While there is a lot of legitimate and good-quality, free software out there (ex. Adobe Reader, Google SketchUp, Mozilla Firefox, etc) there is also a lot of free software you don’t want to touch with a ten foot pole. Free downloads are notorious for containing spyware and malware. Download free software only from sites you know and trust!  Resist the impulsive temptation for the freebie, or the decision could end costing you big.

Just in case you were wondering. Cisco Systems predicts that Internet traffic will quadruple in the next five years, with mobile Internet connections surpassing the world’s population by 2017! Networking equipment vendors are looking forward to the era of terabit Ethernet technology to handle ever-increasing levels of traffic and dynamic content. This will not be your father’s Internet! Source: Network World

First, if you are not sure what a browser is – here is a basic definition. It’s a specialized type of software application that allows a computer to interact with websites and utilize tools on the Internet. Examples are Internet Explorer (IE), Firefox, Google Chrome, or Safari on a Mac. They all have their pros & cons, but function similarly. One is not necessarily better than the others. Deciding which browser to use is often a matter of personal choice, necessity, or technological restriction. If you don’t like the look or feel of say Firefox or find it hard to use, you can simply use IE or Chrome instead, or if you can’t open an email attachment say in Internet Explorer for some reason, you can often use Firefox or Chrome instead and the attachment opens with no problem. However, some situations require you to use a specific browser. For example, at Shoreline, the Canvas Learning System is optimized to work with Google Chrome, so that is the browser you need to use with that platform.

We all know we’re supposed to do this but many of us don’t. Backup important files on a regular basis and store the backups in a safe place. (Preferably off site.) You can backup files to removable disks/drives or save copies to network shares. It’s not wise to back up to the same hard drive or computer, in case something happens to that device. Unfortunately, it’s not a matter of “if” you will lose files one way or another; it’s a matter of “when”.   Source: SANS Institute