Last month's answer -

Druid comes from the Celtic word for OAK expert.

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This month's question is:

Who was the first female LPGA golfer to amass $1 million in her career?

a) K. Whitworth
b) J. Inkster
c) J. Stepehenson
d) A. Alcott

Be the first to call 717-291-4689 or e-mail Sue Worthing sue@ezsolution.comwith the correct answer to win a $20 gift certificate to Isaacs Deli or Starbucks!

Ask ten people to define spam and you will get 10 different answers and one request--How can I stop it?

The short answer is that spam is the abuse of electronic messaging to send unsolicited bulk-mail messages indiscriminately. The most widely recognized form of spam is e-mail spam. There are similar abuses in instant messaging, newsgroups, web search, blogs, mobile phone texting, junk fax and social networking spam.

Most of you are concerned about e-mail spam. If you are old enough, you may remember SPAM as a canned meat product, produced in the Unites States by Hormel. What you may not know is that post-war England survived in a large part due the use of this type of imported meat product, while it rebuilt its agricultural base. The most prevalent was a "corned beef" product from Argentina. It was widely used and widely hated.

Enter "Monty Python's Flying Circus and the famous café sketch of 1970, where the only item in many disguises was SPAM. Off stage a chorus is singing the words SPAM over and over, in effect "spamming"the dialogue. It wasn't until the 80's that BBS users would type the word "spam"over and over to push other users' text off the screen. After that it took several years until it became a part of our language.

Why spam? The answer is that it can be commercially viable. If a spammer can convert a spam to a sale, then it becomes economically worthwhile. It can also be a way for malware to enter your system.

In February 2010, Microsoft's Digital Crimes Unit shut down the Waledac Botnet. A botnet is a series of PCs that have been hijacked and used in a remote control fashion to aid in the distribution of spam. It was estimated the Waledac botnet had infected hundreds of thousands of computers around the world.

Between December 3 and 21, approximately 651 million spam e-mails went to Hotmail accounts alone from the Waledac Botnet. The capacity of the botnet was in excess of 1.5 billion e-mails a day. So if you are pushing a pharmacy product and you convert 1 in 12 million, you can make money sending spam. In 2009 Cisco systems reported the origins of spam by country (in trillions per year):

1. Brazil: 7,700,000,000;
2. USA: 6,600,000,000;
3. India: 3,600,000,000;
4. So.Korea: 3,100,000,000;
5. Turkey: 2,600,000,000;
6. Vietnam: 2,500,000,000;
7. China: 2,400,000,000;
8. Poland: 2,400,000,000;
9. Russia: 2,300,000,000;
10. Argentina: 1,500,000,000.

As spammers have gotten more sophisticated, so have the anti-spam devices. In a 24 day period at the end of 2009, the EZSolution mail server handled 873,000 incoming e-mail messages; only 167,000 were valid e-mails which were let thru the system to your mailboxes, the rest were spam and rejected.

Even with the Waledac Botnet out of business, there are still many out there. Most recently, in February 2010, Symantec Labs reported that 80% of all spam is sent out by 10 botnets that average 135 billion messages a day and have 5 million computers in their botnets.

What can you do to avoid spam?
The answer is its very unlikely you can avoid it, but there are several things you can do to lessen its impact on your life.

• Make sure your computer is up to date with the latest service packs and security updates; don't avoid updating because it is inconvenient
• Keep your anti-virus program up to date
• Install Microsoft Security Essentials from www.microsoft.com; it is an excellent additional tool to catch malware that comes in through e-mail spam or web spam
• Be careful about opening e-mails from people you don't know
• Be careful about opening e-mail from what appears to be legitimate companies, like Microsoft, or EBay, Amazon or an address that simply says support, if you are not expecting an e-mail and you have no previous relationship … that's a good clue it's spam.

At the corporate level, there are good cost-effective means of stopping spam, especially if you host your own e-mail. There are several good spam filters we have deployed for our clients. If you are having a "spam"issue, give us a call and talk about how we can help you be more productive and keep more of your dollar in the bottom line.

Next Month: Free email services, just how free are they?

Last week we got a call from a client with a computer issue. It is not unusual to get a service call but this time even Jeff was shaking his head!

Client: Hi Jeff, our printer is not working.
Jeff: What is wrong with it?
Client: Mouse is jammed.
Jeff: Mouse? Printers don't have a mouse.
Client: Mmmmm??.. Oh really?... I'll email you a picture.

See below for the picture that was sent.

More than 80 years have passed since Emily Post wrote her first book on etiquette. Back then, the rules had more to do with how to properly introduce someone and which fork to use at a dinner party. Not that I can remember which fork to use anyway.

But with the introduction of new communication tools comes new rules. Here are 19 quick tips and rules for what is-and isn't-acceptable behavior when using e-mail. I wonder if Emily Post sends emails.

1. Be concise and to the point. Read your e-mail to make sure it makes sense before sending it to avoid e-mail "ping-pong."
2. Do not reply just to say "got it" unless the recipient has asked you to respond.
3. Use proper spelling, grammar and punctuation. This is still a communication and a representation of YOU. Sloppy spelling and punctuation look unprofessional.
4. Do not use e-mail to deliver bad or personal news. If you need to discuss a serious matter with someone, only use e-mail to request a face to face meeting or phone call, not to deliver the news.
5. Do not attach unnecessary files, especially large ones. Sending big files can cause someone's e-mail system to clog, shut down or crash. Instead, use www.mailbigfile.com for large documents.
6. Do not overuse the high priority option. Use it only when something is truly critical and time sensitive.
7. Do not write in CAPITALS-it's the equivalent of shouting.
8. Do not leave out the message history.
9. Do not overuse "Reply to All." If you have a message for the sender that is not relevant to everyone else, make sure you only send it to that person.
10. Do not cc everyone when sending a broadcast to multiple people. Instead, use the bcc (blind carbon copy) to keep everyone's e-mail private.
11. Do not overuse abbreviations and emoticons.
12. Do not use neon colors, hard to read fancy fonts and background images. They make it difficult-if not impossible-to read your message.
13. Do not forward chain letters, ever.
14. Do not request delivery and read receipts.
15. Do not use email to discuss confidential information. A good rule of thumb is this: if you don't want the entire world to see it, then don't put it in an e-mail.
16. Use a meaningful subject line to help the recipient sort through their inbox.
17. Do not send or forward emails containing libelous, defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks. They aren't funny and if sent using company e-mail, they could get you sued or fired.
18. Keep your anti-virus up-to-date to make sure you don't spread viruses to your friends.
19. Do not reply to spam; it only signifies that your address is active to the spammer and will invite more of the same

