Google Assistant: New features unveiled
At this year’s South By Southwest (SXSW) conference in Austin, Google created a Google Assistant Fun House to display the many features of its AI assistant platform. Apart from the basic tasks it can perform on a smarthome, Google wanted to flaunt some of its unique uses, including a beer vending system and a sock sorter. But that’s not all that’s new with Assistant. Voice-powered motive You might think that the whole point of this spectacle is to show off their caliber as the world’s premier tech leader, but these geniuses actually have a plan brewing. They upgraded their Google Assistant primarily for developers and device makers who want to integrate voice commands onto their products. Brad Abrams, group product manager for Google Assistant platform, says their mission with this particular technology is to help people get their tasks done with the help of third-party devices and services. They wanted to start by making the syntax commands easy, so you can say “Hey Google, make me an Espresso.” instead of “Hey Google, ask [coffee machine brand] to make me an Espresso.” He explains that the digital world is advancing to a realm of ambient computing wherein your commands to Google are picked up by the nearest devices and executed by the most suitable one. Nagging commands Google Assistant already has the ability to notify users regarding daily news, traffic, and weather updates. This time around, the tech giant added more subscriptions, including daily fashion advice, horoscopes, factoids, and important events. Hearst Magazine is the first to offer the additional notifications, which they believe has increased user engagement. Audio choices (besides music) Google users who wanted to hear more natural sounds, like a crackling fireplace or heavy rain, could previously only listen to audio snippets with playback limits from third-party actions. Now, they can replay, resume, pause, and listen indefinitely. This is particularly beneficial for users who listen to news briefs, enjoy calming sounds, or meditate. Out of these new upgrades, none will have a huge effect on their own, yet together they could make Google Assistant more responsive to hardware brands and partners. These fun and unique Google Assistant features reflect the creativity this tech company always brings to the industry. Interested in spicing up your office space, too? Contact us today and we’ll discuss how you can take advantage of this feature-rich, voice-powered tech. Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
Make the most of Office 365
Maximizing your Office 365 investment is easier said than done. Sure, you use Outlook and SharePoint all the time, but there are loads of features you’re probably not using. If you’re looking for ways to make the most out of your Office 365 subscription, you’re in luck because that’s what we’re discussing today. SharePoint SharePoint is the “communication sites” platform for building an intranet where you can upload and manage content. It’s customizable, feature-rich, and ideal for organizations that need an online library of information. It’s a relatively new feature that allows you to add vibrant templates and visually appealing layouts to your company’s intranet, turning it into a highly dynamic and interactive page that staff will enjoy accessing for company announcements, to share updates, and more. Teams Microsoft Teams is an interactive workspace that lets users chat about specific projects. It’s a collaboration tool integrated with Office applications like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, so it’s an ideal alternative to SharePoint for employees who don’t need the latter’s more robust capabilities. Yammer Yammer is an easy-to-use social networking platform for companies where users can post status updates, create polls, and make announcements. It’s also useful for sharing and co-authoring documents and discussing content from SharePoint and Skype for Business. Much like Facebook, it allows users to join interest groups where they can interact with members similar to how Facebook Groups works. Planner Planner is Office 365’s work management application that lets you create, organize, and assign tasks, share files, and chat about ongoing projects. While its functions seem similar to Teams’, Planner’s main purpose is to organize tasks and provide users with a visible and transparent platform for coordinating work. It’s primarily a business tool whereas Teams is more of a communication tool. PowerApps PowerApps lets you build custom applications with a minimum amount of coding involved. Although there are similar app-building tools on the market, PowerApps is especially useful for Office 365 users because it seamlessly integrates with O365 apps, including SharePoint, for easy access to your data already stored in the Office environment. Flow Flow is an intuitive tool that has built-in templates you can use to automate various tasks. Things like tracking hours worked, saving files from one SharePoint account to another, and creating calendar events are streamlined by Flow. And like all the aforementioned apps, Flow allows you to create workflows using files from OneDrive or SharePoint. Whether you’re a new or a long-time Office 365 user, these programs and features are hiding in plain sight, and we’re here to help you explore and maximize them for your business. Call us today if you need expert recommendations for office productivity. Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
How to speed up Windows 10 updates
