Introducing the Beanstalk Computing fifth edition IT Tips Newsletter. This Newsletter will highlight the latest news and information regarding technology that should concern you and could affect your business.

As we mentioned in our first IT Tips Newsletter, running your business within today’s technology should not be something to dread. But how does a business owner in today’s market know they are doing all they can to ensure consistent productivity and efficiency with no computer or network downtime? By staying informed and Beanstalk Computing would like to assist you by doing just that.

Enjoy the read and please let us know if there is anything specific you would like us to review in our next edition.

Windows Vista successor could be released next year!

So Windows Vista has been available for a year now. And it has proven to be as big a failure as adjustable rate mortgages! No one wants to upgrade to it, everyone is confused by the more than half-dozen versions available to buy, it's slow and buggy and riddled with software incompatibilities, most of the features originally promised were removed before it was released and there is simply no compelling reason for most people to upgrade to it. Luckily, Microsoft has realized that Vista is as complete a failure as Windows ME was back in the day and has extended the sale of XP through the first half of the year. And the successor to Windows Vista, Called Windows 7 for now, should be released next year. Do you get the impression that here at Beanstalk Computing we are a teeny weeny bit unimpressed with Vista?

According to TG Daily, "several industry sources" are now saying that a very early version of the so-called 'Windows 7' OS has already shipped to "key partners," and that Microsoft is now eying the "second half of 2009" for a release of the real deal.

Beanstalk Computing does not recommend purchasing computers running Windows Vista. If you need a computer now, get one running Windows XP or possibly wait until Windows 7. Beanstalk Computing has access to new and refurbished computers at excellent prices running Windows XP.

February Special:  Windows XP Pro Based Computer for only $279.00

So it's clear that we are not ready for Vista. For the month of February, Beanstalk Computing has a special on refurbished computers based on Windows XP Pro for only $279! Considering that a license for Windows XP Pro is $199, the computer only ends up costing you $80! Call us at (800) 813-0926 to take advantage of this limited-time offer!

Windows Home Server :  Stay-At-Home Server

With the release of Windows Home Server, Microsoft is paving the way for an easy solution to share your photos, music and files throughout your household as well as to your friends over the internet. With Windows Home Server, you will also have remote access to all of the desktop computers on your network and be able to back them all up automatically. It's all managed through an easy-to-use web interface. At under $200 for the software, this is a steal considering almost all versions of Windows Vista are more expensive. You can even request a free 120-day evaluation version from Microsoft here.   Since the hardware requirements are low, you can build a box with your own hardware (possibly even repurpose an old box that's lying around) or purchase a pre-made box. The only one commercially available so far is from HP called the 'HP Media Smart Server' starting at $599 with 500GB of storage and going up to $749 with 1TB of storage

Here is the list of all features from Microsoft's website:

• Your family's digital photos and media organized in one central hub

• Home PCs backed-up daily, automatically

• Simple recovery of lost files or even entire PCs

• Complete access from networked PCs to all your Windows Home Server files

• A personalized Web address for sharing your photos and home videos

• Easy and quick setup

• Expandable storage space for future use

• Innovative third-party applications

Email Spoofing – Can You Trust Email From Your Friends?

 
"Email Spoofing is a term used to describe fraudulent email activity in which the sender's address and other parts of the email header are altered to appear as though the email originated from a different source." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-mail_spoofing

Have you ever been sent some spam from a colleague's email address and wondered why your best friend was sending you junk? You may have been the victim of email spoofing, where a hacker pretends to be sending email from another account, someone you might know. The process is perpetrated by a worm that will search for e-mail addresses within the address book of a mail client and use those addresses so that the email appears to have been sent by someone you know. Apart from maintaining awareness of the problem, there is not much you can do to prevent this as the worm will have already infected someone else's system for this to happen. However, you can prevent yourself from sending out these types of messages from your home or organization by having a solid antivirus system in place. Beanstalk Computing can help setup an effective and affordable system to mitigate these and other online risks. Call us any time at (800) 813-0926, we are always available for a chat.

Beanstalk Computing
615 "C" Street, Suite 225, San Diego, CA 92101
phone: 800-813-0926 | fax: 877-893-2570 info@beanstalkcomputing.com