EZSolution Referral Contest!

We are giving away a 50" Samsung flat screen TV to the person who refers the most businesses to us between February 1, 2010 and April 30, 2010.

How the contest works:

• Call or email us with your referral Information.
• We will call to schedule an appointment.
• We will send you a check for $25.
• If your friend becomes a client we will send you a check for $50.
• We will also give your friend a $100 discount off our services.

Contest Starts: February 1, 2010
Contest Ends: April 30, 2010

The winner will be published in the next month's newsletter.

* In the event of a tie, the person who had the first referral will be the winner.

** A Special thanks goes to one of our clients, J.B. Zimmerman, for offering us a great price on the TV. Visit their website at: www.jbzimmerman.com to find other great deals!

Thank You to the following companies & people for their referrals!

Advanced Food Products
www.afpllc.com

Cherry Hill Orchards
www.cherryhillorchards.com

Humane League of Lanc.
www.humaneleague.com

Covenant Ministries
www.covenantministry.org

Yorgeys Cleaners
www.yorgeys.com

St. Mary's is the fourth oldest Catholic church in the original 13 colonies and has been a beacon of light for the City of Lancaster. EZSolution supports the technology needs of the church. Look beyond the handcrafted marble statuary, stained glass windows and carved altars, and you will find an organization where technology plays an important part in the daily business life of the church.

EZSolution was pleased to welcome St. Mary's Church last year as our first EZCare Managed Services client. Tina Skebon, Parish Administrator, was excited about the idea of a fixed fee for all computer services each month.

EZSolution monitors, maintains and manages St. Mary's computer network on a 24/7 basis under the Managed Services contract. Normal computer maintenance is performed remotely whenever possible, saving St. Mary's time and stress.

Susan is a native of Bethesda, Maryland and attended Ohio State University. She has extensive experience in sales and marketing, spending 23 years in outside sales to commercial and industrial businesses in Lancaster and Berks counties.

Susan joined EZSolution in late 2007 as a sales assistant, contacting prospective customers and scheduling appointments for Tom. Susan is active in her church and community. Her husband, Bernie, is an East Hempfield Township Supervisor and they are very active in local politics.

In her spare time, Susan enjoys reading, baking, music and dancing. Susan also loves the outdoors, especially when travelling the country with her husband … they recently took a long vacation in the west.

Favorite TV Show: Monk
Favorite Hobby: Exercising
Favorite Animal: Maltese Dogs
Favorite Music: Southern Rock
Favorite Sports Team: Eagles

You hear it all the time from us-back up your data, keep your virus protection current, and install and maintain a firewall to protect yourself from hackers and other online threats.

However, while these precautions will certainly help you avoid problems, they CAN'T do anything if you don't have a good backup and disaster recovery plan in place.

Are You A Sitting Duck?
We all know that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure; yet, disaster recovery planning often takes a distant second to the daily deadlines and pressures of running a business.

That means that most businesses, including your own, may end up offline and without your data after a simple lightening storm. Don't think that could ever happen to you? Consider this: "data-erasing disasters"can also take the form of office fires and broken water pipes, not just earthquakes, floods and tornadoes. If a fire started in your building, the parts that weren't burned beyond recovery could possibly have water damage from the firemen's efforts. But even more common is software corruption, hardware failures and human error!

Disaster Recovery Questions You Need to Answer
A disaster recovery plan doesn't have to be complicated, time-consuming or expensive. Start by asking yourself the following questions:

1. Do you back up your company's data daily to both an onsite and offsite location?
2. Are you absolutely certain that your backup copy is valid, complete and not corrupt? How do you know for sure?
3. If disaster strikes, HOW would you get your data back, and how long would it take? In many cases it takes days and often weeks; what would you do during that period of time?
4. Do you have copies of all the software licenses and discs in a safe location that could be accessed in the event of having to rebuild your server? Would you and your employees have a way to access your network remotely if you couldn't get to the office?
5. Do you store important passwords in a secure place that company officers can access if you are unavailable?
6. Do you have a UPS (uninterruptible power supply) device in place to keep your network and other critical data operations running during a power outage?

This is NOT a complete list, but it is a good start to get you thinking in the right direction.

Our FREE Disaster Recovery Plan Helps You Prepare
Because this is so important, we've decided to help our clients get their "IT house"in order by giving away a FREE Backup and Disaster Recovery Audit. At no charge or obligation, we'll come to your office, review your current plan (or lack of one!) and provide a simple action plan on what you need to do to make sure your business can always be up and running.

But take note! We can only make this available to our clients and friends during the month of April ... after that, the fee for this consultation will be $395. For more information, please contact our office at 291.0370 and ask for Rich or Jeff, or e-mail Jeff at jeff@ezsolution.com  

APRIL FOOLS!

When your referral becomes a client (and has spent $1000 or more) then we will pay you $50 more. And, we will give your referral $100 off their purchase.