PC's Do's and Don'ts

PC Do’s and Don’ts

Do's
•           Unplug your PC if you are not using it for extended periods of time. Be aware of the fact that even if your computer is turned off, a hacker may have access to your information if your network card has WON (Wake-On-Lan). Most computers do not have this turned on. Check the specs of your computer to find out how you can tell.
•           Password protect your computer. This means create a strong password of a minimum 8 characters and use Upper case, Lower case, Numbers and Miscellaneous characters (*, !, $, ?, etc)
•           Use passwords that are not easy detectable. A password like Password123 is NOT secure.
•           Regularly change your passwords (at least once in 6 months). Keep in mind that in some computer systems (Linux, for instance) once you use a password , you have to regularly change it as it expires anyway.
•           Back up your information (on CDs, DVDs). It is the only way you can avoid losing it for good.
•           Keep your backup information in a different and secure location from your PC system. Take safety measures for your sensitive data. For instance, in case something unexpected should happen where your PC is located, such as a fire, you have the certainty that your information is safe and sound somewhere else.
•           Use antivirus software, firewall and email filtering software. Most of these come as a complete set when purchasing a total internet protection software. Do your research for the best one.
•           Regularly update your software.
•           Do run anti-virus. If you use your computer a lot, scan your system at least once a week.
•           Windows users can download Microsoft Security Essentials for free. Those who use Comcast as their Internet provider can download Norton Anti-virus from Comcast’s website for free, too.
•           Simply having the anti-virus software isn’t enough. People need to constantly update and use it as malicious software is being created every day.
•           Do use the cloud. The famous cloud is really just the Internet. Storing backup information or files on the Internet allows you to access them from anywhere. So if, worst case scenario, your house burns down, your digital photos will be safe even though your computer and external hard drive are fried. File sharing sites such as Dropbox will allow you to store two gigabytes worth of data for free. I recommend using Carbonite as an online backup. For $59 a year, the website will store unlimited data from a computer.
•           Do get a solid state drive. If you want to invest in your computer, consider getting a solid state drive, an alternative to the traditional spinning hard drive. They are expensive but they will make your computer run about several times faster.

Don't's
•           Do not download files or programs from sites you don't know or trust.
•           Do not use easily detectable passwords on your computer, such as name, date of birth, mother's maiden name, etc.
•           Do not use the same passwords for all your files.
•           Do not keep your backup information in the same place with your PC. In case an unforeseen situation may appear where your computer is located, you have the certainty that your backup data is safe in a different location.
•           Don’t click on short links. At least, don’t click without doing proper research first. When it comes to bit links, the problem is that the final destination is unknown. Davis recommends using websites like www.checkshorturl.com to verify that the link will take you where it promises to.
•           Don’t open attachments in email. In some instances you will receive an email from what appears to be a legit person and it will have an extension of EXE, or MSI. In today’s hacker-friendly world, getting a hold of someone’s email address is relatively easy and all it takes is a double-click so avoid it.
•           Don’t blindly click on links in browsers or emails. Just because the link reads www.facebook.com doesn’t mean it’s going to Facebook. I recommend you hover over the link with their mouse and look at the bottom of your browser to see the exact destination address. If the link and the destination address don’t match up, don’t click.
•           Don’t fill your hard drive to capacity. I recommend keeping at least 20 percent of the hard drive free. If you are doing a gazillion things at once on your computer, chances are that you have used up all your RAM. Once your RAM is used, your computer uses your hard drive as additional RAM. But if your hard drive is full to the brim, this will end up crashing your computer.
•           Don’t automatically buy a new computer when yours has problems. Call a professional to get advice first. Though the computer may seem dead to you, it may be fixable and more economical to repair than buying a new one.
•           Don’t buy a really cheap computer. You can find new computers as cheap as $250 to $300, but you get what you pay for. These cheaper computers have very low performing processors and other components, so they’ll be slower and won’t last as long. I recommend spending at least $500 on a new computer. If that won’t work for your budget, consider a good refurbished PC, which you should be able to find in the $300 to $350 range, which will likely perform much better than a cheap new computer.
•           Don’t throw out your computer with files on it. Your computer likely has sensitive files and data on it, such as saved passwords and financial documents. If you’re selling or donating the computer, you should be able to do a factory restore. However, some data still may be recoverable, so consider using special software to securely wipe the drive, but the next owner would have to reinstall Windows. If you’re throwing the computer in the trash, you can remove the hard drive and simply physically damage it.
•           Don’t abruptly turn off your computer. If your computer isn’t properly shutdown, like by holding in the power button for a couple seconds, it can cause hard drive errors and other issues. Thus always shutdown your computer in Windows. If your computer locks up, give it awhile to see if it will respond before holding in the power button and abruptly shutting off the computer.
•           Don’t ignore backups. Backing up files and documents is one of the biggest things computer users ignore. So if you haven’t already, setup some type of backup. I suggest a cloud or online backup, so your files are safe from theft, fire and other disasters in your home or office. If you aren’t comfortable with online backup, at least set up a backup to an external hard drive.
•           Don’t have an amateur work on your computer. I understand professional computer services aren’t cheap, but they can be well worth it. Having a friend, family member or neighbor help is great for the budget, but if they aren’t a professional, it may end up costing much more money and effort to fix if they end up accidentally causing more damage.