Keeping up with Windows 10 updates is absolutely critical if you want the latest features and security fixes on your computers. However, the updates can take hours, especially when a major new feature is being released. Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to speed things up. Why do updates take so long to install? Windows 10 updates take a while to complete because Microsoft is constantly adding larger files and features to them. For instance, the latest Fall Creators update, which made plenty of adjustments to Cortana, Photos, and Edge, can take upwards of four hours to install. And it takes even longer if you have a fragmented or nearly filled hard drive. In addition to the large files and numerous features included in Windows 10 updates, internet speed can significantly affect installation times. This is especially true if your network is being overburdened by multiple people downloading the update at the same time. If multiple downloads aren’t being attempted and you still experience slowness, then either some broken software components are preventing the installation from running smoothly, or apps and drivers that run upon startup are likely to blame. When you experience any of these issues, try the following: Free up storage space and defragment your hard drive Because many Windows 10 updates take up a lot of space in your hard drive, you need to leave enough room for them. This means deleting files and uninstalling software you no longer need. You’ll also want to defragment your hard drive, a process that organizes data on your hard drive so it can read and write files faster. While this may sound complicated, it’s actually as easy as pressing the Windows button and typing Defragment and Optimize Drives. From there, just select the hard drive, click Analyze, and if the drive is more than 10% fragmented, press Optimize. Run Windows Update Troubleshooter If broken software components are causing installation problems, this tool might be able to fix the issue and decrease download and install times. Disable startup software Before your update begins, you should also disable third-party applications that can potentially cause disruptions. To do this, press the Windows button again and type msconfig. In the System Configuration Window, go to Services, click Hide all Microsoft services, then click Disable all. Afterwards, access Task Manager (press Ctrl + Alt + Delete) and disable any startup program that might interfere with updates like an Adobe app or printer software. Optimize your network Sometimes a faster connection is all you need. Consider switching to fiber optic cables or purchasing more bandwidth from your internet service provider. It’s also a good idea to use bandwidth management tools to make sure enough network resources are reserved for things like Windows 10 updates, not bandwidth hogs like Skype or YouTube. Schedule updates for low-traffic periods In some cases, however, you may have to accept the fact that certain updates do take a long time. So instead of installing them during the day, schedule them for after hours when you’re not using your computers. Simply go to Settings and specify when you prefer updates to be installed. If you need help with any of the tips above, we’re always here to help. Call us today to meet with our Windows specialists! Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
More leaks from Equifax breach
The Equifax breach in 2017 exposed the personal information of 145.5 million people in the US and some parts of the UK and Canada, but the number of victims keeps increasing. In the beginning of March, the credit-reporting company revealed that more personal information was leaked. Read on to find out more about this latest development. What happened? On March 1, Equifax reported that the names and driver’s license numbers of approximately 2.4 million Americans were stolen. According to the company, sensitive information like home addresses, home states, or the license issue and expiration dates were not leaked. Equifax said these breaches were discovered only recently because their forensic investigations primarily focused on stolen Social Security numbers. In response, the company said that anyone affected would be notified directly. They’re also now offering a security program designed to prevent identity theft and credit tampering. However, given the company’s poor track record, not many are willing to enroll. When the company first announced the breach in September last year, the tool used to check whether an account had been hacked didn’t work and came up with false positives. Fortunately, there are other things you can do to protect yourself. Monitor your credit Consider looking through your credit reports for any suspicious spending. If you spot any new accounts, loans, and other payments you don’t recognize, contact your credit card company to report fraudulent transactions. Check the dark web Compromised data is often sold to the highest bidder on the dark web, so most Equifax data can probably be found there. To see whether your personal information has indeed been compromised, sign up for dark web monitoring services. Then consult with a security professional to discuss your options. Place a credit freeze One way you can prevent hackers from opening credit cards and making payments in your name is to freeze your credit. When you implement this, anyone masquerading as you will be required to provide a PIN to unfreeze your account. Contact the credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) to activate this service. Set fraud alerts When you set a fraud alert, credit card companies and businesses must verify your identity before opening an account or making any payments. Together with a credit freeze, alerts will make it extremely difficult for hackers to steal your identity. Learn to identify phishing scams Because Equifax is notifying data breach victims directly through email, hackers could take this opportunity to send fake messages that direct users to dangerous websites. As such, knowing how to identify phishing scams (suspicious URL links, attachments, and spelling errors) is vital. Dealing with data breaches is a long and frustrating process, especially for businesses that just want to focus on growing their operations. So if you have any security concerns, call us today. We have the cybersecurity expertise to protect you. Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
