Welcome to Bracton Computer Services.

I'd like to welcome Thomas Clayton and his team at Bracton Computer Services to JustLocal. For businesses in the Mooroolbark and surrounding area Thomas and his team can look after your computer needs. You can find Bracton Computer Services on the Mooroolbark 3138 postcode page www.JustLocal.com.au/3138.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

World Backup Day March 31st

If you missed World Backup Day chances are you probably also forgot to do your backup. Over the years I've found backup programs are generally flawed. For example a lot of backup programs take your files and compact them into a special data file that you can't read without the program. If your computer fails you also lose the program. Other programs I've tested simply stop working half way through. Others are set top automatically backup and a regular basis and most clients I've visited have no clue if they're working or not and often they aren't.

For my clients I've created a simple script file and an online web page where they can define what they want to backup and create a custom script file for themselves. There is no charge for clients as I want clients to backup their important files in case their equipment fails. The backup creates a copy of the files making it very easy for clients to recover a lost file or files by a simple copy. No need to get an expensive computer support person in just to recover files as is often the case with many backup programs.

Make sure you take the time out to determine what files are important to you and make regular backups. Your computer will eventually fail and you should make sure you are prepared for that situation. A number of clients over the years have had their computers stolen so whilst we don't usually think of computers going missing, the more mobile we become and our devices become, the more we are exposed our computers being stolen or devices being lost.

Recover of data can be expensive. As an example it is common for people to be quoted around $2,000 to have someone try to recover data from a failed hard drive and there is still no guarantee the data can be recovered. It makes no sense that people don't do even irregular snapshot backups especially when free software is available that can make the inevitable computer failure less painful.

Even if you missed World Backup Day make sure you put some time aside to set up your backup.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Nissan fuel economy - Nissan Micra petrol cost to drive a given distance.

For drivers of Nissan Micras, the following links contain the defaults for the Micra fuel efficient. Click on the link and you'll go to the Petrol Cost Calculator with the Litres/100km value already set as the default. Enter your distance and price of fuel per litre and you can see the cost of petrol for the given distance.

Nissan K13 Micra 1.2L 3cyl, Man 5 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Urban
Nissan K13 Micra 1.2L 3cyl, Man 5 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Extra Urban

Nissan K13 Micra 1.5L 4cyl, Man 5 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Urban
Nissan K13 Micra 1.5L 4cyl, Man 5 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Extra Urban

Nissan K13 Micra 1.2L 3cyl, Auto 4 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Urban
Nissan K13 Micra 1.2L 3cyl, Auto 4 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Extra Urban

Nissan K13 Micra 1.5L 4cyl, Auto 4 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Urban
Nissan K13 Micra 1.5L 4cyl, Auto 4 speed Hatch, 5 seats, 2WD – Extra Urban

The petrol cost calculator is a web app I've written to help others determine the cost of using their car in terms of petrol usage.

What quite surprised me when reviewing the fuel consumption figures for the Nissan Micra is that except for the 1.2L manual my wife's car which is a Holden Astra made in 2000 (manual) is more fuel efficient in terms of efficiency when new. The Astra has a 1.8L fuel injected engine. It really is a poor reflection on the car industry when a 13 year old car with a bigger engine has a better fuel efficiency. That isn't something I would have expected and will make me review carefully the fuel efficiency of cars in the future.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

 

Greek Easter 2013

At this time of the year a common question I hear is, "when is Greek Easter?"

Greek Orthodox Easter this year is on the 5th of May 2013.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 if you require help with your computer.
No problem too small.

Alert: British Airways E-ticket receipts

I've noted a couple of fake emails with the subject "British Airways E-ticket receipts".

You should delete these emails as they ate malicious.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 if you require help with your computer.
No problem too small.

Easter 2013 Trading Hours Doncaster Shoppingtown

The general trading hours for Doncaster Shoppingtown over Easter 2013 are the following. It should be noted that individual retailer trading hours may vary.

Good Friday - 29 March 2013 - CLOSED
Easter Saturday - 30 March 2013 - 9:00am - 6:00pm
Easter Sunday - 31 March 2013 - 10:00am - 5:00pm
Easter Monday - 1 April 2013 - 10:00am - 5:00pm

Happy Easter.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 705 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: 24x7 Help (24x7.org, pcrx.com) installed unexpectedly on computer.

If you see a lady with a headset start appearing unexpectedly on your computer you should remove the program 24x7 Help from your computer.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for IT support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and surrounding area.

Medicare card expired and not working but card still hadn't reached the expiry date.

An interesting thing happened to a family member recently. They went to use their Medicare card but was told it had expired. The card hadn't expired according to the expiry date on the card so it didn't make sense. Luckily the service provider worked out the last digit only needed to be changed. The same thing happened at a second health service provider and again a change of the last digit worked.