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ETP: 07 Cheap and Drama, Music Video, PC Tips, 2KWPro Wrestling

Lucky #7, El Toro is back with how cheap people who make money are, goes into why he isnt on Social Media for personal stuff anymore, share's info on how you can be in Victoria Watt's new music video, PC tips and more on 2KWPro Wrestling.
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Ransomware

Welcome back to another edition of El Toro's Tech Blog.

When I report to you the latest tech, it doesn't necessarily mean I am talking about new software or technology. I also include Tips and Tricks as you have seen with the last few entries on Excel Basics.

The latest to talk about is this new trend going around starting to be known as the "Hack Attack".  The technical term for this is ransomware. This goes out to all readers of all levels of technology, from the system administrators to the newbie who bought a PC and is still looking for the "any key" button on their keyboard. This is probably one of the most important articles you will EVER read so it is very important you read carefully, print it out for your friends who don't have computers or the family relative who isn't the most computer savvy person and is always calling you for help.

There are many ways of getting the ransomware virus on the computer and it all starts with you. Clicking on a link that you think someone has sent to you, being on Facebook and clicking on a picture that will take you to a site that will guess how old you will be when you decide to get married, or getting an email on how to save money, or getting a text (SMS) message on your mobile phone and responding to it. All it takes is for you to respond in one way or another for the virus to start.

Here are some sample screenshots on what you might get if the ransomware virus has somehow made it to your computer. Keep in mind, you may not even have the virus and people are just dialing random numbers until they get a live person.

Each version of the ransomware virus is different but they mostly work the same way where someone will send you a virus in one of the many methods described (and not described) above. This will then send information back to the person who sent you the virus. Now they have a way to contact you (whether it’s by email or by phone) OR, they just call a bunch of random numbers until they get a working phone, and the patter is they tend to disguise themselves as Tech Support from Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, Dell, Lenovo, IBM ... pretty much any company. Now here is the first sign that something is wrong. Unless you have physically gone to a Microsoft/Apple/Dell/etc. store or called them first, TECH SUPPORT NEVER MAKES THE FIRST CALL TO YOU. So that's the first red flag to look out for. These scammers can even disguise their caller IDs to make it look like they are calling from an 800 number from X company. No multi-million dollar company is going to call you first, let alone call to provide you customer support out of the blue.

What you can do as a consumer to protect yourself? If you feel you have been infected with a virus, no matter what you have (Android, Windows, Apple) you can download a free antivirus and run a full scan on your computer. AVG has the best reviews and is available for all operating systems.

If you already got the virus and your computer says your files are locked out, call this number to unlock, contact the FBI and report it. The link will open up in a page that is specific to CyberCrime. They will provide you with the next steps on how to get you back on track but it is VERY, VERY IMPORTANT you report the incident to the FBI.

This other tip may not be obvious but under no circumstances should you EVER provide your credit card, banking number or any financial information to anyone calling you EVER. Think of it like this, if you wouldn’t give this type of information to a random stranger that walks up to you asking for it, why give it to someone calling you out of the blue over the phone?