Government agency finds way to unlock iPhones
Cellebrite, an Israel-based vendor that works with the U.S. government, has revealed that they’ve found a way to unlock practically every iPhone available on the market. It appears to be a significant milestone for law enforcement and forensic specialists, yet it’s also a potential privacy issue for Apple customers. iPhone vulnerabilities leaked, is it true? A couple years ago, Apple had a showdown with the FBI regarding data privacy, and this prompted them to develop exceptionally secure mobile devices. But Cellebrite has crashed the party, developing several methods to access iPhone operating systems, including the most recent version. The engineers are now promoting their methods to private forensics and law enforcement professionals around the world who would benefit from this new service. In fact, in November 2017, the Department of Homeland Security successfully raided data from the iPhone X, most likely through the use of Cellebrite technology. Secure your business at all costs To protect you from this potential security issue, here are a couple suggestions from tech experts: Patching mobile devices is a crucial step for both businesses and consumers. For devices that cannot be patched, you must retire it to prevent risks. Adopting a disaster recovery plan is vital. This way, you can limit how much damage a breached gadget can cause. Only time will tell whether Apple’s reputation and the iPhone’s security really has been weakened. Still, it doesn’t mean that you should hold off on protecting your business. Use this news to give your technology an overhaul, improve your business processes, and update your employees’ security training. Even with all the ingenious ways to hack into systems nowadays, you felt you could count on Apple to be one step ahead of everyone — but that might not be the case anymore. Ensure that your privacy is secure and your files are still safe by strengthening your usual security practices. But if that’s too technical for you, just give us a call and we’ll take care of it! Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
5 social media marketing tips
Nearly everyone uses social media. And whether you run a small- or medium-sized business (SMB) or multinational conglomerate, social media platforms are great for their broad audiences, low costs, and high returns. But without careful planning, marketing in these communities can do more harm than good. Here are five tips on how to use your social media effectively. #1. Choose the right platform Between Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn to choose from, you may be tempted to sign up for more social media accounts than you’re ready to manage. It may not seem like much at first, but you’d be surprised by how quickly you can be overwhelmed by statuses, commenting on existing posts, and answering inquiries on every platform, which is why it’s better to adopt only a few platforms that can effectively attract your target customers. Ask yourself these questions before deciding which platform to use: Who is my target customer and what channels do they use? What do I hope to gain by opening a social media account? What kind of content do I want to share and create? How much time can I devote to social media management? #2. Know when to update Are most of your customers online at 8am or 8pm? With a better understanding of your target users’ habits, you can schedule your posts so they create more traffic, increase brand engagement and, eventually, generate new leads and customers. Depending on which platform you choose to invest in, you should post a new update during these times for maximum engagement: Facebook: 1pm – 3pm on Thursday and Friday Twitter: 3pm – 8pm, Monday – Friday for B2B, & Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday for B2C organizations YouTube: 12pm – 3pm, Thursday – Sunday LinkedIn: 8am – 5pm, Monday – Friday #3. Use attractive, professional-looking visuals One of the simplest ways to get followers to share your posts is by uploading high-quality photos, videos, and reliable infographics along with your messages. Studies have shown that Facebook posts with images result in 39% more engagement while tweets with images or videos create 200% more engagement. #4. Engage with your followers It’s important for businesses to maintain a healthy back-and-forth on social media. This means beyond sharing useful content, you should also respond to their comments and private messages as quickly as possible. You can build stronger relationships with customers by writing thank you comments to anyone who shared positive experiences with your business, and by addressing negative comments with personalized and helpful responses. #5. Pump the brakes on promotional materials With social media becoming important tools for customers and businesses to connect and interact, it is important not to muddy the water with too many promotional posts. A rule of thumb for social media promotions is that 80% of your posts should be shareable and interactive content, while the remaining 20% should be about your business. This will result in more engagement, a more consistent brand image, and a healthier bottom line. Social media can help your business succeed, but only if it’s used correctly and effectively. If you’re interested in adopting the right social media platform to increase engagement and create a stronger brand reputation, contact us today and we’ll help you get started. Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
