Call Today: 772.539.7667 Unified Technology Solutions provides computer consulting and managed IT services in Vero Beach, Florida.
There are a number of companies that use Microsoft Word to type, format and store documents. They use Microsoft Excel to create financial reports and track inventory. They use Microsoft PowerPoint to share information at Seminars and corporate training.
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Yes, it is convenient to have the ability to access WiFi in public places. But is it smart? The answer is no.
It is not even a good idea to plug your smartphone or tablet into public charging stations.
Why? Because people who steal data, personal information and plant software on your very personal devices will have access to your information. Not only that. If you are a lover of smart devices, they can have access to every device in your home that is currently set up to respond to commands from your smartphone, computer or tablet.
Almost every smartphone has the ability to become a mobile hot spot, so if you really need to use WiFi outside your home, then please, call up your hotspot and log into your own WiFi network.
It is also very important you check your settings on your smart devices and make certain to disable the option to automatically connect to any available WiFi network.
Many of us will be travelling to visit friends and family in the coming months. Yes, it’s nice to be able to spend our time watching a movie, reading a book or listening to music. But a better way to do that is to prepare ahead of time and download your books, music, and movies onto your tablet before you go. And perhaps, if you have the option, kick up your data plan for the months you plan to travel. It’s also a good idea to bring your own portable charging device.
Please, in addition to not using public WiFi, install a robust antivirus program on your phones and tablets. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Stolen data can affect your life for years. Your credit can be ruined, private communications could be shared and even your home can be compromised. This is serious, don’t take it lightly.
If you think we are being alarmists, take a look at this excerpt from a post on TripWire.com:
While theft of data from unsuspecting consumers using public WiFi spots is presumed to be fairly pervasive, it doesn’t get the attention that major hacks of corporate or financial systems do. These thefts happen in dribbles – with bad guys stealing bits of information from many users and accounts – rather than a tsunami.
One contributing factor is that WiFi is so pervasive. A 2015 report by WiFi network provider iPass estimated that there were more than 50 million public hotspots worldwide – one for every 150 people, a number which is expected to grow to 340 million by 2018, or one for every 20 people on earth.
Another factor is that so many public WiFi networks are inherently insecure. Kaspersky Security Network recently analyzed some 32 million public hotspots and found that 25 percent do not use any encryption at all, meaning that anyone with an antenna can pick up the communications. Another three percent use an old form of encryption that is essentially ineffective.”
Remember, if you are going to be traveling, take some time to prepare, and for your sake, stay off public WiFi.
Your Tech Guys
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Telecommuting has been around as a work concept for a while now. Some companies allow it, others have begun to pull their employees back into an office environment.
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At UTS, we have been in the tech support business for a long time. It is our chosen profession to help those companies in our area who have IT issues. It’s a profession we love. But there is nothing that makes us groan more than when a client calls up and says, “you have got to recover our data, and we haven’t been performing regular backups”. There is nothing more terrifying as a business owner than to lose access your computers and find your most important files are missing. Your data is essential to the smooth operation of any business.
Backing up your data has always been important, and Cloud backup is rapidly becoming the go-to method of backing up data. It is significantly more efficient than other options. Here in Florida especially. When your data could not only be lost, but your entire information systems structure could be damaged.
Why you should backup
The main purpose of backing up your data is, of course, the ability to roll back and access your archives in the event of local hardware failure. To do business today, you need the confidence of knowing that in the case of catastrophe, your data will be protected and available.
By backing up your information in the cloud, you have the perfect destination for your archives, as your files will be at once everywhere; no longer dependent on any single computer or server. Virtual server environments are in reality vast networks of server centers located around the globe, so that even if an entire facility fails, another failsafe is in place.
Data loss is also a significant hit to your bottom line. Without your data, invoices can’t go out to customers, shipments may be delayed, creative projects could miss their deadlines and the ability to serve your customers will be severely impacted.