Please click here to go to the FBI Cyber Crime site for additional information.

I hope you will leave today after reading my blog a bit more informed with this situation.
That's it for now so just a reminder to follow my other blogs. Until next time thanks and Be Safe! =)

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*Disclaimer: I have already reached out to the FBI informing them I am using images from their site and providing links to their Cyber Crime page. I always do my diligence.

Excel 2010 - More Basics

Hello fellow readers and welcome back to another edition of El Toro’s Tech Blog.

After a breather from World  Cup 2014 and other things in my life, I wanted to continue where I left off with some more Excel Basics, specifically with the Worksheets. So let’s get started.

Every Excel workbook contains at least one of more worksheets. Worksheets can be very useful in a workbook if you are working with a vast amount of data. They can help you organize the information making it a bit easier to work with down the line. In today’s basics, I will walk you through naming a worksheet tab, adding some color to it and how to add/delete/copy/move worksheets.

When you open up Excel, by default it will open up 3 worksheets named Sheet1, Sheet2 and Sheet3(see below screenshot)

How to Rename a Worksheet

Renaming any or all of these sheets is as easy as 1 of 2 ways:

• Using the right-click technique and selecting Rename OR

• Double-click on the sheet name and it will highlight the text indicating it is ready to be renamed.

Once you have renamed the sheet you can either click anywhere in the cells above or press enter to accept the name of the sheet.

How to Insert a Worksheet

Looking at our previous screenshot, right after Sheet3 there is a sheet with what appears to be a sunshine icon on it. This is known as the Insert Worksheet icon. If you want to insert a new sheet, just click on this icon.

It will then create a new worksheet (Sheet4 in the example below)

You could also perform a right-click and select Insert, then choose worksheet and click OK but that’s a few extra steps and our goal is to always be as efficient as possible.

How to Delete a Worksheet

Any worksheet can be easily deleted from a workbook. It could be a blank worksheet or ones that have data.

To delete a worksheet just right click on it and select Delete.

How to Move or Copy a Worksheet

Copying or moving a worksheet is easily done using the right-click feature. Just right-click on the worksheet you wish to move or copy. in the popup menu select Move or Copy (as shown below)

You will then get the Move or Copy dialog box. If you want to move it, select where you wish to move it (by default it assumes you wish to move it to the end).

If you want to make a copy of it and place it at the end, make sure you select the checkbox that says Create a copy. When you have made your selection just click OK

Moving a sheet can also be done by clicking on the sheet in question and dragging it wherever you wish to place it. Once you release your mouse click, it will be right where you wanted it.

How to add Color to your Worksheet Tab

Presentation is everything and nothing shows people how organized you are by adding some color to your worksheet tabs. This can also help organize them making it easier to navigate.

Simply right-click on any one of your worksheet tabs, select Tab Color, then select the color you want by clicking on it. Once you do that, click on a different tab and you will see the tab you added color to.

Easy right? As always, practice makes perfect so feel free to poke around in a blank Excel spreadsheet and you will continue your steps to becoming an Excel wizard. That’s all for today.

Don’t forget to follow my blogs. 

Thanks and Be Safe! =)

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FIFA World Cup 2014

I apologize to everyone for the hiatus.

It’s World Cup soccer 2014 and I am a huge soccer fan so until World Cup is over, I will be MIA.

Please follow my other blogs. I promise when I return I will have a lot of great stuff to cover!

Thanks and Be Safe! =)

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Excel - The Basics for Beginners

Welcome once again readers to another edition of El Toro's Tech Blog.

A common question I get as a techie are Excel questions, mostly about what it is and what they can use excel for. In this article, I hope to be able to answer that question and give you a very basic look and feel on what Excel is.

What is Microsoft Excel?

Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet application that is developed my Microsoft. It features calculation, graphing tools, pivot tables, and a macro programming language called Visual Basic for Applications. (quote taken from Wikipedia)

I look at that description and even I am a loss at what the heck it is (and I am a techie so that's hard to do). Here is the short and sweet of it. Excel is an Electronic Spreadsheet Program with the ability to store, organize and manipulate data. It is used mostly to store financial data. Using these spreadsheets, you can apply formulas (you know, like the ones our math teachers showed us in school) to calculate important things like "what are my total expenses in the month", or "I need to make a pie chart that shows the budget we have and what we are using it for".