It turns out that Medicare issues new cards and then sends them out which can take a couple of weeks before you receive the card. Since there can't be two valid cards in existence at the same time, the existing card is set to be expired leaving the user unaware they're walking around with an expired card even though the expiry date is some time in the future. Banks use a different approach which is to send out a card which you then activate when received. Once activated you can then destroy the old card.

I thought I'd let others know about this situation as it does cause a bit of angst when dealing with health service providers. Just keep in mind if your Medicare card is due in the next month or two, it may become expired without having reached the expiry date. The new card will arrive within a few weeks, but until then you may get some grief with health service providers.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Free Stuff For Family & Friends: Free 256MB SODIMM notebook memory sticks. Good for older notebooks with 512MB and one slot free.

I have a couple of dozen 256MB SODIMM memory sticks available for free for family and friends.

http://freestuffforfamilyandfriends.blogspot.com.au/2013/03/free-256mb-sodimm-notebook-memory.html?m=1

These modules are good if you require replacement memory or have a notebook with 512MB of memory and the extra memory helps performance.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Ph: 0415 910 703

Alert: My Tech Gurus Inc charges $399 to fix Microsoft Office 2010 Starter issue and never fixed the problem.

A new clients had a problem where their Microsoft Office 2010 Starter would not open. They clicked on a link for assistance they thought was from Microsoft and ended up talking to a representative from My Tech Gurus Inc. The company charged them $399 for support and soon after the client felt they’d been scammed. The support person used a program to show the client how many problems the person had on their computer and used that to convince them they needed considerable assistance. The program used highlighted many minor issues which weren’t significant problems.

The new client contacted me via a referral from another client. The problem with Microsoft Office 2010 Starter was quick to fix. The computer was cleaned and reviewed to make sure the remote support company hadn’t left malware on the computer. The client was also led to believe they were purchasing a copy of Microsoft Office 2010 which would subsequently be delivered. There was no such purchase.

Had the company simply fixed the issue the client was having (which could be done in a matter of minutes) a fair charge could have been made. Instead they did a sales job upselling the client and did not fix the problem with Microsoft Office 2010 Starter.

Think seriously about who you use for your support. Using unknown overseas companies (and even many local companies) can lead consumers to pay excessive amounts for basic support. Ask around. Ask your friends. Someone you know will know a good support person.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

UPDATE - 3/4/2013

After nudging the client to contact My Tech Gurus to request a refund the client did and received a refund. I felt it was appropriate to give My Tech Gurus credit for standing by their 15 day guarantee.

 

 

Low Income Supplement to assist with increased energy costs as a result of carbon tax.

Don’t forget if you’re on a low income (paying less the $300 in the tax year 2011/2012) but don’t fall under any of the government payment schemes, you may still be entitled to the Low Income Supplement. You need to apply annually and this year before the end of June 2013.

Low Income Supplement... Read More

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: Your Virgin Blue Itinerary (actually email appears as an empty subject line)

I received a couple of emails today with a blank subject line and the body of the email is the raw text for an email. This is a failed attempt to send malware. The creator has not correctly crafted the faked email and thus it appears as text and as a result is unlikely to cause anyone any problems unless you try to reconstruct the message and I doubt if people would be bothered to do that.

The email does show that Virgin Blue users were the target of the malware attack.

You should delete this type of email. Don't trust any email which comes out of the blue from any major organisation. Users of large companies are constantly the target or malware and scam. A moment of loss of concentration could result in an infected computer, identity theft, or you end up being scammed in some way. It truly amazes me how every day we are attacked by complete strangers many times a day. Before the internet we were unlucky to be approached on the rare occasion. Some might call this progress!

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

 

Alert: Appliances Online - Receipt - Order 198662

I’ve received a few emails with a subject “Appliances Online - Receipt - Order 198662” or similar over the last few hours. The email includes an attachment which contains email and should be deleted immediately. These emails are not from Appliances Online and represents a very targeted malware attack most likely aimed to catch Appliances Online customers off guard.

Out of interest I decided to check the Appliances Online site and there was nothing on the main site. I then decided to check just in case they used social networking to let people know and eight hour ago they wrote a post to let their users know. This is quite good because the emails started appearing around that time. Personally I think businesses should put a notice prominently on their main page. It isn’t the company’s fault that someone decides to target them as part of some form of scam/malware attach, but not everyone will go the extra step to look for a link to a social networking site.

 

I should also add I'm not an Appliances Online customer. I've never dealt with them and in fact never knew about them. To me this means this is a widely distributed email attack sent to anyone with some of the recipients being Appliances Online customers.

