Bryans Blog

I wanted to share a strange problem I ran into the other day.  This problem has to do with viewing "TIFF" files, the format most fax machines and software use to transfer and send faxes, similar to say a pdf or adobe file.

The problem that was occurring was that this customer is using Microsoft’s Office Document Imaging (or MODI for short) program to view these faxes, which is a part of the Office suite.  The problem was that after opening the document, trying to click on the "File" or print option, would cause an error and crash or close down the software.

After some research, it was determined that the cause of the problem had to do with the number of characters the file name had in the MRU or Most Recently Used list.  In this case, if the file name had more that 55 characters, it would crash the program.  I found that there was a "work-around" and a fix for this problem.

The work around fix involved using the registry editor to remove the offending file names from the MRU list. Although this did "fix" the problem, it will come back.  The actual fix was to download and install a "hotfix" from Microsoft.  A hotfix is a "special" patch that fixes just the problem it describes.  To get the hotfix, you have to enter a valid email address and Microsoft will send you an email with a link and a password to be able to download and install the fix.

It is considered a "hotfix" because not everybody will run into this problem.  There is a certain combination of software versions, OS, and updates that may cause this problem. No matter what you do, the only way to truly fix this issue is with this hotfix. Like most computer programs, sometimes the right combination of versions, updates and OS’s can create a frustrating day, even for us techs, but that’s why we do it.

If you have system questions or concerns, please call the CCS Retail Systems Support Department at 800-672-4806 or email us.

-Bryan

Keyboard shortcuts are combinations of two or more keys that, when pressed, can be used to perform a task that would typically require a mouse or other pointing device. Keyboard shortcuts can make it easier to interact with your computer, saving you time and effort as you work with Windows and other programs.

Most programs also provide accelerator keys that can make it easier to work with menus and other commands. Check the menus of programs for accelerator keys. If a letter is underlined in a menu, that usually means that pressing the Alt key in combination with the underlined key will have the same effect as clicking that menu item.

Pressing the Alt key in some programs, such as Paint and WordPad, shows commands that are labeled with additional keys that you can press to use them.

An example of a keyboard shortcut would be pressing the "Windows Key" + r.  The will open the "run" dialog box.  The same as using your mouse to click on "start" then "Run" program.  There are many keyboard shortcuts in Windows.  Here is a link to Microsoft’s page that list some of the more common shortcuts along with the full list  windows.microsoft.com/en-US/Windows7/Keyboard-shortcuts although this link is for Windows 7, alot of the shortcuts will also work in other version of Windows. 

If you have any system questions or concerns, contact the CCS Retail Systems Support Department at 800-672-4806 or email us.  We are here to help.
 

-Bryan

 

Reproduced From Komo News

The rise of smart phones has presented Hewlett-Packard Co. with a problem.

For years, HP has relied on the sale of its printer ink to supply a big piece of the company’s profits. Smart phones are a challenge because they’re by design not connected to printers, and with people reading more of their Internet content on their phones, they’re printing fewer pages.

HP, the world’s No. 1 printer maker, hopes changes it announced Monday will help reverse that trend.

The company is rolling out technology that will give Internet capabilities to all of its new printers that cost $99 and up.

They will each have their own e-mail address, to which smart-phone users can send photos and any other files they want to print. The printers will also be able to connect to an HP website, from which users can tell their printers to do specific things at certain times, such as printing out copies of the day’s top news stories every morning.

Vyomesh Joshi, executive vice president of HP’s imaging and printing group, said the changes answer demands from customers to make it easier to print from any Internet-connected device, including phones, small laptops known as netbooks and tablet computers such as Apple Inc.’s iPad.

Analysts from the market research firm IDC called the changes "innovative" but cautioned they’re "not without execution challenges," such as the need to attract enough software developers to build creative applications that use the new functions.

For related system problems or questions, call the CCS Retail Systems Support Department at 800-672-4806 or email_us

-Bryan

Have you updated your CounterPoint software lately?  If you have not, you should to get the latest security updates and new feature that have been added.

Before updating your system you should read the release notes and the documentation to see what is going to change and what the recommended steps are.  You may need to do backups, file conversions, add files, and set new configuration fields,  as well as loading software. Depending on the version you are updating, there may be a lot that is changing.  These are most often security updates, new features, corrections, or moving functions and menu options to different places.  Most things will work as before and look the same, they may have expanded functions that give you more of the information that you are looking for.