That description is a bit easier to digest isn't it? As with most spreadsheets, there are columns and there are rows. Excel is no exception to that. Each column name is labeled with letters starting from A and the rows are numbers chronologically. Someone jokingly asked me how many columns and rows are in a spreadsheet in Excel, I told them 1048576 rows, by 16384 columns. They started to laugh, until they saw my face and realized I wasn't kidding. =)

Of course I haven't seen a spreadsheet THAT big though and if one ever existed where every column and row had content in it, it would have to be a supercomputer using it. The more information you have in a spreadsheet, the more resources your computer will use making your system much slower. This is one of the biggest issues I have as a tech when I see people using excel just because they can make a table presentation "look better". For things like that, use Microsoft Word, not Excel. The image below illustrates what Excel 2010 looks like:

Looking at the picture, you can see why people like using this to organize their tables but again, this can be done easily in Word using Tables. Leave Excel for financial calculations. Please! I BEG YOU!!!

Reading a spreadsheet is rather simple if you look at it as cells. A cell consists of a column and row. If we refer back to the image above look at the selection, Column A, Row 1 is selected. so this is cell A1 (not the steak sauce here, that one is much too salty LOL) The cell to the right of it is B1, and so on. Likewise, the cell below A1 is called A2. This makes using Excel much easier when later you are using formulas to calculate a sum of several cells. That will be an entry for another day.

If you look right above the A column you will see A1 followed by a dropdown arrow. This field is known as a cell reference. We use cell references when creating math formulas. We also use it to tell us what cell is currently selected. Sometimes when a person receives a spreadsheet in an email and they open it up, the selected cell may not always be A1, so by viewing the cell reference, you will know what cell is selected (or referenced).

To the right of the cell reference you see the letters fx. This is where you would enter a formula to tell a specific cell you are in "hey, I want you to calculate something for me that is on my spreadsheet". Remember all those times in school when you said (at one point or another) "Why am I wasting my time with Math? I am never going to use it!". Well, if you don't know how to add, subtract, multiply, divide, etc, then you are going to have a hard time using Excel. (more on creating formulas in another entry).

So in short, this is the basic structure of a spreadsheet

Structure of a Microsoft Excel Worksheet (Spreadsheet)
	Name Box: displays the cell name or cell reference↓	Formula Bar: displays contents of selected cell ↓
Column Letters→
	↑ Row Numbers	↑ Selected Cell

The Name Box is located in the area above Column A, and displays the selected cell - the cell you've clicked in and where the cursor is resting. In our spreadsheet above, the selected cell is C2. Notice that the column letter (C) and the row number (2) change color.

The beginning of the Formula Bar can be seen in the area above Column D on our worksheet. The Formula Bar displays the contents of the selected cell.

A workbook is a collection of worksheets or spreadsheets. When the Excel program is opened, a workbook opens with three blank worksheets. The names of the worksheets are displayed on tabs at the bottom of the Excel window.

Moving From Cell to Cell

The arrow keys can be used to move left, right, up, and down from the current cell. Press the Enter key to move to the cell immediately below the current cell, and press the Tab key to move one cell to the right.

Selecting Cells

There are a variety of ways to select cells in an Excel spreadsheet:

• To select one cell, click in the cell.
• To select one or more rows of cells, click on the row number(s).
• To select one or more columns of cells, click on the column letter(s).
• To select a group of contiguous cells, click in a corner cell and, with the left mouse button depressed, drag the cursor horizontally and/or vertically until all of the cells you want selected are outlined in black.
• To select multiple cells that are not contiguous, press and hold the Ctrl key while clicking in the desired cells.
• To select every cell in the worksheet, click in the upper right corner of the worksheet to the left of "A."

Entering Data into Cells

To enter data into a cell, just click in the cell and begin typing. What you type also displays in the Formula Bar. When entering dates, Excel defaults to the current year if the year portion of the date is not entered.
You may edit cell contents from the Formula bar, or from directly inside the cell. To edit from the Formula Bar, select the cell and click inside the Formula Bar. When done typing, either press the Enter key or click inside another cell. To edit directly inside a cell, either double click inside the cell, or select the cell and press the F2 key.
Each cell has a specific format. This format tells Excel how the data inside the cell should be displayed.