As a word of caution I noticed in the Facebook comment that Appliances Online were saying the emails weren't from them because they didn't use the return email address used in the faked email. In my opinion it is not a good idea that they have now published all the email addresses they do actually use. That could be used in future attacks to make the attacks look even more legitimate.

Of the three emails I received two originated from America and one came from China. None came from Australia. The source location of an email is another indicator which can be used to identify faked emails. Many of the antivirus programs used in Australia don't currently identify the attachment as malware so most people will not be protected against the malware and infection.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Alert: PayPal may potentially open an exposure to credit card users without the user's or vendor's knowledge.

I read the following article about MasterCard hitting PayPal with higher charges and Visa likely to follow suit. The reason being is PayPal doesn’t pass on buyer purchase information which the credit card companies want. Obviously there is value in this information for credit card companies and for users that should be a concern. The question becomes how are the credit card companies using this information if it is so important to them. You’d expect the fees they charge would be sufficient.

MasterCard stings PayPal with payment fee hike... Read More

The second and more worrying issue, subject to the article being correct and my reading being correct, is when you pay using credit card on PayPal you aren’t actually doing a direct purchase via the credit card provider. This could mean the protection offered by the credit card supplier might not exist. The following paragraph is a real concern.

“There are advantages to going direct - customers get the free insurance and fraud protection which come with using most credit cards (and don't apply to transactions processed through a third-party wallet), but most will see this as an embedded duopoly using its market power to undermine competitors.”

This paragraph is with respect to Google wallet, but the concern to me now is whether or not a credit card purchase via PayPal offers the same protection as a credit card purchase performed with a vendor with a direct relationship with the credit card provider.

I’ve long considered the protection offered by paying using credit card versus other forms of payment to be one of the benefits of using the credit card. If this benefit is voided by using the credit card through PayPal that would be a real concern.

I’m not certain at this stage if this is a real problem or not. Until I can find out further information I’ll certainly be weary of placing any order more than a few dollars through PayPal using a credit card. Using money in a PayPal account however is not affected.

The bottom line for me is I no longer know if I’m covered by the usual protection offered by my credit card provider if using a credit card on PayPal and to me that is a concern.

- Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for help with your computer problem.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

Alert: PC Power Speed

One of my clients had PC Power Speed installed on the computer. They didn’t know how it got there. I’d recommend uninstalling this program off your computer.

Programs like PC Power Speed report a high number of minor issues. In this case it was used to trick the client into signing up for a $399 support contract for a problem they had which the company said they’d fix. They didn’t fix the problem and the actual fix of the problem was just a few minutes.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Alert: Sourceforge.net download infected computer with AVASoft Professional Antimaware malware program.

It has been years since I’ve infected my own computer. You’d think as an IT support person it shouldn’t happen but I thought I’d share the story as a warning to others.

I wanted to save a YouTube video (of an ad) for experimentation. I did a search and came up with a program in Soureforge. I’d used Sourceforge in the past without problems and felt fairly confident things should be OK. I downloaded the program from sourceforge<dot>net<slash>projects<slash>ytd<slash> which came as a zip file ffd20.zip. The zip file contains a Java program which I ran. When the program ran a page opened in Internet Explorer and the malware AVASoft Professional Antimalware program installed itself. This shows how easy it is to infect your computer. All that was required was to run the program which did not appear to contain malware but which then subsequently without any user interaction infected the computer.

 

For me is an inconvenience and a nuisance. But at least I can fix the problem given time. The problem is others do the same and can’t fix their computer so it ends up costing money to repair their computer, creates considerable grief and wastes a considerable amount of time. I’ve seen quite a few people tricked by fake antivirus programs and some people have also paid money for the program to repair their computer. The program doesn’t repair the computer. It is just a scam.

Effective immediately I would recommend people stay away from Sourceforge.net to download programs. Don’t take the risk.

The program I used has been downloaded 2,040 times and recommended 160 times. The scanning I did on the program doesn’t report any malware (which included 48 antivirus programs including all the commonly used antivirus programs) but I suspect it is when the program runs it opens a web page which had malware installed. This creates what is known as a drive-by infection where opening a page infects a computer.

Effective immediately do not trust Sourceforge.net if you are looking to download a program.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

The Block 2013 results (All Stars)

Quite a few people visited my earlier post on the location for The Block 2013 All Stars. The series is now over and for those interested here are the results.

