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Small Office
Computing Newsletter |
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| January 2004:
Five things to do for the new year |
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Have you put
together your business goals for the new year? How about making sure
that your computing environment is part of it. Here are 5 things that I
recommend everybody should do early this year.
1) Change your passwords. Especially if you ever access your email from
public computers (like internet kiosks in cafe's or libraries).
Unscrupulous people have installed password sniffers in many of those
computers, which means your privacy is at risk. Change the passwords on
all your major accounts now. Some banks and credit unions actually
require you to change your password on a regular basis to continue
using their online services.
2) Buy a shredder. It's one of the easiest ways to reduce your exposure
to identity theft. Make sure it's a "Crosscut" shredder so that the
pieces are small enough that it's not worth rebuilding. Put it right
next to your trash can and shred every document that has personal,
business, or other confidential information on it. I shred anything
that has my name or address. Recently, a few shredder models have been
released that will also destroy credit cards and CD-ROMs. As long as
you're getting a shredder, it's worth looking into one of those.
3) Speed up your network. Copying files back and forth across your
network slowing you down? You may be using an old slow network hub as
your backbone. Try upgrading to a 100 megabit switch, or even a 1
gigabit switch. You may also have to upgrade the network cards in the
client computers, but it'll be worth the upgrade. Especially if you
move large files on a regular basis.
4) Backups. People that come to me when their servers crash have
completely different experiences when they've got good backups. The
ones that have backups know they're going to be back up and running in
a short amount of time, even if they have to buy a new computer. Those
that don't spend the time sweating and sometimes crying, in hopes that
the problem is minor. Make sure it's automated and that a copy is sent
offsite. Check out our back issues for more information.
5) Have a disaster recovery plan created for your business. A "Disaster
Recovery Plan" is a document that includes specific instructions on how
to rebuild your computer environment in case of a disaster. It outlines
what hardware to use, what software to install, how to configure it
all, vendor contact information, and everything else necessary to get
back to business. Sometimes they also include information on phone
systems and possible temporary office locations.
Good luck and have a great new year!!
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