I recently updated a customer that was about 6 versions back of the the latest version.  CCS never minds being asked questions, helping to find moved options.  However this customer called numerous times about what’s changed, does it now have this feature, where can I find a report that gives me  this information, etc.  It is good advice to remind you that support calls and emails can be expensive.  In this case almost every question that was asked was covered in the new documentation.  They may have avoided some cost by looking through this first.

As with just about all of our customers, we setup a practice or training company for you to see exactly what will happen if an option is turned on or off.  You can decide if the outcome of the change is what you expected, to ensure you want to enable it in your Live company data.  We encourage you to experiment with data that is close to your planned transactions to avoid problems in your live database.

Support time is a valuable resource to your company..  It would be more prudent to use support time on those tough problems that the documentation does not cover clearly.  At the end of the month, would you rather see support time spent on "Where can I find report ABCD" or "Helping implementing a feature" that you have wanted to use when it its properly setup?  Reading documentation is not fun, I know, but saving support time for critical issues will benefit your company in the long run.

In summary, updating your software is important, reviewing documentation is important, as is having a practice/training company.  To update your software, create or update your training company, or ask some system questions, give the CCS Support Department a call @ 800-672-4806 or send us an email.

-Bryan
 

With all the specials ISPs are giving, you may want to change Providers. But just changing your ISP may not be as simple as having the tech come on site and install their equipment. Here are some things to consider BEFORE having the service tech switch out equipment.

Do you have any networked devices?  Printers and Storage devices are the most common networked devices. Normally they have been setup a certain way to work with your network.  Most of the equipment that ISPs install at your site use default settings.  These rarely match the settings of what is currently in place.  The result may be that you can get to the Internet and send email, but can you print?  If the new equipment is not configured properly your network devices may not work.

Another thing to consider is remote support access.  Without remote support, the time it can take to resolve a problem may be twice as long or more.  Configuring the specifics of remote support is the same type of problem as configuring other devices in the point above.  If the new router is not properly configured, remote access for support and working from home can be lost in the change over.

Over the last few weeks, I have run into a few situations where the ISP has been changed, or a piece of ISP equipment has been changed, and loss of remote or device access has been a problem.  We try to ask our customers to coordinate with us when things are going to change.  This helps eliminate some to the issues that arise when switching an ISP.  Most ISPs are willing to make these changes for you, but if you are unaware what is needed, they may be as well.

If you are thinking about changing your ISP, or communications equipment, give the CCS Retail Systems Support Department a call.  You can email us to setup a conference call or review meeting with the tech on-site.  This facilitates determining the proper configuration for the new equipment and testing it before the the service tech leaves.

-Bryan

Original Posted by Alejandro Martinez-Cabrera

Web users are vulnerable to being identified and profiled by Web sites they visit, even if they employ common measures to keep their browsing habits private, according to new research from the privacy advocacy group Electronic Frontier Foundation.

Most browsers today provide users with a number of options to personalize their privacy settings and control the information third parties learn about them. A common practice, for instance, is to configure browsers to notify users every time a site wishes to install a cookie — a bit of code that remembers a user’s interactions with a site for convenience and site personalization but that can be used to track the user’s Web surfing habits.

But in a recent experiment, the EFF found out that these measures might not be enough to remain anonymous on the Net.

The EFF collected information from hundreds of thousands of participants who visited the EFF site Panopticlick.eff.org to learn how much Web sites could learn about users from details like their time zone, browser’s version, browser plug-ins and operating system’s version — information that Web sites commonly receive from their visitors.

The EFF found out that Web sites can connect 84 percent of their visitors to unique computers. That number went up to 94 percent if visitors used common plug-ins like Flash or Java Script.

While connecting a Web site visit to a specific computer cannot pinpoint specific details about a user’s identity, the information can be cross-referenced to do so, said EFF senior staff technologist Peter Eckersley.

"The important thing is that these facts alone would not be uniquely identifying, but taken together, combine all this stuff and just about everyone is a beautiful snowflake. But that’s not a good thing. That means any Web site could track you by recognizing that combination of characteristics."

