How to create custom greetings on Google Voice

[Nerd Scale: 2 out of 5 pocket protectors]

 

Are you using Google Voice?  Many of my small business clients are and I have

to tell you I am a big fan.   There are so many incredible features that Google Voice offers, including email/text notifications of missed calls or voice mails.  It is amazing that a free service exists that gives a small business many features that larger companies enjoy from their high-priced phone systems.

One of the features I enjoy the most from Google Voice is the ability to create customized voicemail greetings.  I am fond of the idea of creating customized greetings for each client you may have as a way of personalizing the voicemail experience.  Sure, it's not necessary, but kind of cool.

 

It's a bit tricky out of the box trying to figure out how to do this, so this week's blog will show you the steps:

 

(1) Log into Google Voice at https://www.google.com/voice

 

(2) Create a contact for the intended recipient of the customized greeting to your Google Contacts by choosing Google Contacts | New Contact | add new contact info

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(3) Record a customized greeting by going to the GEAR icon | Settings | Voicemail & Texts | Record New Greeting

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(4) Add the customized greeting to the contact by searching for the contact's name in the search bar and applying the appropriate greeting to their contact:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, every time the client calls you from the numbers listed in their contact information and reaches voicemail, they will receive the customized voicemail greeting.   That could make the voicemail experience for you client just a bit more pleasant.

The hidden costs of higher speed internet

[Nerd Scale: 2 out of 5 pocket protectors]

 

 

Who doesn't like faster internet?  For me, installing a super fast internet connection for a client is a little like Christmas morning. It is nerdily exciting.

It is common now, especially in home offices, to be able to get speeds up to 50Mbps.  With that kind of bandwidth, files download in a blink of an eye, streaming Netflix displays in higher definition and viruses can infect your computer at a much faster rate than ever before.  It is all very efficient.

Or is it?  There are hidden costs associated with upgrading our internet service to faster speeds that most of us don't think about.   And it all has to do with wireless.   Wireless technology has made our computing lives easier, or at least more aesthetically pleasing.   We don't have to be tethered to a single location in our office or have unsightly wires strewn across our workspaces. 

It is important to understand when upgrading your internet speeds that a lot of the wireless technology that we have been using can't actually support the new high speeds.   This is not to say if you purchase a 50Mbps service that your wireless will stop working.  It means that your wireless may not be able to provide you access to all the bandwidth.

Most of us are probably using 802.11g or 802.11n wireless routers on our networks.  I don't intend to delve into the nuts and bolts of these technologies, or really discuss the theoretical vs actual performance of these technologies.  Using 802.11g, you will probably max out your connection at 20Mbps.  802.11n is supposed to be able to support these higher speeds, but I have seen plenty of 802.11n devices max out at 24Mbps.  This is usually due to using an early, or draft, version of the 802.11n hardware that really wasn't certified for the 802.11n protocol.   I have encountered more 802.11n hardware that doesn't support higher speeds than those that do.  

What you will need is an upgrade to the newer 802.11ac hardware.  The 802.11ac protocols have been out for awhile, but are still new enough that they are kind of pricey.  You may need to purchase an 802.11 AC router.  Most of the 802.11ac routers that I would suggest run in the $150-$200 range.   I have been really impressed by Apple's new Airport Extreme and some of the Linksys' AC line.

As well as the router purchase, you may need to purchase a wireless network adapter for each computer that needs access to the full bandwidth.   The costs range anywhere between $40-$100 for the wireless network adapter.   Apple has added 802.11ac to all their new laptops already, but the PC world has been a bit late in adopting the technology.   If you are purchasing a new laptop in the near future, you might want to think about upgrading the wireless network adapter to an AC version.

Most 802.11ac routers have dual-band technology that will allow the older 802.11g and 802.11n devices to connect, they just will have limited bandwidth (again, some 802.11n wireless network adapters will support higher speeds and some will not).  You won't have to upgrade every computer, just the ones that need faster internet.

At the very least, you would probably have to spend about $200 to fully take advantage of your new internet speeds.  So keep that in mind when you are calculating the cost of upgrading your internet speeds.

And if you need help installing the new hardware or deciding what you should purchase, please contact Binkley IT Consulting.  We can help.

Protecting your computer against viruses and malware

If you own a computer, chances are someday

it will get infected with a virus or malware.  Even with a corporate style anti-virus software running on your system, you are not protected against all threats, because those threats are always changing.   However, there are some things you can do to help lessen  the chance of getting infected or help recover quickly from an attack.

