PC Computer Guy - Tech Talk

I get asked this question at least once a week. The answer is pretty simple: it just means “on the internet”. That’s all it is, a fancy marketing term that means “on the internet”.

So when someone says they store their documents “on the cloud”, they mean simply that their documents are stored on the internet.

Music, Email, Documents, Backup – it doesn’t matter what it is, if it can be stored in your computer, it can be stored “in the cloud”.

Cloud backup solutions for example such as Carbonite and Mozy simply upload your information from your computer to their servers via the internet. The same is true for Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive or iCloud.

Most cloud-based services provide software that make it easy to interact with that service. For example Dropbox loads software on your computer that allows you to view your documents and files just like any ‘ole folder on your computer. However anything in that folder automatically gets uploaded to Dropbox’s servers.

The next question is usually about security.

Continue reading at: http://www.pccomputerguy.com/Tech-Tips-Podcast-What-Is-The-Cloud 

Backing up is critical if you have information you cannot lose. Kevin of Thomas Realestate Services contacted PcComputerGuy to setup a backup system on his 6 month old computer. Two months later, the hard drive crashed. Fortunately, due to Kevin’s precautions, getting him back up and running was quick and painless. Tune in to this PcComputerGuy tech talk with a happy ending!

This new tactic is just another method of trying to hijack your credit card information, and take over your computer, usually to use it as a spamming machine or "bot". This is even a little more dangerous in that if the caller can convince you they are legitimate and you grant them access to your computer - they can then disable your internet security software that was doing it's job, keeping you protected from the internet baddies out there.

The computer is an enigma to a lot of people. You press some keys, and you get magic out of the screen, printer or speakers. But what is inside the computer and how does it all work together?

In this general education tech tip, we'll teach you about the parts that make your computer work. Don't worry you won't have to brush up on engineering or calculus to understand it.

Continue reading at:  http://pccomputerguy.com/Tech-Tips-Podcast-Parts-of-a-Computer

You have that old computer, sitting in the closet (maybe even two or three of them). It sits there because there is a lot of very important, personal data that you don't want to fall into the wrong hands. So instead of trashing it, or even giving it to someone else, you keep it in the closet, taking up space, and only getting older.

In this episode, I describe how to absolutely erase all data from your computer... everything. There will be nothing left. That means no documents, no records, no programs, not even Windows. This is a sure-fire way to destroy all the data on your old computer systems, before sending them off to that electronic pie-in-the-sky.