Have you updated your devices lately? Security is a major part of why updates are issued for phones and computers. This week Mac has addressed a serious flaw in security. The fix for users is simple: update your device!

Also, anyone using Windows XP will want to consider upgrading soon. In April 2014, Microsoft will no longer support Windows XP. What does it mean if my version of Windows is no longer supported? In general, your computer will not get updates, which means it will accumulate more and more security risks over time.

This post is for anyone using an Exchange email account and accesses their account through Outlook. Scrolling through the list of all the contacts in Outlook’s Global Address Book can be cumbersome. Here is how you can improve you search for contacts when creating an email.

• Use the Advanced Find to narrow down the list of contacts

Step 3: Type in a partial name, department, location

• Unlike searching with Name Only, More Columns search will not show any contacts until you type something in the search and hit enter/click Go.

Step 4: Select a contact and then Add to the To/Cc/Bcc lines

• This step is the same as usual. Select a contact from the list and then click the To/Cc/Bcc line to add the contact.

• If you have multiple contacts to add in the same area, you can select them all at once and then add them to the line:

• To select multiple contacts at once, select the first contact, hold the Ctrl key on your keyboard and click on each of the other contacts. Let go of the Ctrl key once you have made your selections, and click whichever To/Cc/Bcc line that is appropriate. 

• If you have a section of contacts all grouped together in the list, click and drag your cursor over the contacts you want to add. A group of contacts can also be added using a Shift Click: Select first contact, Hold the Shift key, and click on the Last contact in the group.

• Once the contacts have been added, click ok to finalize addressing your email.

Me: “Wow, you have a lot of toolbars installed. Do you like having those?”
Them: “No.”
Me: “Do you know where they came from?”
Them: “No.”
Me: “Do you want me to remove those?”
Them: “Yes, please!”

If you can relate, roll up your sleeves and lets do some spring cleaning!

Step 1: Clean up your browsers

This article shows quite nicely how to remove toolbars from the most prominent browsers. (As of today, these methods worked–keep in mind browsers get updates and instructions might change in the future.)

Step 2: Don’t install more toolbars

Where do these toolbars come from? Chances are at some point you installed a program with a toolbar included. Toolbars aren’t always malicious–companies like you to see their name plastered where ever possible. For example, notice that when Yahoo!Messenger is installed, the Yahoo! Toolbar will also be installed: 

It’s all good if you want to have the toolbars installed. Just be aware of the choices that show up during installation and read through the installation process. Cancel and do some research if wording sounds at all fishy. 

Step 3: Become more knowledgeable/Dig deeper

Unfortunately, it is possible that just removing the toolbars isn’t enough. Some toolbars have bad intentions and can slow down the entire system. I found that Enigma Software Group has an extensive list and explanations of malicious toolbars.

Here is an article that delves deeper into what’s behind malicious toolbars, symptoms you may experience, and preventative actions you can take: Sneak Attack–Those Annoying Toolbars You Never Wanted. 

Google is streamlining their services which means students can expect some changes when logging into their school email. The old address, http://go.shoreline.edu, will still work, but will no longer have the SCC look and feel. The login site will look the same as a personal Gmail account and can be also accessed at http://gmail.com. Most importantly, students will need to use their entire email address to login.

If you already have another Gmail account associated with your browser, you will need to add an account.