Google Chrome

Google® Chrome®

Don't look now, but Google® just upped the ante online ...

Yep, Google® just launched a brand new web browser. They are calling it Chrome® and it is now available in beta (a soft release for testing purposes). This is a significant step forward for Google and raises the stakes in the competition between Microsoft®, Yahoo® and AOL® in the all out battle for your attention.

While a Google browser has been long rumored, the actual launch of Chrome brings a new contender to the browser wars. You can download Chrome Here. It is a very simple approach to Web browsing and offers a simple easy to use interface.

Intel may not be the only thing inside ...

Into every infrastructure a bit of disaster must fall... As a long time I.T. guy, I know this. Throughout the years I have dealt with all sorts and manners of data loss ranging from hardware failures to virus infestations. I have recovered hundreds of systems under a variety of circumstances ... Fortunately however, I have never had a domain crash. I have prepared for them. I know what to do ... I have backups of the backups with complete sets offsite. I have worked to Still, it is not an event any I.T. department wants to deal with.
The other day when I walked into work my AE informed the that the network was down. There had been a power outage and even though I have backup power supplies, it lasted for quite awhile. My first thought was: I will probably need to restart the server and all will be well. With a raised eye I entered the server room and almost immediately came to the conclusion that I was in for a very long day. The entire network was a goner. I will spare you the dreary details, but suffice to say I was really happy at midnight when I was finally able to go home since I had presumed that I would still be there when employees started showing up the next day ...
Due to running a good backup plan, SBAOR was able to recover 100% with no data loss. It did however, cost me one pizza and I owe my wife a pair of shoes as a sacrifical peace offering ...
While this particular instance turned out well, I have dealt with hundreds of people over the years that have brought their dead and dying computers and laptops to me. Some I could save, some were D.O.A. and nothing short of super expensive data recovery was of any use. My first question is always the same when a person brings their ailing computer to me.
"Do you have backups?"
Before the words leave their mouth I know the answer; "No, I know I should have ... and I was planning on it ... Is there any way you can save the pictures of ______________ (our baby, wedding, kids, parents, vacation to bali ...) they were priceless and the only copy. Oh, and what about Quicken? Oh yeah, I had like $3000 worth of songs and downloads..."
My answer is also generally the same; "I will do what I can."
Sometimes the recovery goes better than others. I am actually suprised how much I can save in some cases. When the client returns for their computer I remind them again to back up, and try to refrain from asking how the cheese whiz got in there in the first place ...
For those of you that don't back up because you are not sure how here is the very least you should do:
1. Go to your favorite electronics store.
2. Buy an external hard drive.
3. Plug it in.
4. Drag and drop your most important stuff into the new drive.
5. Unplug the new drive.
6. Put the new drive somewhere safe...
7. Repeat as necessary. (daily, weekly, monthly depending on how important your data is and how often you update it...)
8. Hope you never need it.

Techie Knick Knacks

Ask the Tech- Marc Everlove, Director of Information Technologies: When in doubt, Seek a Geek© Question: "What are some of the dos & don'ts of web design?" -Alex Answer: Aside from the fact that "there's no accounting for taste" there are many elements that separate a great website from a mediocre site, and a mediocre site from a what-the-heck-were-you-thinking site... If you are doing your own website it is easy to give in to the temptation to show off and fill your website up with flashing animations, music, scrolling banners and whatever else you can get in there... All of this on a high contrast and intricate background. It may be best to purchase an inexpensive template and customize it rather than attempt to design the whole thing from scratch. Take a look at Template Monster. They retire sites after 10 copies are sold. I have had some good experiences with them. I should mention that I am an affiliate, however, it is the best of it's class in my never humble opinion. In any case, here are a few tips to keep in mind when designing your site. SPELLCHECK IS YOUR FRIEND!! When you are ready to publish, have some one else proofread it also. Keep your content clean, uncluttered and easy to read. Make sure your text is legible. If you have a dark background, use a light font color, if a light background, then use a dark font color. For instance: this is difficult to read. Stay away from using images or "busy" backgrounds in areas where you are planning to have text. It will make the text very difficult to read. Take the time to make the navigation as easy to use as possible. Keep banners and advertising to a minimum. If you would like to include some advertising to your site, try Google AdSense®. It is the standard to match. Text ads don't generally detract from the look and feel of your site, and they produce results! You can here! When designing your navigation, make it as simple as possible. Try not to make visitors think to much. Avoid really "deep" navigation schemes. If a visitor can not reach a resource within 3 clicks, rethink your nav. If you have a form on your site, try to keep it basic. The less information you require, the more likely a visitor will spend the time and effort filling it out. Use Flash and animations sparingly. Less is more here. Use PDFs sparingly and only for large multi page documents. Adobe Acrobat takes time to load and the interface is different from that of their browser therefore, detracts from the flow of their surfing... If you are color coordination challenged like me, then try colr.org. It can help you pick out an outstanding & professional color scheme. Keep information and links current... If you build it, they will come... Uhhh, no. If you build it and put it out there, DO NOT make the mistake of believing that the teaming masses are just waiting by the computer to go to your site. You must put it out there. I recommend the Google AdWords® program. This is the other side of the program AdSense® program I mentioned earlier. Just take a look at this link to This is just a quick list. There are many more tips, but you will have to wait for my upcoming classes at SBAOR. Good Luck and e-mail me to have your question answered! All information contained in the article is the opinion of the author and is offered for use with your discretion and without warranty of any kind. Opinions expressed in this article may not reflect those of The South Bay Association of REALTORS® or its affiliates. Written By: Marc Everlove All rights reserved. Marc Everlove has affiliations with Template Monster and Google.