Moving and Copying Cells

To move cell contents, right-click in the selected cell and click Cut.
To copy cell contents, click Copy. Then right-click in the new location and click Paste.
To paste a group of cells, right-click in the cell where the top left cell of the group should be located, and click Paste. Remove the animated border around the original cell by pressing the ESC key, or start typing in a new cell.

Adding and Deleting Rows and Columns

To insert a new row in a spreadsheet, right-click on a row number, and click Insert. Excel always inserts the row ABOVE the row that was clicked on. To delete a row, right-click on the row number, and click Delete.

To insert a new column, right-click on a column letter and click Insert. Excel always inserts the column to the LEFT of the column that was clicked on. To delete a column, right-click on the column letter, and click Delete.

Working with Worksheets (Spreadsheets)

Viewing, Renaming, Inserting, and Deleting Worksheets

Worksheet tabs are found in the bottom left area of the workbook. To view a worksheet, click on its tab. If the workbook window is not wide enough to display all of the tabs, use the arrows to the left of the tabs to navigate left or right, or right-click on any of the arrows and select the tab from the list that displays.

To rename a spreadsheet, right-click on the spreadsheet tab, select Rename from the context menu, and type a new name. Or, double-click on the worksheet tab and type a new name.

To insert a worksheet, right-click on a worksheet tab and select Insert from the menu. Excel always inserts the spreadsheet to the left of the current worksheet.

To delete a worksheet, right-click on the worksheet tab and select Delete from the context menu.

Moving Worksheets (Spreadsheets)

Sometimes we want our spreadsheets to be arranged in a different order.  
To move a worksheet in the same workbook, right-click on the tab of the source worksheet and click "Move or Copy." In the Move or Copy window, click the name of the worksheet that you want the sheet to be inserted before, and click OK.


To move a spreadsheet to a new workbook, right-click on the tab of the source spreadsheet and click "Move or Copy." In the Move or Copy window, click the drop-down arrow under "To Book:" and click (new book). Excel removes the worksheet from the existing workbook and opens a new workbook containing the moved worksheet.


To move a worksheet to another existing workbook, we recommend copying the worksheet as instructed below, and then deleting the original sheet when the worksheet has been successfully pasted. Using cut and paste is an option, but if something happens to the PC before pasting occurs, a valuable worksheet could be lost.

Copying Worksheets (Spreadsheets)

Rather than start from scratch, it is often easier to copy, and then modify, an existing worksheet.
To copy a worksheet in the same workbook, right-click on the tab of the source worksheet and click "Move or Copy." In the Move or Copy window, check the "create a copy" box, click the name of the spreadsheet that you want the sheet to be inserted before, and click OK.


To copy a worksheet into a new workbook, right-click on the tab of the source worksheet and click "Move or Copy." In the Move or Copy window, click the drop-down arrow under "To Book:" and click (new book). Excel opens a new workbook containing the copied spreadsheet.


To copy a worksheet from one workbook to another existing workbook, right-click the top left corner cell to select all cells and click Copy. Open the other Excel workbook, find an empty worksheet, right-click the top left corner cell to select all cells, and click Paste. Return to the first worksheet and press ESC to remove the animated border.

That is all for today. Keep an eye out for the next entry, where I will show you how easy it is to create a simple formula that will add up, subtract, multiply and divide numbers.

Thanks for reading and until next time … Be Safe! =)

What is the Best Android Phone to get?

Hello fellow readers and welcome once again to another edition of El Toro’s Wrestling Blog.

I’ve had a few friends ask me about Android phones and the most common question I get is “which one is the best”?

Being an Android phone user, I have tested and seen several models so when it comes down to it, there are certain factors I like to get into first.

I always ask the person one of the most important question first, and that is “what do you want to do with the phone”?

It may be a silly question to ask, but think about it. Smartphones today have several functions that some people want where others are like “eh I will never have a need for that”.

There are even the small pack of folks who might not even know what they can be used for, or have no clue what they want to do.

