Google Chromecast - Stream Everything!

I've always been a fan of Google's innovative products. Since the Nexus phones and tablets and now the Chromecast. The Chromecast is a tiny media streaming device that plugs into the HDMI port on your TV and streams content from the internet or a computer. The difference from other media streaming devices is - everything is controlled from your smartphone!

Australia finally received the device in June this year, the device being available in the US and other countries for 12 months before. Now Aussie Chromecast users are able to enjoy streaming ABC iView along with YouTube, Google Play Movies and a host of other apps. Netflix have announced they are entering the Australian market in 2015 with Chomecast compatibility expected.

The device will set Australians back about $50 from retail stores or directly from the Google Play Store.

Setup is and use is incredibly easy (both of my parents own one!) and only takes a few minutes. You will need a broadband internet connection with Wifi, a HDMI compatible TV and a smartphone.

Plug the Chromecast into an available HDMI port, you will also need to connect a micro-USB cable to a wall outlet for power.

You will then need to use the official Chromecast app on your Android or iOS device to find and configure the device. We will provide a full step by step guide on setting up the Chromecast in the coming weeks.

If you are looking for a great and inexpensive gift this Christmas for a loved one, seriously consider this device - I am gifting one!

Office 365 - Your first step into the Cloud

Cloud Comping - You may have heard this buzzword thrown around for a couple of years now, but may still be wondering what its all about. To put it simply 'The Cloud'  means online services provided by companies that host products you would traditionally run on your home or office computers and servers.

Why is this good? Using a huge companies (like Microsofts) servers instead of your own means your applications are available from everywhere and are highly available all the while being much cheaper to run. This is in contrast to continually upgrading and maintaining your own infrastructure. 

So Office 365 - What is it and why would you want it for your home or business? 

Office 365 is a subscription service starting at about $6 per user/month. Microsoft will host all of your email, file share and collaboration tools. The traditional Office apps (Word, Excel, Powerpoint etc) are available though your web browser from any computer, tablet or smartphone or the service can connect to your local install of Office 2013. 365 Even has a nifty 'Office on Demand' feature which enables you to run a temporary install of Office on any compatible machine almost instantly (while the install is completed in the background). 

This product is attractive to small businesses not wanting the initial costs and ongoing maintenance costs of running email and file services, or purchasing expensive once off licences for the Office suite.  

Packages are also aimed at students and home users. When I was a student, I would have loved this service. The ability to not only access all of your assignments and documents from anywhere, but to edit your work using the unrivalled power of Microsoft Office. 

More info can be found at Microsoft's Offce 365 site:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-au/

CryptoLocker - What is it and how you can avoid it.

Over the last couple of weeks, Many of my clients have been targeted by one of the nastiest virus/trojans I've ever encountered: CryptoLocker.  Once run on a computer the virus finds files on the hard drive and encrypts them. A message is then left telling the victim to pay money to decrypt the files. There is no way to decrypt the files without paying (which I doubt would be guaranteed). CryptoLocker can also be known as CryptoWall.

Scam email used to redirect victims to malicious code 

Here's what you can do to avoid infection and to minimise its impact:

1. Backup - If you have any irreplaceable photos, movies and other files on your computer, copy them to an external drive, disconnect the drive and keep it in a safe place. The virus can lock files on any attached drives including mapped network drives.

2. Be Alert - Always be suspicious of official looking emails from organizations that you have no prior dealings with with eg banks, government etc. If you can't think of a specific reason they would be emailing you then be extremely cautious. Traffic Infringement notices are not sent via email!

3. Browse Safe - Working using a modern internet browser is an effective way to hinder the way this Trojan can hijack your computer. Google Chrome and Firefox both automatically update themselves and have mechanisms to control malicious code from being executed. Internet Explorer auto updates its newer version, but if you are running older than IE 9 its time to update.  

4. Stay Updated - Keeping your operating system and virus definitions up to date are essential. Updates are enabled by default for all modern operating systems and anti-virus packages. You can also manually check for updates through the application menu or control panel in Windows. 

5. OS - Microsoft releases monthly updates for Windows 8, 7 and Vista. Windows XP support ended in April 2014 meaning no security updates are released for this operating system.  Shockingly Windows XP (at the time of writing) still has 17% Marketshare for operating systems globally. This means that hundreds of millions of PCs are potential targets for CryptoLocker. 

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/CryptoLocker