For example, a user’s actions in two separate Web sites that work with the same ad network — like logging into a social network in one site and buying a book in another — could be potentially cross-referenced by advertisers to learn more about the user and create a profile about his or her online habits.

Authoritarian governments that can monitor visits to any site within their country’s network could also cross-reference information in a similar way and identify dissidents and detractors, Eckersley said.

"Everything you search and look at is potentially connected to that one time you typed in your name. Suddenly everything you’re reading or searching for is one big file with your name on it," he said.

Eckersley said some Internet traffic analysis firms already use these fingerprinting methods to inform Web sites about their visitor’ demographics and habits. Financial institutions also use them for well-meaning purposes like trying to prevent fraudsters from accessing a person’s online bank account.

But the biggest concern is that most Web sites’ privacy policies do not explain if this kind of information is collected and, if so, how it’s used or shared.

Web surfers can use fingerprinting protections like the Firefox add-on Torbutton tool, but they are far from perfect, Eckersley said. And while disabling Java Script and Flash can reduce the risk of fingerprinting, doing so more than likely means trading Internet usability for higher privacy.

Eckersley said the EFF has brought up the issue with Web browser companies, which seem to have an interest in taking steps to address this problem, but didn’t commit to any specific actions.

He added government officials also needed to get involved and make sure privacy laws encompass this kind of information.

"Privacy regulations need to start treating this kind of data in the same way we think of a phone number or a social security number as personally identifying information," Eckersley said.

Privacy is a big concern today, make sure you read websites privacy statement to determine if your information will be kept as private as it can be on the Internet.  If you have any concerns or questions about a site, most have a link to an email address where you can ask questions.

How do you feel about Internet privacy?  Write about it on the CCS User Forum, registration is free!!!!!

If you have any questions feel free to email the CCS Retail Systems Support Department or call us @ 800-672-4806

Have a great week
-Bryan

Via The Houston Chronicle

A group of computer-security researchers may have just made all of your Windows antivirus software obsolete.

Matousec.com issued an advisory last week that chronicles a process by which malware could circumvent just about every security product out there. We’re talking McAfee, Norton, BitDefender … the works. The researchers devised a mock-up piece of malicious software that morphs itself at exactly the right time. Just after an antivirus program scans an excerpt of code, the malware can swap that benign code for malicious code before it’s executed.

It’s being called an "argument-switch attack." From a good description by The Register:

The exploit has to be timed just right so the benign code isn’t switched too soon or too late. But for systems running on multi-core processors, matousec’s "argument-switch" attack is fairly reliable because one thread is often unable to keep track of other simultaneously running threads. As a result, the vast majority of malware protection offered for Windows PCs can be tricked into allowing malicious code that under normal conditions would be blocked. …

Still, the exploit has its limitations. It requires a large amount of code to be loaded onto the targeted machine, making it impractical for shellcode-based attacks or attacks that rely on speed and stealth. It can also be carried out only when an attacker already has the ability to run a binary on the targeted PC.

The argument-switch attack exploits the System Service Descriptor Table (SSDT) used by antivirus software – well, any software – which provides a "hook" to the Windows kernel. If you’re technical enough to know what that means, there’s plenty of more in-depth information in a report by Matousec.

"The research was done on Windows XP Service Pack 3 and Windows Vista Service Pack 1 on 32-bit hardware," the report states. "However, it is valid for all Windows versions including Windows 7. Even the 64-bit platform is not a limitation for the attack."

Lucian Constantin, of Softpedia, notes on a company blog that the underlying vulnerability has been known for years. And there have been no widespread exploits using the tactic.

"On the other hand, it is also true that multi-core processors, which drastically increase the success rate of this attack, have since become widespread in desktop computers," Constantin wrote. "Nevertheless, from information we received in confidence, some antivirus vendors were already planning to stop using SSDT hooks in the next version of their products, since before this research came out."

So, maybe we’ll all be safe. I guess we’ll see how the security companies play this one.

Once again, being vigilant about what sites you surf, and what emails you open will usually prevent an infection in the first place.  It is also important to scan your machine with anti-virus AND anti-malware software at least once a week.

If you have any further questions, please contact the CCS Retail Systems Support Department @ 800-672-4806 or email us.  We will be more than happy to answer and resolve your concerns

-Bryan

 

An Article from foxnews.com

101 years ago, physicist and inventor Nikolai Tesla predicted a device that would let a businessman in New York wirelessly communicate with his office in London or elsewhere — a gizmo just like the Blackberry.

