I took these photos in September 2009. There was a large cargo plane circling Danville, CA where I live. I am surprised how well some of the shots turned out.
BSOD Info Howto
Occasionally when hardware or drivers are failing a Windows NT or newer windows machine will get a Blue Screen of Death or BSOD. There is some important data present in this screen that will help us identify the likely cause. We likely suggested you visit this article to learn what information we are looking for.
The image in this example (click for a larger version) shows the data we need you to jot down for your trouble ticket. This data is a great starting point for us and will speed up the troubleshooting process greatly.
BSOD screenshot with needed text highlighted.
As you can see there are really three key pieces of data we need, and it is often buried in a sea of (initially) useless data.
Amendment for the DIY people: if you wish to research a BSOD error yourself the best starting point is a google search. In this case we would search for Stop 0x0000007F UNEXPECTED_KERNEL_MODE_TRAP Beep.sys the actual google search implicated drivers, cpu overclocking and memory. In this case it was the memory but the memory tests fine using several memory test utilities. This is really just to provide you with some basic direction for your research.
Internet Explorer Users Run Windows Updates – VU#180513 KB #972890 – ActiveX control
Update 7/15/2009 – the link to “Disable” below will now take you to a page with a link to the security update for this issue. Not long ago an exploitable flaw with ActiveX control for streaming video was discovered and is being exploited. The flaw itself has not been patched and there are only work-arounds that involve disabling the controls. For this reason we are advising the following until a patch is available:
1. Use an alternative browser such as Mozilla Firefox.
2. Disable the vulnerable Active X controls.
3. Be extremely cautious about what links are clicked/web pages are visited. (Only recommend to very experienced users)
If you have questions about this vulnerability feel free to contact us.
KB910721 Spam and Virus
Just yesterday I answered a question on LinkedIn related to new scams that are circulating on the Internet. Not less than 24 hours later I saw something that was new, creative and likely to cause some damage as it actually harbors the payload Win32/Kryptik.TL – a Trojan Horse Virus that as of 6/24/2009 is not circulating much. While the format they sent has the Microsoft look and feel (Top Image), it does not duplicate the email format of Microsoft notices (Bottom Image).
5 Reasons to Use Diskeeper
I recently received a newsletter from our defragmentation software partner Diskeeper and it provided me with reminders of compelling reasons to use their software. In light of all the cutbacks people are making in spending it is important to remind ourselves there are reasons to invest money in software that optimize our computing systems. Here is the text of that newsletter:
Diskeeper: Indispensable – 5 Reasons Why
Diskeeper is well documented as an INDISPENSABLE value to every system.
Our customers tell us they won’t run their networks without Diskeeper, here’s why:
1. Maximum speed. Hands down, the slowest link in the performance chain is the hard disk. Fragmentation turns the disk into a major speed bump and lowers the perceived value of the systems and applications you sell.
- 20% + faster performance
- Zero fragmentation bottlenecks
- Fast boot times
- Fast file access
- Fast backups
- Fast AV scans
2. Rock solid reliability. The many fragmentation related time outs, freezes and crashes can seem to be the system’s fault. Diskeeper eliminates the underlying cause of many performance issues and adds real value to every system and application you sell.
- No frag-related slows, hangs, freezes and crashes
- Cuts Help Desk traffic
- Increases up time
- Zero resource conflicts
- Allows system to run at peak speed during heavy traffic
3. Extends system life. Because Diskeeper eliminates excessive I/O due to fragmentation, hard disks last longer and systems run at top performance levels beyond normal life expectancy. This allows your customers to buy more hardware and applications for expansion and not bogging down into break-fix upgrades.
- Extends system life – 1 to 3 years!
- Fewer upgrades needed
- Fast ROI in weeks
4. Energy efficient. Diskeeper requires a bare minimum of energy but because of the way it manages defragmentation operations, it makes the entire system it’s on much more energy efficient. Green to the core of the infrastructure
- Supports green initiatives through reduced consumption
- Saves .12 kilowatts per hour on each desktop, much more for servers.
5. Robust, and completely invisible. Thanks to InvisiTasking® technology, Diskeeper runs as a background process with zero active system resource conflicts. As a result, servers, workstations and laptops are free to operate at top speeds and full productivity without fragmentation slows. Eliminates fragmentation and keeps it from accumulating, even on 24/7 mission critical machines that can’t be taken off line without impacting productivity.
- Schedule-free operation
- Allows consistent peak performance
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 72
- 73
- 74
- 75
- 76
- …
- 80
- Next Page »