Scott's tech blog

Wow one week down!  This week we will talk about the "Cloud"!  What is the Cloud?  Why is this important to consumers?  What are best practices for home users? I will touch on different cloud related subjects and we will talk about your data and how the different services hold your data.  These are all important subjects and we will touch these all this week. I will continue talking about security as well.  This fits nicely into the cloud and protecting your data. Finally, on Friday I will discuss my favorite cloud services are and why these are my favorites. Good night and see you tomorrow!!

To continue the theme on security there is one last piece I didn't mention in my security post.  Updates!  Windows updates as well as you everyday software updates.  As we know with the Equifax data breach a security update that isn't applied is all the bad guys need.  There is a difference between businesses and home though.  In a business we need to test updates before deploying them to ensure something doesn't break.  At home it is vital to not wait an update your computer.  When I say test I mean quick test we run them through and with a couple weeks of the update being released it is generally allowed out.  At home you should be connecting to a server at the office securely and working.  You shouldn't be off the work network when working. Windows updates I feel these are critical.  If you are running Windows 10 the process tends to be smooth.  Windows 10 in my opinion, does the best job of staying up to date.  Automati...

You Made it! It's Friday time to relax!  First, give yourself  a pat on the back.  Now, I said I would post some of my favorite websites today and I am!  These sites help me wind down especially on Friday nights after the kids are in bed.  YouTube! Of course I can get lost in Star Wars rumor videos those can be fun.  I also like to listen to Tony Robbins, and others on building a good life.  These can be fun and teach you something. Sports sites This is easy.  espn.com for all the latest sports score and news.  I also visit csnne.com for my Celtics news!  Bill Simmons is awesome!  So I check out The Ringer  It is a fun site and you can get a lot of good information. Learning Yes, even though it is the weekend I like to learn.  I will study for my next certification at Pluralsight I also enjoy Success Magazine as well.  They have many great articles to help you improve yourself and make your work week le...

Well, yesterday was a fun post after the Equifax data breach post.  Today we are back with a serious topic.  Your home computer security.  There really are some "simple" steps to take to protect your computer and data when at home.  There are strong password, security your wireless settings, updating your computer regularly.  Also, having anti-virus software on your computer is critical. Strong passwords This is very important if your passwords are simple they will get compromised.  You need to have a password that is at least eight charaters long with a capital letter and number.  No, Password1 is not a safe password!!  Still something like Redsox#1 or Patriots1 would be safer.  The main reason for this is the tools that hackers use take longer to crack passwords with numbers and capital letters.  They also have a harder time with long passwords.  Technically, the longer the password the safer.  Don't make your password tw...

Hello and Happy Wednesday, Today we are going to discuss updating to IOS 11.  This is a fairly easy process, but there a couple of critical steps that need to be done at the beginning.  I was going to try and do a full review, but other websites have done this and I will link to those at the bottom of this page for easy access for you.  IOS 11 does bring many features out that I know I have been waiting for, so I believe it is a worthwhile update.  Still, it was just released to the public yesterday and you should only upgrade if you are comfortable with possibly dealing with a few issues that Apple may need to address. Warning before begining this is a major release and not all apps may be compatible with this new version of IOS.  You will want to check this before upgrading.  Select this  link  to check your apps Before starting make sure your phone is fully charged.  Its not a big deal for these instructions, but if you choose to do ...

Equifax Data breach Chances are you have heard that Equifax was hacked and information has been compromised.  Unfortunately this is true.  One hundred forty-three thousand accounts have been potentially compromised.  Many people have already started to take action, but if you are unsure about what to do I will help you.  Before we go further I am not a certified in financial anything.  I am only sharing this to help you and you need to do what you feel is best for you.   To make things a little easier I have included links to referenced information at the bottom of the blog. WTF EQUIFAX As I was researching this I found that there was an earlier data breach back in March!  So, it is important that you check you credit reports and report anything unusual. Seriously:  This is what happened How did this happen.  Well it is pretty simple actually.  Equifax didn't update some software they use and it exposed them to the ...

This Week This is a little late, but I wanted to let you know what is in the plans for this week.  There was a lot of news last week and I am going to continue talking about these stories.  Tomorrow I will be talking about the Equifax data breach and what you need to do.  It really isn't that hard, but it is serious. Wednesday, I will talk about the release of IOS 11 which is actually being release tomorrow, but the Equifax data breach is serious. Thursday, we will continue to talk about security and why it is important on your devices and computers. Friday, we will drive it home with something fun.  How about some of the better websites out there.  These sites will allow you to take a breather from all the news and the serious issues facing the world! I am looking forward to these stories and hope that you enjoy these articles.   There will be even more this weekend, but I think this is enough for now.  Please make sure you follow my page a...

What phone should you buy? This past week saw some new devices released.  We had the Apple event on Tuesday.  Later in the week we had the Samsung Note 8 released.  Now users will have the chance to choose where to give their hard earned money.  First, let me say this.  Most consumers don’t need the latest device.  If you have an older model phone that is working great then there really isn’t a need to go to another store and upgrade.  Next, if you own a phone and battery life is weak and it's slowing down.  You still have the option to get the previous year's model for a steep savings.  This is my honest recommendation.  The main reason I upgraded to the iPhone 7 plus was because of the Product (Red) option.  I also needed to upgrade because my iPhone 6 Plus suffered from touch disease and became unusable.  The iPhone 7 is a solid device and so isn’t the Samsung Galaxy s7.  Please don’t buy an Old Galaxy Note though s...

Do you have old phones, Tablets, or computer just collecting dust?  If you do there are many options.  You can recycle them at a local store.  You can bring them to Goodwill.  There are many more options.  Still there is a better way. If you have a computer that turns on and boots up fine donate it to a company that will rebuild it and then distribute it to those who cannot afford them.  These companies will make sure that your data is securely erased and then rebuild it so that it can be distributed appropriately. Phones you can donate to places that will give to abused woman, or low income households.  This allows people to have a phone and get the needed help. Tablets can be a little trickier, but you  can donate them to Goodwill or find a store that has electronic recycling.  Many municipalities will have electronic recycling weekends.  You can bring your devices then and they will get recycled This is a great idea and a way ...

Alright!  This is a new adventure as I move away from my paid Wordpress blog to Google and Blogger.  I wanted to keep everything in one place and I decided to do this on Google.  While I have really enjoyed Wordpress I needed something different.  Here I will be able to have more tools and hopefully start generating revenue.  You will see ads again as I am looking to generate revenue from this blog as well.  I am going to keep it simple though and hope that my old viewers will come here and view the blog. If you followed my old blog you know technology is important to me.  I plan on keeping the same style and flow.  I will talk about technology as a whole. This week has been crazy personally as well as in the world of technology.  We had Apple's new iPhone release along with other products such as  a new iWatch and Apple TV.  We had the Equifax data breach which is a huge deal. We will talk about all these things next week alo...