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Today’s music video: (Image does not move..)

Today’s quote: “Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.” ~ Mark Twain

Copyright 2007-2014 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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All we really have, in the end, are our stories.
Make yours great ones. Ones to be proud of.
And please, never forget – one person can make a difference.
Find a way to make someone’s day today.
(Best advice I ever heard? Don’t sweat the small stuff.)

Quick Tips and news items – a hodgepodge!

Folks, only time today for a few “items of interest”.

* Cisco To Partners: Use Social Media — You Can Bet Your Competitors Are

“Social media sites are no longer just ways to kill time online — they are marketing powerhouses that must be embraced by partners if they hope to stay competitive, Cisco said this week.” Read more..

[ Just one teensy-weensy, little, miniscule problem: doesn’t actually produce sales.. Does it? But it’s proven they sure do waste time..! ]

* Quick Tip: Make Windows 8 File Explorer launch in Computer view

“With the right code you can change the default settings of Windows 8 File Explorer.” Read more..

* Screenshots: Five alternatives to QuickBooks

“Jack Wallen suggests several options that offer a near feature-for-feature comparison to the popular QuickBooks.” View on site..

* Bing Delivers Five Times as Many Malicious Websites as Google

“Searches on Bing returned five times more links to malicious websites than Google searches, according to an 18-month study from German independent testing lab AV-Test. Though search engines have worked to suppress malicious results, the study concluded that malware infested websites still appear in their top results.” Read more..

Come on.. tell me you knew that hackers plant poison websites on the web, and trick Google/Bing/Yahoo into Ranking them in the Top 10.. Please tell me you knew.

* 200+ useful Keyboard Shortcuts for Word 2010. – ShortcutWorld

“225 time-saving Keyboard Shortcuts for Word 2010. Extensive up-to-date reference lists of Keyboard Shortcuts/Hotkeys for Windows, Mac, and …” Learn more..

* I learn something new everyday when I surf the web. For example, I didn’t know there was such a thing as “reptile carpet”.. or that anyone offered a cleaning service..

A valuable skill..

* WordPress, Joomla Sites Under Brute-Force Password Attack

“Thousands of WordPress and Joomla sites are currently under attack by a large botnet brute-forcing passwords. Administrators need to make sure they have strong passwords and unique usernames for their WordPress and Joomla installations.” Read more..

[ “Joomla”?? Who makes up these words! ]

And the hits, they just keep on playing…

* Spammers Piggyback on Boston Attack

“Cybercriminals don’t hesitate when they see an opportunity to spread malware. Not even when it means exploiting as horrific an event as the Boston Marathon bombing.” Read more..

Today’s quote: “There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy’s life that he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure.” ~ Mark Twain

[ Can you believe? I had forgotten that.. so long ago. ]

Copyright 2007-2013 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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All we really have, in the end, are our stories.
Make yours great ones. Ones to be proud of.

ShoppyBag And Other Warnings

Toto, I’ve a feeling we‘re not in Kansas anymore..

Internet scams:

An alert reader informed me of another website, something called “ShoppyBag” (wonder who that’s aimed at?) that harvests your email contact list and then spams out “Hey! [friend’s name] tagged you in a photo.. click here to ” type recruitment emails, ala the vile method of MyLife.com (see Just Say “No” To mylife.com).

Tell your friends: if you should ever see something from ShoppyBag in your Inbox delete it unopened. I don’t care that it appears to have come from your best friend. (It probably did, if your best friend was suckered.) Do not try to “unsubscribe”.

Complaints are rampant.. here is a good sample discussion of ShoppyBag. IMHO, a certain “dignan2” said it best..

“Are people really this gullible? You receive some cryptic email from a friend, you click on the link, and you sign up giving this “company” access to all of your contacts. In this day and age, how can you possibly fall for this stuff? I mean it really makes no sense to me. I received the same email under my brother’s name and didn’t even click on the link. I alerted him to this crap being sent to me (and probably many others).
If you get odd emails like this, it’s very simple DON’T SIGN UP! DON’T EVEN CLICK ON THE LINK! JUST DELETE!
Are we really becoming this dumb as a society? Scary.“

Beware of Google+ Invite scams. For the millions and millions and millions of you interested in “social networking”, and “tweeting”… get a life? Sorry. That’s not what I meant to say. Facebook and Twitter are powerful tools, bringing us closer together in the One Human Family. What I meant to say is, Google is coming out with a new “service”, Google+, which is supposed to be the social networker’s bee’s knees. Trouble is, it’s currently limited release and “invite only”.. so…

• Google+ Invite Scams Appear On Facebook

“The search giant’s latest foray into social networking is currently in a closed “field trial,” and invitations are a hot commodity. But thanks to some unscrupulous opportunists, you must be wary of Google+ invites that appear on Facebook.” Read more..

