Back Up Your Data

There are many ways to back up your files. It is important to do so because, whether we like it or not, things do happen and you could loose all your computer data. It is far better to be safe than sorry.

There are several different ways to backup your data. Essentially, you are moving all of your files from one place to a completely different place. This keeps it safe in case your computer crashed.

Different ways to backup:

• CD – You can burn all of your files (or at least your important files) to a CD. This may not be the best solution because CDs can not have information added or deleted. Once the CD is burned, it is done.
• Memory disk – This is one of the quick and easy ways of backing up. Memory disks are fairly inexpensive and can be rewritten over. They offer different sizes of file storage, so choosing one is up to you and your needs.
• External hard drive – External hard drives usually start at $60 and go up from there. They are a great solution to backing up your data. For me, I just plug my external hard drive in, turn it on, and my computer automatically backs up everything in my computer. I try to do this daily to be safe. This is generally the best solution for backing up data.
• Online hard drive – Some web sites offer an online external hard drive. You usually pay a monthly fee to be able to log on and safely store your files. The major risk of an online hard drive is if the company ever went out of business. You would then need to find a new hard drive host.

Obviously, figure out which method suits your need. If you aren’t going to back up regularly or don’t have many files, perhaps a memory disk will suit you best. If you have a lot of files and back up regularly, like myself, consider an external hard drive or an online hard drive. It is well worth the money spent if something ever does cause your computer to loose all of its data.

Brad Harmon is the President at a leading financing company, First Star Capital (www.firststarcapital.com). Brad is a frequent contributor to online publications and newsletters, and is the author of this blog on commercial financing topics.

How to Avoid Computer Viruses

Everyone shudders at the thought of getting a computer virus. Losing all your files is not what computers hope for at the end of the day. Although there are virus checkers, you still have to be very careful. Computer viruses are triggered when the user is not paying attention or when the user is not being on guard. Here are some tips to keep in mind when you are on your computer:

• Do not download files from people you don’t know. Try to scan the file before you download it.
• Be careful when downloading attachments from your e-mail. If it has a .pif or .scr extension, it is most likely a virus. Viruses can also be embedded in a file that does not have that extension. So be sure to scan the file for viruses before you download the attachment.
• Make sure your virus-scanning program is up-to-date.
• Be sure to get an anti-spyware program.
  

It is better to be safe than sorry. Consider investing time in how viruses work and how you can best protect your computer.

Brad Harmon is the President at a leading financing company, First Star Capital (www.firststarcapital.com). Brad is a frequent contributor to online publications and newsletters, and is the author of this blog on commercial financing topics.

Improve the Customer Experience on Your E-commerce Site

You can lose hundreds, if not thousands of dollars by making a poorly constructed website. Customers will become frustrated and want to take their business elsewhere. To provide the best website experience for your customer, try to implement some of these tips.

• Have contact information easy to navigate to.
• Have thought through navigation. If you have sub navigations, make it obvious and easy.
• Have a search box. This will help customers get to what they want quickly. Most website visitors want to get to what they are looking for in three click or less. Having a searching function can get the visitor to their product in two clicks.
• Having good search results. It is very disappointing to be shopping for a green phone, search, and get a list of text links. If you can, have images come up in the search results.
• Good content that is easy to find.
• Offer a breadcrumb trail. This is a trail at the top of the page that lets the visitor know exactly where they are in relation to the structure of the site. For example, the breadcrumb trail could be "Apparel > Watches > Men's > Sport."
• Have pleasing colors (please, no neon green against neon pink!)
• Strong checkout that spells out where the customer is and what they need to do. Amazon.com spent thousands of hours and millions of dollars to develop their 1-Click shopping method. You can never go too far to have a strong shopping cart system.

Brad Harmon is the President at a leading financing company, First Star Capital (www.firststarcapital.com). Brad is a frequent contributor to online publications and newsletters, and is the author of this blog on commercial financing topics.

Protect Your Computer

Online threats are becoming more and more sophisticated. Spammers use pop culture and recent events, like the election or the Olympics, to lure the viewer to click on links infested with malware and viruses. You must be very careful with links you click and sites you go to.

Here are some tips about how to protect your computer from such threats:

• Don't click on pop-up messages. Sometimes they say you need anti-virus software to protect your computer, but instead give you a virus.
• To counteract the scenario above, be sure you have a trusted anti-virus software already installed in your computer. You will have no need to click on the link.
• Be very careful when opening any email attachment. Try to find an email provider that scans the attachments before you open them.
• Be very careful with clicking on links in an email. A email from "PayPal" requiring you to sign in may indeed be a scammer trying to steal your PayPal account information. Be sure to login in on any website's official home page.
• Avoid emails from people you don't know or that have odd email addresses/messages.
• Regularly run spyware scans.
• Regularly up-date your software and patches.
• Routinely back-up your files onto an external hard drive or USB drive.
  

Brad Harmon is the President at a leading financing company, First Star Capital (http://www.firststarcapital.com). Brad is a frequent contributor to online publications and newsletters, and is the author of this blog on commercial financing topics.