budget.
  • The foundation you establish for future changes. Certain decisions you make now will allow you to adopt new computing solutions in the future. You will have already laid the groundwork for them.
  • The best way for you to make changes to your IT set-up. For example, some businesses may want to rely on a hybrid mix of cloud-based and on-site solutions. While others may want to move to the cloud for the most part. The rate at which businesses transition to different cloud services, and the way they prioritize which services to adopt, will depend on their particular needs.

If these decisions seem complex, fortunately, you don’t have to deal with them on your own. Please contact us for more information about how we can help you adopt the best cloud computing services for your company.

Creating Secure Passwords: How To Do It And Why It Matters

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Start the new year off right by creating secure passwords. Make sure that your passwords are as secure as they can be. It’s the computer tip of the day. Everyone’s computers, all the time, are subject to people, both in the U.S. and overseas, attempting to break into their accounts by hacking the passwords.

Creating Secure Passwords for Your Business

Creating secure passwords

Partly it’s because people are not sensitive enough, even yet, to the need for truly secure passwords. The most common passwords in use, still, are the word “password” and consecutive numbers, like 123456. Phrases like “love” or “iloveyou” run close seconds. Words connected with the computer user, like their name or a birthday, are high up on the list as well.

If you are really using these, a hacker can find your personal, sensitive information in just a couple seconds.

So how do you create a secure password?

First, accept that you will not be able to remember your passwords. Write them down and keep them in a safe place. Many people use simple passwords because they don’t want to be bothered memorizing a bunch of passwords. You can’t memorize all that you need to keep them secure, so don’t even try.

You should have a different password for every account. Why? Simply because it compromises the security of your accounts if one password unlocks them all.

Second, you need passwords that are totally random words and phrases. If they’re random, the thinking goes, hackers won’t be able to guess or predict them.

One strategy is to open a dictionary at random. (Drop it on the floor, and wherever it opens, place your hand on a page and there’s your word.) Another is to use a software that generates random combinations of words and numbers, like Diceware. A third strategy is to think up a nonsense sentence, like “itsnowedbutwasn’tcoldat53degrees.” Would a hacker be able to predict this? No. And that’s what you’re going for.

The longer, more complex, and more random the password, the better.

Contact us for more information on computer security.

Hyperlinking: How To Do It And Why You Should

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Ever wonder how to hyperlink and not sure how to go about it? It’s very easy and can make your life much simpler. That’s why hyperlinking is our computer tip of the day.

Hyperlinking is the term that refers to linking a piece of text in a computer screen to a URL that will take a reader to the relevant online page. Say you are looking at your computer and see a line that reads “Fort Lauderdale’s weather is usually warm.” The link, indicated by color and underlining, indicates that, if you click on “weather,” you will be taken somewhere with information about weather. And you will be, to weather.com’s Fort Lauderdale weather page.

Hyperlinking is easy and effective

Hyperlinking

So if you are writing an online holiday newsletter, for example, and you want to say that your sister and her husband went to the Everglades and it’s a great vacation getaway, you could link to Everglades National Park. Ditto a family reunion held at a particular site: you could send everybody to the site to read about the location or make reservations.

So, ready to begin?

To hyperlink:

  1. Open the internet page you want to link to. You will need the URL (the address that usually begins with www).
  2. Highlight the text you want to link on. In the “Fort Lauderdale’s weather is usually warm,” “weather” is highlighted.
  3. Right click on your mouse. A menu will open.
  4. The second to last choice on the menu will say “hyperlink.” Click on it. Your documents file will open. The important part of this is an address box at the bottom.
  5. In the address box, cut and paste the URL address of the page you want to link to.
  6. Click on the Ok button.

Presto! You have hyperlinked successfully.

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Making Your Screen More Readable

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Today’s computer tip of the day about making your screen more readable.

But it already is, you say? Sure. But there are several ways to really enhance the readability.

Making Your Screen More Readable

making your screen more readable

Readability Features

First, you might be seeing or hearing a lot more on your screen than just the text you’re trying to read. If you’re trying to read a news story, for example, you might see a video on another news story as part of the screen. Yes, you can mute the video. But some people find it distracting. Ads, whether banner notifications or videos, are also an issue for some people.

Enter readability. First, look at the right hand side of the bar where you enter URLs. Many pages will show a small icon that looks something like an open book.

Move your cursor over it. It will say “enter readability.”

Click on it.

It will immediately remove videos and banners from the page. The text will be the same, but the distracting elements will be gone. It looks more like, well, a book page.

Another method is to get a free app that will let you save anything you want to read. Instapaper and Read It Later are two apps that will let you do this and also have a readability function.

Size Text

Another issue with reading material on computer screens is the size of the font. If it’s too small and you’re reading a lot, it could cause eye strain.

Increasing the size of the online font is very simple. Just press the Control key and the + key at the same time. The font size will increase gradually every time the + key is depressed.

Contact us for all your computer needs.