Month: June 2017

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Tip of the Week: Options for Quieting a Noisy Computer

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How much noise does your work desktop make? Chances are that the majority of it comes from the fans. These fans are designed to cool down the systems while also maintaining an acceptable noise level. However, the longer your technology lasts, you might realize that these fans seem a bit louder than usual due to your machine needing more work from them to keep the innards cool.

It’s also worth noting that your PC might be caked in dust from years of use. With the dust blockading the fans, they’ll have to work a bit harder than before to get enough airflow, which means that they will create more noise. It’s certainly worth checking out if your computer has suddenly grown louder than you’re used to.

Unlike other fans that you might have in the office, computer fans don’t have settings that you can easily adjust. Furthermore, it’s unwise to mess with your PC fan speed in general, since it’s designed to keep your PC components at an optimal temperature. It might be a better move to just replace the noisy fans and upgrade to better, more quiet fans. Since fans are one of the few mechanical parts in most modern computers, they are the components that will show significant wear and tear, even if you take proper care of your computer.

Disclaimer: If you’re looking to replace your computer’s fans or do any work requiring you to open the case and swap out parts, then it’s highly recommended that you either know what you’re doing or have the assistance of an IT professional.

If you’re seriously contemplating changing out your fans, keep the following in mind:

  • A bigger fan will move more air at lower speeds, which makes for a quieter experience. Just make sure that your computer’s tower can accommodate it.
  • Look for fans that change their speeds to the amount of heat created by the PC. This keeps the fan’s noise levels to a minimum, even when it’s not being used as much.,
  • More powerful, high-end desktops require a lot of airflow. By these, we mean PCs dedicated to intensive tasks, such as gaming or video editing. These often have to use multiple fans, so there’s no way around that. However, a technician can probably install some sound-muffling foam to keep the noise to a minimum.

While your PC’s fans could be a major source of noise, there could be other problems associated with a loud computer. If you want to get to the root of the problem, reach out to COMPANYNAME for professional technology consultation and maintenance. To learn more, call us at PHONENUMBER.

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You Will Soon Be Able to Search the Web With Your Smartphone Camera, Thanks to Google Lens

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While many instances of augmented reality may seem gimmicky, Google is taking strides toward making AR a purposeful utility in our mobile devices. This was made apparent when Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, announced Google Lens.

Taking note of the online shift from text-based content to image/video-based content, Google is doing its best to improve the search engine’s ability to reflect that shift. Utilizing machine learning, Google Lens can view images that are either saved in the device’s memory or visible to its camera and complete tasks based on those images.

For example, Google Lens can:

  • Identify a species of flower that the camera is focused on.
  • Log into a WiFi network just by viewing the SSID sticker on the router.
  • Translate text that the camera is pointed towards into a different language.
  • Provide information and reviews on local restaurants, stores, and other establishments that the phone is pointed at.

When it’s launched, Google Lens will have the ability to interact with both the Google Assistant and Google Photos. Google Assistant will allow you to add an event to your calendar just by pointing your camera at an information board. Google Photos will allow the user to check details like opening and closing hours of a business. If you happen to have a screenshot of someone’s business card, you can call them directly from the image.

More Google apps will follow these two, providing users even more functionality.

So, what do you think? Do you see these features making your day-to-day business tasks and responsibilities easier? Which Google app do you most look forward to Google Lens augmenting? Let us know in the comments!

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Technology

Advice for Passing Your Next IT Audit With Flying Colors

b2ap3_thumbnail_your_it_audit_400.jpg Most people think of audits and immediately cringe, but the fact of the matter is that businesses wanting to maximize output can really benefit from an audit. Audits can be great ways to ensure that a business’ priorities are being given their due attention, and that best practices are being utilized. An audit of your IT infrastructure and network can go a long way toward helping you determine if there are changes you need to make in order to maximize the profitability of your organization.

Here are three of the most common problems that our technicians find when conducting our comprehensive IT audits.

Outdated Software
It doesn’t matter if it’s the operating system on your workstations or the software on the servers, if you fail to apply critical updates and security patches to your operating systems, then your network will be vulnerable. This is a big red flag during any IT audit. Since outdated versions of software can become problematic for your integrated security protocols, by not properly updating your mission-critical software, you could be putting your business at significant risk.

An Absent Business Continuity Plan
As a part of a risk management strategy, any organization that doesn’t have a business continuity plan is ignoring the truth. The facts suggest that a disaster could happen at any moment, whether a company is ready or not. If you fail to prepare for a disaster, you’re staring failure in the face.

Poor or Lackluster Implementation
When it comes to regulatory compliance, COMPANYNAME will audit your internal processes, and analyze how they could be more efficient or secure. If you have outdated IT policies, they can end up costing you a lot more than a passing grade on an IT audit. If you haven’t properly tested your infrastructure, or if you’ve failed to deploy modern security best practices like multi-factor authentication, then your organization will perform poorly on an IT audit. Furthermore, if an auditor sees that your organization’s IT department splits responsibilities on a per-task basis, you’ll be more likely to score lower than if all IT resources understood how to perform every task necessary to their position.

These are only a few ways that your company could fail to perform as intended during an IT audit. If you want to ensure that your organization can pass your next audit, then you’ll want to ensure that your IT understands the importance of adhering to security best practices and industry standards.

Lastly, it is incredibly important that you remember that auditors aren’t the ones who are trying to sink your business. If anything, they are attempting to help you improve the way your organization operates. They are simply doing what your IT department should be doing in the first place by checking to see if you have unpatched or vulnerable systems, or aren’t adhering to best practices.

COMPANYNAME can help your business ensure its security by performing an IT audit. We can comb through your network for any potential issues and suggest ways to resolve them. To learn more, reach out to us at PHONENUMBER.