How to make Alexa your office assistant
Amazon’s Alexa has come a long way from performing basic functions like setting alarms, streaming music, and providing weather updates, to an all-around office assistant superstar. As Amazon continues to develop Alexa, businesses can expect to see her become more relevant in an office setting. Create and manage to-do and shopping lists You have meetings to attend and deadlines to meet. Alexa has a straightforward To-do List feature that helps you stay on top of all your tasks. It’s ideal for busy professionals who prefer a no-frills checklist that allows them to simply view completed items, or to edit or delete items on the list. You can also seamlessly sync third-party applications like Any.do and Todoist, which offer more features for organizing tasks, adding subtasks and folders, creating reminders, setting due dates, attaching files, and prioritizing items. To connect to a third-party app: Go to alexa.amazon.com or access the Alexa app Go to Settings > List, click Get Skill Click Enable Log in to authorize the app Alexa also has a default Shopping List that works exactly like the To-do List. It lets you add or delete items that can be browsed in the Amazon store and searched for in Bing. Reorder office supplies Ordering supplies on an Amazon smart home device is especially convenient because you would have already set up an Amazon account. When voice shopping with Alexa, you can either add items to your Amazon cart (“Alexa, add toner to my cart”) or directly order a single item (“Alexa, reorder toner”) without having to lift a finger. When you place an order, Alexa checks product availability, walks you through Amazon search results, and asks you to confirm or cancel the order. Voice shopping is enabled by default, but it can be disabled in Settings > Voice Purchasing in the Alexa app. Sync your calendars One of the best ways to maximize Alexa in the office is to sync it up with your calendars. You can view scheduled appointments, set meetings, or have Alexa read the day’s entries with simple commands like “Alexa, what time is my next meeting?” or “Alexa, when is the company barbecue?”. To add a calendar: Go to alexa.amazon.com or access the Alexa app Click Settings > Calendar Select a calendar from the available platforms: Google (Gmail and G Suite), Apple (iCloud), or Microsoft (Office 365 or Outlook) Log in to your account Set a timer A Pomodoro timer is a productivity enhancement tool that works by prescribing ideal work intervals and breaks. For example, you can set a timer that reminds you to take a 15-minute break for every hour worked, and setting this up in Alexa is easy. To set a single timer: Say “Alexa, set a work timer for 60 minutes.” After the work timer finishes, say “Alexa, set a break time for 15 minutes.” To set several timers at once, say: “Alexa, create a work timer for 60 minutes.” “Alexa, create a break timer for 15 minutes.” The commands we’ve included here work for simple instructions, but you can modify them and use tons of other Alexa commands to suit your purpose. If you need recommendations on how you can work smarter with AI and other productivity tools, get in touch with us today. Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
Google Drive improves comment feature
Google recently launched a new feature on Google Drive that will improve collaboration. Users can now use a combination of Microsoft Office and G Suite while working with their teammates and clients. This update allows them to conveniently comment on Office files, images, and PDFs in the ‘Preview’ pane of Drive. Learn how you can take advantage of this new feature. To reduce the hassles Google Drive allows your team to seamlessly share files in the cloud and work on the go. The tech giant knows that businesses require all types of tools and files to finish certain tasks and responsibilities efficiently. This is why they eliminated the stresses of converting a document into a G Suite equivalent file just to allow commenting. To ease your responsibilities Google decided to enable comments directly on Microsoft office documents, images, and PDFs without any need for conversion. This is particularly helpful when you’re working with another firm, negotiating a sales transaction with a supplier, or discussing a contract with a customer. In each case, you’d likely deal with different file formats. To improve collaboration The most recent update allows you to comment on various file formats in Google Drive, akin to how you do it in Google Docs. In Drive’s ‘Preview’ pane, you can assign tasks, mention colleagues, or add notes, and your team will be able to respond even if they don’t use G Suite. For instance, when one of your colleagues opens an MS Word document on a Windows computer, he or she will automatically see the comments you added and have the chance to respond to it. Commenting on the ‘Preview’ pane won’t require you to open other applications or browsers just to finish your task. Instead, you can just open documents in its preview form, provide feedback, and get back to work. Every now and then, Google releases new features on their host of tools and applications — and it’s always for your benefit. Make sure you take advantage of these upgrades by regularly updating your G Suite. If this sounds too technical for you, or you really don’t have enough time to stay up to date, don’t hesitate to give us a call. It is always our pleasure to help you reach your bottomline in any way that we can. Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