The physicist’s comments were from an interview with the New York Times, printed in the October 1909 issue of Popular Mechanics and referenced by the magazine’s current technology editor, Seth Porges.

Porges, at a presentation for futurism enthusiasts in New York City, brought up the prediction for a presentation titled "108 Years of Futurism," made by Seth Porges. At the time, Tesla had spoken about the "primitive" wireless telegraph technology. Noting that only electric waves were being used, he described the potential of instead transmitting electric currents.

"It will soon be possible to transmit wireless messages all over the world so simply that any individual can carry and operate his own apparatus," Tesla had told the Times, describing  "an inexpensive instrument not bigger than a watch, which will enable its bearer to hear anywhere on sea or land for distances of thousands of miles. One may listen or transmit speech or song to the uttermost parts of the world," he wrote.

Imagine what the people from yesterday would think of our technology today.  I don’t think Nikolia Tesla would be too surprised.  What do you think?  Post your thoughts on the CCS Retail Systems User Forum, registration is free.

If you have any questions about your system, please contact the CCS Retail Systems Support Department @ 800-672-4806 or email_us. We are here to help.

-Bryan

 

Taken From A Seattle PI Article

Google said Tuesday that fake software security programs rigged to infect computers are a growing online threat, with hackers tricking people into installing nefarious code on machines.

An analysis of 240 million web pages by the Internet search giant during the past 13 months revealed that fake anti-virus programs accounted for 15 percent of malicious software it detected, AFP reported.

"The Fake AV threat is rising in prevalence, both absolutely and relative to other forms of web-based malware," Google said in its findings. "Clearly, there is a definitive upward trend in the number of new Fake AV domains that we encounter each week."

Fake anti-virus (AV) peddlers rig websites to frighten visitors with pop-up messages warning that supposed scans have found dangerous malicious software on machines. The scam goes on by selling victims programs that hackers claim will fix the purported problems — but which in fact usually plant nefarious computer code on machines.

Such transactions can also leave credit card information in the hands of cyber crooks.

"Surprisingly, many users fall victim to these attacks and pay to register the Fake AV," Google said. "To add insult to injury, Fake AVs often are bundled with other malware, which remains on a victim’s computer regardless of whether a payment is made."

Google has refined tools to filter out booby-trapped websites and hackers have evidently responded by flitting from one domain name to another.

The Google study was presented at the Usenix Workshop on Large-Scale Exploits and Emergent Threats in California, and analyzed websites between January 2009 and February 2010.

Please remember, do not open any suspicious emails, if you do get one of these pop-ups, DO NOT click anywhere on the window.  Shutdown your PC, and run a malware AND Anti-Virus scan when it comes back up.  Even legitimate sites can infect your computer.  With a little vigilance, you can keep your PC virus and malware free

If you have any questions about suspect programs that may be installed on your PC, please call the CCS Retail Systems Support Department at 800-672-4806 or email_me to review your concerns

Have A Great Weekend
-Bryan

– Taken From A Seattle PI Article –

Google Inc. launched a tool on Tuesday that discloses the requests it receives from government agencies for user data and content removal, enhanced transparency that it says could ultimately lead to less censorship.

The "Government Requests" feature available as of today includes data from July 2009 through December 2009. The company plans to update the information every six months.

"We hope this tool will shine some light on the scale and scope of government requests for censorship and data around the globe," said David Drummond, Google’s chief legal officer, in a corporate blog post. "We also hope that this is just the first step toward increased transparency about these actions across the technology and communications industries."

Drummond emphasized that the "vast majority" of the requests Google receives are legitimate, such as those that seek the removal of child pornography or are related to criminal investigations.

"Yet government censorship of the web is growing rapidly: from the outright blocking and filtering of sites, to court orders limiting access to information and legislation forcing companies to self-censor content," he wrote.

Drummond said the company had already notified users when it removes content in search results, or when it received requests that may affect them personally.

Whats your take on this?  Sign up for the CCS User forum to discuss this or other thoughts about your business or industry. Or if you have any questions about your system or need support send the CCS Retail Systems Support Department an email or call 800-672-4806

-Bryan