(1) Make sure you are running an anti-virus software and that you update it regularly.   I have never found one anti-virus software that protects against all threats, so it is hard to recommend which one would be the best.   On my personal laptop, I am using Microsoft's Security Essentials, mainly because it is free but also because it does do a really good job of protecting my system.  I have also had some great success with Kaspersky recently.   Regardless of which anti-virus software you use, you must make sure that the virus definitions are up to date.   Most anti-virus software allows you customize how often the software searches for updated virus definitions.   Back in the day, we use to set it to update once a day.  However, today the threats emerge so quickly that I have taken to running the updates every hour on some networks.   You have to be careful to understand your bandwidth limitations and how performing frequent updates could have an adverse effect on your network.  Referring to our last blog: Don't be a bandwidth hog.   But keep your system protected.

(2) Make sure to disable auto-run on USB drives.  Many viruses get spread by infecting a memory stick or usb hard drive.  If your computer is set to enable auto-run for these devices, the infection can easily get transferred to your computer.  To learn more about the auto-run function and how to disable it, take a look at this article by Microsoft:  http://support.microsoft.com/kb/967715

(3) Make sure to be careful to interrogate hyperlinks in websites and emails.  It used to be common that viruses were distributed in email attachments.  And although this method of delivery still occurs, it is much less common than it use to be, mainly because anti-virus software has become really good at protecting against that kind of attack.  What is more common today is to get an email with a hyperlink that takes you to a location that contains the malicious software.  Usually, clicking on the hyperlink will allow the site to install the payload on your system.   Here is an example of how to interrogate a hyperlink.   Take a look at this link:  http://www.google.com

If you hover over this link without clicking, your browser should report to you where this link is being directed.   Although the text the link display says it is going to www.google.com, if you hover over it you will see that it is actually going to direct you to www.binkleyit.com.   Now, our website won't infect your computer with a virus, but if we were up to no good we could be redirecting you to a location that could install a virus or malware onto your system.

 

(4) Get in the habit of closing pop up windows using the "red X".   A common method of tricking a user into installing malicious software on their system is by displaying a pop-up window that appears to be a dialog box containing OK / CANCEL buttons.   In reality, these pop-ups are usually just a picture of dialog box that has an action mapped to it that installs the malicious software when the image is clicked.   Instead of clicking on the image's CANCEL button, close the entire window by clicking on the window's close icon, usually depicted as a red X.

 

(5) Make sure your software is up to date.   Most attacks occur because an exploit in the operating system or a specific software package has been found.  Software companies will frequently release updates to fix these exploits.   Make sure that you have updates enabled and are frequently verifying that the updates are being applied.

(6) Be aware of what is going on with your computer.   It is rare to be infected with a virus or malware without it showing some sort of sign that you are infected.    These signs could be a slowing of the system, extra icons on the desktop or new toolbars in your browser windows.   Pay attention to these changes and don't dismiss them.   They are usually a sign that someone other than you has installed software on your system.   The quicker you can detect the infection, the easier it usually is to recover.

(7) Make sure that your system restore software is enabled.   This won't protect you from getting viruses or malware, but it can be a useful tool for recovering from an infection.  In a lot of cases, if the infection is detected quickly enough, you can run a system restore from the previous day and have the system restore to a point before getting infected.

(8) Make sure that you are backing up all your data frequently.   Again, this won't protect you from getting a virus or malware, but it will ensure that if you are ever attacked by a serious infection, your data will not be at risk because you have copies of it somewhere else.  Programs such as Mozy and Carbonite make it very easy to ensure that your data is safe.  Both OSX and Windows have built in backup utilities that make backing up to external hard drives very simple.   There should be no reason to not have reliable backups.

 

As always, if you need any help learning more about protecting yourself from viruses and malware, or if you need help recovering from an attack, contact Binkley IT Consulting and we can help.

Don't be a bandwidth hog

Last week, I met up with a client who was working onsite at one of their client's networks.   Halfway through my visit, the IT Admin of the network popped his head into the conference room we were using to ask us if we were uploading large amounts of data.   Their normally high-speed internet connection was running extremely slowly.

We had been downloading data, but not aware of any uploading.   After taking a closer look at my client's computer, I noticed that it was running Carbonite, an in-the-cloud backup service.  The Carbonite software was set to continuously backup the data on her computer.  In this case, after we were finished downloading the large files we were working with, Carbonite was busy uploading them for safe keeping.  All the time, it was using quite a substantial bit of the bandwidth, which made for one unhappy IT Guy.