I figured the best way to know what type of Android phone you want to get is to put together a list of the things it can do, so you can pick and choose what you would like, go to your favorite wireless provider, tell them what it is you want in the phone, and go from there. It is very important to know that no matter what phone you do get, if you have a crappy cell phone provider, then there is no phone in the world that will make up for their crappy phone service. Just wanted to make that very clear. So let’s get started.

Now for me, a phone needs to have storage space. not just any storage space, it needs to have the internal and external, meaning I should also be able to insert extra memory any time I want.

The HTC One is a terrific phone and some providers have a 32GB phone, however it does not give me the ability to add more memory with a Micro SD card. So to me, that’s a deal breaker. But for some people it isn’t, so just remember to always check what the storage on a phone is and if it has the option to add more by way of a microSD card.

I love taking pictures with my phone. It makes it so much easier than to have my big ass Nikon around unless I absolutely need it. So it is important to me to have a phone that takes great pictures, not just during the day, but indoors, with and without flash, decent zoom, and have dual camera support, one in the back of the phone and one in front if I want to take a group selfie (yeah I got no shame saying it LOL). The nice thing at most cell phone shops, you can test the phones and take pictures. Also, use the camera to record video. After all, you want to record those silly moments of your friend drunk and doing karaoke right? you need proof of that to post on YouTube. Test these out and use this to make your deciding a bit easier.

I like to hold a phone in my hand and have some sort of assurance that if I sneeze, and the phone is in my hand, the screen wont crack. I am talking about, does the phone feel cheap like something that came out of a 99 cents store? Check out the YouTube videos online on the phone you want to look and search for the break test. If it can survive all the torture the people in the video put it through, then it should survive a light bump on the side of the coffee table. If you hold the actual phone and it feels very plastic-y, then it’s probably not the thing you want to get. Yes, there are those sturdy cases called Otterbox or LifeProofs but that won’t stop the fact that it could still break while INSIDE the case or worse, explode.

I know the IN thing to do these days is “What’s the best brand phone out there cause I wanna get that”. You need to look out there and research what phone has the best reviews. I can harp all day and all night on how awesome the Samsung android phones are (being that I actually have 2, my personal and the one I chose for work) mainly cause I am partial with Samsung being a wonderful product. However, there are some people who don’t agree with me and will say LG has a better phone (although no one has been able to prove to me why). So it is very important you look at customer reviews and the best place to get those reviews is on a large platform that everyone in the US has heard of … Amazon.com. Just like people can rely on Yelp.com to get reviews on venues, Amazon has millions of people on their purchasing and reviewing the products. You will get an unbiased review that you probably wouldn’t get if you went to the wireless providers site. If you want a personal top wireless phone makers from me, then in no particular order here are my picks:

• Samsung
• Motorola
• HTC
• Nokia (yeah, despite the iffy-ness I have of windows phones, the hardware is actually pretty good)

Wait, what about LG, Pantech, Sony? LG and Sony were great phones … when they weren’t smartphones.  Somehow, they went all dumb when creating the hardware for the smartphones cause people had to constantly get a replacement to the point where they literally broke their phone in frustration and bought a new one from another maker. Oh, and don’t even get me started with Blackberry (Research In Motion or RIM for short). They once dominated the smartphone era, now, I wouldn’t be surprised if by the end of the coming year, the company shuts down. As far as the Asus phone known as the PadFone, I honestly don’t know enough about it or tested it. I do have an Asus Tablet and it is by far one of the best tablets in the market today, so in theory, I wouldn’t be too surprised if their phone is just as great. If an Asus rep gets to read this and is willing to have me try it out with the tablet, they are more than welcome to reach out to me. I would love to try it out, review it, and ship it back and post my findings in my blog.

So here is a summary:

1. Storage: how important is storage to you?
2. Camera (front and back): how good do the pictures and video take?
3. Durability: take the phone in your hand, does it feel sturdy or does the material feel like it could break? No case in the world will protect it if it gets dropped in just the right angle.
4. Reviews: do your research online to determine what people say is a good reliable phone.

I hope this helps you reach to a better conclusion on what to get, but as always, you can reach out to me at any time and I will help you in any way I can. That’s all for today. Until next time, Be Safe! =)