Josh and Jenna (8 Tasman Street, Bondi) - $1,375,000 reserve. Sold for $1,650,000. Profit $275,000.
Mark and Duncan (10 Tasman Street Bondi) - $1,345,000 reserve. Sold for $1,370,000. Profit $25,000.
Dan & Dani (6 Tasman Street, Bondi) - $1,355,000 reserve. Sold for $1,575,000. Profit $220,000.
Phil & Amity (12 Tasman Street, Bondi) - $1,375,00 reserve. Sold for $1,670,000. Profit $295,000.

The winners were Phil & Amity.

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Alert: We have an opening for a person with great people skills - @allstarjobsca.com

I’ve received numerous emails with the body being the following:

We have an opening for a person with great people skills, attentive to instructions and a determination to succeed.

In addition the individual must have working knowledge of Microsoft Office, be able to effectively use social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook, be organized, well turned out, a team player and can work independently, are punctual and reliable, have basic knowledge of internet marketing and have a sharp eye for detail.

The subjects for the emails typically have been:

Asked someone to work with good pay
Attention! The international company needs partners.
We need good specialistsWe need executives
Job with good pay and pleasant environment
The position of regional representative
You need administrator!

These are spam coming from all over the world and if I were to guess, probably designed to trap the gullible, or possibly worse, identify theft. If you receive unsolicited emails don’t trust them. Delete the emails.

Personally I believe the domain name businesses should act quickly to remove domains from the internet found serious spam breaches. This could protect people who get tricked. Unfortunately that is unlikely to happen as the domain name registers make a lot of money selling domains. One day domain registrars will see the government step in to regulate the industry and complain about the government intervention, but will only have themselves to blame.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.

 

Aldi LED lights. How do they compare with a GU10 35W halogen light.

I decided to drop into Aldi today and purchase one of their 5W LED GU10 lights. My desire is to test the output against the 35W halogen globe. I've found I've been disappointed by some low energy lights because the light output isn't sufficient. So how did the Aldi light go? Pretty good I thought. The light output as measured by a light meter is lower than the 35 watt halogen globe, but not significantly.

For me the best thing is I can now buy a two sets of three lights from another retailer for around the same price, but the other retailer has lights with a higher light output.

I use my Energy Cost Calculator (http://www.justlocal.com.au/clients/energy-cost/) to help me make informed buying decisions. For example we use the lights for around an hour a day in each room. There are three halogen GU10 lights which consume 35W each and thus 105W all together. The LED lights consume 5W each making the total 15W. I plug in 105W for 1 hour per day and then I plug in 15W and the cost of $29.18 (for three lights from the retailer, unfortunately bought in packs of four lights) and I get a payback of 41 months. If the lights actually last anything near the 25,000 hours after about three and a half years they lights have paid for themselves and I pocket the electricity saving. A pretty good deal I feel.

The hard part is actually letting go of the existing perfectly good GU10 halogen globes. It is hard to part with them but the reality is by swapping over the lights I'll recover their cost within a year. None of this takes into account that electricity prices continue to rise every year so the payback is even quicker.

Also keep in mind the lights I use are 35W GU10. Originally I used 50W halogen globes. If I was still using the 50W globes the payback would be even faster. The hard concept to grasp with low energy lights is they come with a higher up front cost. The higher energy using globes can be very cheap in comparison. You have to be careful but if you buy on an informed basis by using the Energy Cost Calculator to determine payback periods, you can pay more up front but save in the long run. To me anything that brings down that electricity bill is welcome.

Thanks Aldi. Whilst the output of your lights is a little low for me, I do appreciate the opportunity to test the lights.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
Call 0415 910 703 for computer support.
Servicing Templestowe, Doncaster, Eltham and the surrounding area.

GPS Coordinates - What are your current GPS coordinates?

A number of times I’ve wanted to obtain my current GPS coordinates. In the past it was pretty easy but now it seems providers seem to be hiding the actual coordinates forcing you to use their software. For those who would like their current GPS coordinates I’ve provided the GPS coordinates too located at http://www.onlineconnections.com.au/location/. You can also find the GPS coordinates tool on the JustLocal site (www.JustLocal.com.au). Click on the compass icon.

The GPS coordinates tool shows you your current location as a latitude and longitude. The accuracy figure should be under 100 to give you a good location reading. I’ve found using the iPhone 3GS the initial reading can be quite a few kilometres out. Reload the GPS coordinates page a couple of times until you get an accuracy below 100.

One you have your location you can copy and paste the location or you can send the link using email and the link will contain the coordinates. You can also display your current location on a map to check the accuracy. A good technique if you are meeting someone is to email them a link to your location. They can then click on the link and view the map with your current location. When picking up family members this can be very handy. Recently we need to help a stranded family member and this tool would have been very handy to have available at the time.

I hope others find it useful.

 

Kelvin Eldridge

Online Connections

www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Call 0415 910 703 for computer advice and support.