.. a “hot commodity”.. wow. I remember, as a kid, watching a Disney program about lemmings..

• “Don Gunshot” is Blackmailing You

“It’s a variation on the old 419 scam. The e-mail tells you that the sender is a hit man hired to knock you off, but he’ll take your money instead.” Read more..

• All Google Profiles will be public, private profiles deleted on July 31st

“If you don’t make your Google Profile public and searchable by Google+ users by July 31st, Google will delete it.” Read more..

Folks, the Internet is not Disneyland, nor some vast public library where everyone is on their best behavior. It’s an unpoliced, fly by night freak show where cybercriminals are fleecing us rubes out of billions of dollars a year. But, hey, you can watch porn for free!

Let’s use some paranoid common sense when online.

Please?

• Researchers Dissect The Underground Economy Of Fake Antivirus Software

“Scareware pushers see more than 2 percent sales conversion, make millions in profit — and even offer refunds.” Read more..

• Are social media and mobile app jobs just fads? (This is one to read the “Comments” on.)

“Are social media and mobile app jobs fads or legitimate fields to get into?” Read more..

Copyright 2007-2011 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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Mix and Match Saturday

aka Weekend Grab Bag

* For Facebook users: June 2011: The Definitive Facebook Lockdown Guide

“June 2011 edition of The Definitive Facebook Lockdown Guide. Helping you to protect your privacy, your social network security and to manage your network safely.“

* Better Late Than Never: I didn’t have time to post a Friday Fun video yesterday, so, here you go – Never Lose The Remote Again.

* Android smart phone: starter kit

“If you’re staring down at your shiny new Android phone wondering which apps to try first, hit up our list before you download anything else. Great applications proliferate on Google’s Android platform, and our Android Starter Kit is merely a sampling of the best software plucked from the Android Market.“

* Completely off-topic: I met a man who impressed me so much I would like to recommend him to anyone considering a fishing outing in California. John Walton has a bait and tackle store in San Leandro, and I came across him via the The Fish Sniffer Online website. He was so knowledgeable and helpful on the phone, I made a point of bringing my 30+ years out-of-date tackle box and my rods and reels to his shop, so he could advise me what I might need (or, need to replace). I drove out of my way to do that, but boy, am I glad I did.

John restrung one of my reels (said my others were fine), put on proper weights and hooks for the others, explained the proper way to set my drag (etc.) so I would stop getting ‘backlash’ snarls (which worked -YAY!), marked good spots on a map of the lake I was headed to, set me up with some bait, and got me thoroughly “good to go”. He spent a good 45 minutes with me. While I was there, he managed to keep up a running dialogue with several real fishermen, advising them on everything from current water conditions to fly fishing rods to tides in delta. His knowledge (and memory) was awesome to me… I picked up a new-fangled trout lure which was $5, and when it was time to go – what I mean is, John pronounced me ‘all set’ – John told me the total bill was $12. (And here I thought I was the last fella who ran his business with such generous integrity — that our breed had died out.) From what I could see my brief time there, John is known and sought ought by anglers, and I could sure understand why. If you are thinking about fishing in CA, I would give John a call: (510) 352-3932.

* In this economy, is a Google antitrust probe “un-American?”

“Is a probe of a leading tech company, at a time when the tech industry seems poised to buck the current economic trend, really the smartest move out of Washington?” READ FULL STORY

[I might phrase it, “should a Superpower get a ‘pass’ because the economy is shaky?”]

Today’s Quotable quote: “When the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence, it may be that they take better care of it there.”  ~ Cecil Selig

Today’s recommended reading: Trojans, viruses, worms: How does malware get on PCs and Macs?

“What’s the best way to deal with malicious software on PCs and Macs? You can’t answer that question until you know how malware gets installed in the first place. Here’s a reality check.” READ FULL STORY..

Rumor? Somebody told me that online poker has been removed from the Internet… Gambling Laws, or sumsuch. Guess it’s time for a new hobby/addiction for some folks…

Copyright 2007-2011 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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