The importance of HTTPS
Very few internet users understand the meaning of the padlock icon in their web browser’s address bar. It represents HTTPS, a security feature that authenticates websites and protects the information users submit to them. Let’s go over some user-friendly HTTPS best practices to help you surf the web safely. HTTPS Encryption Older web protocols lack data encryption. When you visit a website that doesn’t use HTTPS, everything you type or click on that website is sent across the network in plain text. So, if your bank’s website doesn’t use the latest protocols, your login information can be intercepted by anyone with the right tools. HTTPS Certificates The second thing outdated web browsing lacks is publisher certificates. When you enter a web address into your browser, your computer uses an online directory to translate that text into numerical addresses (e.g., www.google.com = 8.8.8.8) then saves that information on your computer so it doesn’t need to check the online directory every time you visit a known website. The problem is, if your computer is hacked it could be tricked into directing www.google.com to 8.8.8.255, even if that’s a malicious website. Oftentimes, this strategy is implemented to send users to sites that look exactly like what they expected, but are actually false-front sites designed to trick you into providing your credentials. HTTPS created a new ecosystem of certificates that are issued by the online directories mentioned earlier. These certificates make it impossible for you to be redirected to a false-front website. What this means for daily browsing Most people hop from site to site too quickly to check each one for padlocks and certificates. Unfortunately, HTTPS is way too important to ignore. Here are a few things to consider when browsing: If your browser marks a website as “unsafe” do not click “proceed anyway” unless you are absolutely certain nothing private will be transmitted. There are web browser extensions that create encrypted connections to unencrypted websites (HTTPS Everywhere is great for Chrome and Firefox). HTTPS certificates don’t mean anything if you don’t recognize the company’s name. For example, goog1e.com (with the ‘l’ replaced with a one) could have a certificate, but that doesn’t mean it’s a trustworthy site. Avoiding sites that don’t use the HTTPS protocol is just one of many things you need to do to stay safe when browsing the internet. When you’re ready for IT support that handles the finer points of cybersecurity like safe web browsing, give our office a call. Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.
Android phones worth using for business
From Samsung to Huawei to HTC, there are plenty of Android smartphones available to consumers and businesses. But the choices get even more confusing as smartphone manufacturers release new models every year. That’s why Google compiled a list of devices to help you choose. Google-approved devices Recently, Google launched Android Enterprise Recommended to make it easier for businesses to find secure, cutting-edge devices they can confidently invest in. This program establishes minimum hardware, software, security, and user experience requirements for Android devices and services. For instance, mobile devices in the program must be able to deliver security updates within 90 days of Google releasing them, for at least three years. This is an important requirement because the Android OS tends to get a lot of unwanted attention from hackers due to its open-source nature and the thousands of unregulated apps available in its Google Play store. Beyond security, ‘enterprise-ready’ Android phones must have: The capacity to support Android 7.0 Nougat or higher (at least 2GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, and a 1.4 GHz processor) Zero-touch enrollment, which allows businesses to deploy devices with company configurations and policies already in place Seamless application experience across devices and accounts Google also announced that requirements will change for each new version of Android OS, and vendors will have to submit their devices to be validated every time. Of course, if any device doesn’t meet compliance (or falls out of it), Google will remove it or even its manufacturer from the program. What devices are recommended right now? So far, the program has 21 enterprise-ready smartphones, including: Google Pixel (Pixel XL, Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL) BlackBerry KEYone and Motion Huawei (Mate 10, Mate 10 Pro, P10, P10 Plus, P10 Lite, and P smart) Nokia 8 LG G6 and V30 Motorola X4 and Z2 Sony Xperia (XZ1, XZ1 Compact, XZ premium, XA2, and XA2 Ultra) Although it’s the leading Android smartphone vendor, Samsung was not included in the list. However, this was only the first fleet of devices that were validated, and more devices will be added to the list throughout the year, according to Google. So if you’re planning to implement remote work and bring your own device policies in the coming months, check the Android website regularly for new Google-approved devices. And if you need more advice about mobility solutions, contact us today. We have IT experts at your beck and call! Published with permission from TechAdvisory.org. Source.