Later that week, I was at a client's network that has very limited bandwidth to begin with.   They are in a location that is only serviced by T1 lines and they max out at 6 Mbps.   They were holding an annual conference and using some video conferencing technology to allow a few remote people to attend their conference.   The remote users could not get the video portion of the conference to work and were left with audio only.   I took a look at the bandwidth and half of it was being used up by something unknown.   After trekking around the building, I stumbled upon a guest on the network that was streaming Pandora Radio on their laptop.  I kindly asked them to turn off the Pandora and when they did the bandwidth was restored and the remote conference users were able to get their video connection to display.

At most networks, there is never enough bandwidth.  If you are a guest on a network, you might want to make sure to turn off your applications that use up a lot of bandwidth to avoid being a bandwidth hog.  Especially, if you don't need to be using them while on-site.   Basically, any program that streams music, video, uploads or downloads files will use bandwidth and create a grumpier than usual IT Guy.   You don't want that.

How to automatically dial an extension with a smartphone

[Nerd Scale: 1 out of 5 pocket protectors]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you are like me, you make frequent calls to companies that have phone switchboards or auto-attendants that require an extension number in order to get connected to the correct person or department.  Did you know that you can program a contact's extension on your smartphone so it will automatically dial it when you place a call?

 

There are two ways of accomplishing this.

 

The Pause Option:

Most switch-boards or auto-attendants allow you to skip the pre-recorded greeting and dial the extension whenever you want.   The PAUSE option on a smartphone will allow you to append the extension to the number stored for the contact by adding a comma followed by the extension.

 

For example, if you are dialing the number 303-555-1234 ext 100, using the Pause option, you would enter the number in your phone as 3035551234,100.   When dialed, your phone will call 303-555-1234, pause until it detects the auto-attendant has answered and then dial the extension.

 

Most smartphones will have a ?#+ or +*# key that appears on the number pad when entering phone numbers for a contact.   If you press this key, you will see more input options.   Some phones will have a key named PAUSE and some will have a comma key.   Press the appropriate key and then type in the extension number.

 

 

 

The Wait Option:

 

Some switch-boards or auto-attendants do not allow you to skip the greeting and require you to wait for it to end before entering the extension.   In these situations, the WAIT key is what you need.   The Wait option is entered similarly to the Pause options, but instead of using a comma, you will use the semi-colon.

 

For example, if you are dialing the number 303-555-1234 ext 100, using the Wait option, you would enter the number in your phone as 3035551234;100.  When dialed, your phone will call 303-555-1234 and present you with a message that reads something similar to

 

"Send the following tones?100" 

 

and will wait until you press the SEND key that appears on your smartphone before it dials the extension.

 

For those of you on the go, the PAUSE option is a great way to truly be hands-free when calling contacts that require extensions.  Give it a try and let us know what you think.

 

 

Protect your compute's performance by looking out for packaged software.

There are many things that can negatively effect the performance of a computer: age, faulty hardware, faulty software, viruses or malicious software.

This week it has seemed as if all the systems I serviced had slowness caused by the McAfee Security Scan.  Over the past week, I have encountered this issue so many times that I am in danger of misdiagnosing the next slow computer I encounter simply because I am on auto-pilot.

Now, there is nothing inherently wrong with this McAfee software.   The problem I am seeing is McAfee Security Scan is getting installed on computers that already have anti-virus software installed on them.   A computer becomes slower after any anti-virus software is installed.   That's the nature of anti-virus software and it is a necessary evil we tolerate to protect our systems.   But when you install multiple anti-virus software solutions on the same system it can become extremely non-responsive.

The question is: "How is it getting installed?"  It is common practice for software vendors to include other software installations within their install programs.  I like to refer to this as Packaged Software. 

Awhile back, the McAfee Security Scan was packaged with the Adobe Reader install.   Today, if you download the Adobe Reader, it will come packaged with Google Chrome and the Google Toolbar. 

You will notice in the image above, Adobe offers you the option to not include the Google software prior to downloading the Adobe Reader.   Most software installs that contain packaged software will give you the option to refuse the install of the packaged software during the install or prior to downloading.

Like everything security related with computers, vigilance is the key.  Make sure when you are installing software that you are taking the time to ensure other software is not being installed on your system. 

If you find packaged software that you think is slowing the performance of your computer but you are not quite sure if you should uninstall it, give as a call at Binkley IT Consulting and we will help.

Happy 4th of July

 

 

 

 

 

“All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, honor, duty, mercy, hope”. ~Winston Churchill

 

“Liberty is the breath of life to nations” ~ Bernard Shaw

 

 

Here is a list of fireworks shows in Colorado.  Have a fun and safe celebration:

 

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/list-of-2013-july-4th-firework-shows-throughout-colorado