Advantages of cloud backup
Ask anyone who lives in Florida, Louisiana or the Carolinas. Each year we hope and pray that hurricane season will be mild. Or at least that any big storms will pass us by. But there is no way to be certain of exactly when a hurricane or tropical storm will hit. This is not why we can’t stress enough having methods in place. It’s important to keep a copy of files offsite. Even if business files are backed up on a file server, a hurricane, flood, fire or theft could destroy the computers… and your regular backups. Keeping backed up files in the cloud ensures data is safe no matter what is going on at your office.
Cloud Backup can also be accessed from pretty much anywhere. So, if the power is out and you can’t work in your regular location, it’s possible to take your laptop and set up shop somewhere a few hours away where you have access to power, internet and your data.
So, don’t wait any longer, get yourself set up in the clouds.
Your Tech Guys
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For many of you, a great physical keyboard is a must. But with dual-display devices making their way through the lab, maybe we’ll all end up typing on glass. In any case, Microsoft made the on-screen keyboard ( the one you’d use with a tablet in tablet mode) more responsive by widening the landing areas of certain keys beyond the drawn boundaries of the key.
Mark Hachman / IDG
Those wider landing pads trigger only in certain cases, though—when Microsoft’s AI predicts you’re trying to type that word. The touch keyboard also can generate the list of items for the revamped emoji/kaomoji/symbols keyboard.
It’s unclear whether RAW image support will make it into the Windows 10 May 2019 Update. RAW, a minimally processed image file format, doesn’t include the compression JPG files do, so photographers typically prefer working with the format to make their own edits.
Within the Insider versions of Windows 10, Microsoft included a special build of a Raw Image Extension (Beta) app that should let Windows treat RAW photos just like JPEGs. In practice, it didn’t quite work out that way: Sony .ARW (RAW) files displayed as random noise or fuzzy, thumbnail-quality images, while Fuji’s .RAF files opened in Windows’ Photos app normally.
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Why are so many businesses moving to the cloud? It’s because cloud computing increases efficiency, helps improve cash flow and offers many more benefits.
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It’s your company. It has your name on the door and your reputation is on the line if things don’t go well. We understand that. But trying to do everything yourself just doesn’t always work. Let us help.
Here in America, we take pride in self reliance. It’s important that we be able to wear many hats and take care of things ourselves. But is that really the best way to do things? Is it the most effective way to run your business? Probably not.
You spend countless hours educating yourself and working with your staff on the things you need to know to be the best you can be in your area of business. How can you also devote the time and resources it would take to be an expert in Information Technology, software and hardware?
We at Unified Technology Solutions can take over that part of your business for you. It’ doesn’t mean that you should stop learning about new advances in technology, it just means that you can trust us to resolve your tech issues so that you can work on your business.
Servers, Cloud storage and back up, internet security, preventing malware attacks and recovering from hardware crashes, that’s what we do. We also have help desk services for when your people encounter a software or hardware problem. Some issues require us to be on site, but there are also issues we can solve by logging in remotely and diagnosing the problem right from our offices.
Give us a call at : 772.539.7667 to set up an appointment for us to come and learn more about your operation and you to learn more about our services.
Your Tech Guys
Artificial Intelligence, or AI and voice recognition are gaining traction. The technology which enables us to communicate with computer and devices via voice commands has come along way in a short period of time. Today you will probably encounter more people using some form of AI, then you will people who aren’t. Don’t think YOU are? Have you said OK Google, take me to the nearest Outback Steakhouse? That’s using AI and Speech recognition. There was no typing required to get your directions or access your favorite music.
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Lately, businesses in the Sebastian area have been calling about installing new business phone systems for their growing companies.Companies located in Ft. Pierce and Port St. Lucie are contacting us as well. It would seem that Unified Technologies is becoming the go to company for Business Phone Systems on the Treasure Coast. Landlines are becoming a thing of the past, and the older PBX models are just not keeping up with the times.
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Landlines are going away….
Do you have a landline at your house? Here in Vero Beach, there are people who keep their landline, yet they rarely use it. It’s just easier and more efficient to just use their cell. In most cases e people maintain a landline out of habit. Don’t be mistled as I talk about landlines, I am not addressing the phone you have on your Cable Provider’s package plan. That is a VoIp phone connections. Most likely Comcast is your telephone line provider, and there is NO line, it’s all wireless.
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