bob3160

Last night's remote presentation was for the Personal Computer Club of Toronto (PCCT) My audience was made up of viewers in Toronto Canada, Israel and,  California. My hats off to the viewer in Israel since the presentation started for him at 2:30 AM his time. It was 5:30 PM my time when we started the program which was separated into two parts with a Q&A session in the middle and a follow up Q&A session at the end. I was asked for a return engagement but the next presentation will cover a live demonstation of the ins and outs of the Free version of Avast. It was a very enjoyable evening.

Being totally surrounded by fog makes for a small world. https://photos.app.goo.gl/Xs01LqlixLCM2SAu1

Click here to see the selected pictures taken during the presentations of 2017  

Today I had the pleasure of addressing the members of SEMCO in Bloomfield Township, MI A long Q&A session followed the presentation including a hands on of the Avast UI and settings.

Nothing to do with Security. Everything to do with Enjoyment.

The latest Beta release from Avast Software

I encourage questions. Even during the presentation. Questions show interest. Questions show a willingness to learn and be involved. The Central Iowa Computer User Group (CIACUG) was the last of the groups who requested a presentation for Cyber Security Awareness Month . Since their meeting for October had already been booked, we settled on the Nov. date. In total, I remotely visited 16 Clubs for Cyber Security Awareness Month. We started in Moline Illinois and ended in Ankeny Iowa. I was as far east as Rochester NY and as far west as Newhall, California . That's a lot of miles to cover but, I never left my home on this long trip. Next month, I'll be traveling (remotely) to my neighbor to the north, Toronto, Canada .

At 1:00 PM Eastern Time, I had the pleasure of participating in the APCUG Fall Tech Conference. It was very gratifying to have 72 members from various clubs throughout the US attend my remote VTC presentation.

Unfortunately the Story Hour Room wasn't meant for Remote Stories or Presentations. We struggled for a while and then the ICON Computer Users group asked if I could wait while they moved to a different part of the Library that had better internet access. Since the cam on the computer that was used wasn't working, I have no video of the presentation. I was able to hear the club even if not clearly. The good thing was that the club had an excellent feed coming from my side and  had no problems watching the PowerPoint presentation and hear my narration after they moved. All's well that ends well. .

Before you install  Avast     (or any other Antivirus program) you first need to uninstall what’s currently installed on your system. This will make that process safe and easier.                            https://goo.gl/Gqi2JS (I've checked all the links and they all lead to the right place.)

An interesting evening with the Modesto PC Users Group . We had an interesting discussion prior to the Presentation. https://youtu.be/f9DcnGmVDro We also had a nice Q&A session after the presentation. Again, a big thanks to Avast Software for making this possible.

It was nice to the many of the faces from the ECOTU . I've been a member of this club for several years. (I guess I can count myself as one of the attendees.) https://youtu.be/w7E0YgwpxUM

Better Safe than Sorry!

The SVC Computer Club located in the Santa Clarita Valley in California, enjoys keeping up with technology. If you live in the era, this is a club worth joining and supporting.

As you can see, this was a very small group. The presentation was well received despite a few hiccups. Apparently the clubs laptop hadn't been used in a while. During the middle of the presentation, Windows decided to reboot to finish some need updates. Keeping your programs and Operating System updated is something I stress during the presentation. Once the updates finished, we were able to finish the presentation. All's well that ends well.

https://youtu.be/2UQEaGWr4YQ The remote Presentation to the Club , was followed by a very extensive Q&A Session. The video is only a very small excerpt from that Q&A session.

Last but certainly not the least of my three remote presentations yesterday was for the members and guests of the Twin Cities PC UG . I have to admit that doing 3 presentations in one day is a lot easier via Zoom than it is in person. Thanks Avast for making this possible.

Tuesday was a busy day. The Rochester Computer Society was my second of three stops for the day.

It's a bit strange to do a one sided presentation. They had no problem seeing and hearing me and seeing the presentation. I wasn't so lucky. The good thing is that my audience was still very happy to have received the remote Presentation.

Last night I had the pleasure of doing a presentation for the members of KEGS This was a smaller club ideally suited for a remote presentation. Monetarily, it isn't possible to do a live presentation for every club. Doing a remote presentation makes sense because expenses are minimal yet, the club receives virtually the same information and benefit. I've been very happy with ZOOM  to do these remote presentations.It just works.

Last night I had the privilege to do a Remote Presentation for the Members and Guests of the PCC in Hay, CA

Performing in the dark, Another nice crowd for last night's Zoom presentation sponsored by Avast Software The light was turned down low to make the screen more visible for the attendees at last night's presentation to the members and guests of the WAUC

Nice when you're told that there was standing room only. Wish I had been there. This was another remote (Zoom) presentation. We started out with a little malfunction Once they plugged in all of the connections, the problem was resolved. There was a 10 minute intermission before we started the Q&A session CCOKC is another club worth joining if you live in or close to Oklahoma City, OK If you're interested in the little glitch we had to overcome, take a look at this: Some pictures sent to me from the 10/5/2017 Remote Presentation  in Oklahoma City, OK   https://photos.app.goo.gl/uAHCvHr4TUgreP303

It was nice to see a full house last night for the Remote Presentation to the members and guests of the  Quad-Cities Computer Society Even the little glitch at the end didn't dampen any one's spirits. Apparently, the computer used by the club wasn't plugged in and ran out of power just before we  got to the end of the Q&A session that followed the presentation. I didn't know that till the club realized what had happened. After plugging in the power cord to the laptop, and reconnecting to the ZOOM link, we were able to complete the evening's event.

How do you make sense out of a Senseless Act?  You can't.  What you can do is to pray for all those affected.  You can say thank you to all of those who helped.  You can pray for unity.  The shooting that happened last night in Las Vegas was totally senseless and totally unpreventable.

https://youtu.be/h4ShthuJKrU A small excerpt from close to the beginning of my Remote Presentation for the members of the Computer Users Group of Redding, CA ( http://cugr.apcug.org/ ) If you live in the area, this is a great club to join.

It certainly didn’t take long: I wonder how many other will see the hack as an opportunity  to pedal their wares.

By now, you already know that I enjoy receiving my free Metformin via Blink Health ( https://www.blinkhealth.com/i/6SB2HB?utm_medium=c ) I fill my prescription at Smith’s ( https://www.smithsfoodanddrug.com/ ) where I accumulate point to get a reduction in the price of the gas I purchase. So I pay nothing for the Metformin and get a 50 point gas credit to boot. I’d call that Double Savings . It’s a great day. Hope yours is also.

Here is some detailed information on the recent vulnerability discovered and mitigated in Ccleaner.exe. Ccleaner is a very popular junk removal software. Ccleaner is a product of Piriform and Piriform was recently purchased by Avast Software. Here is the information just posted by Ondrej Vlcek the CTO of Avast: "I just had a chance to read this thread and I'm a bit horrified as I think that there's quite some misconception about what actually went on. First of all, the bottom line is: to the best of our knowledge, no harm was done to any CCleaner users as the threat was removed before it had a chance to fully activate. This is really not about downplaying the issue. This is a statement based on a pretty thorough analysis, partially shared below and partially still embargoed because of the ongoing investigation. Now, some facts: - Avast acquired a company (Piriform) which was in the process of being hacked. We have good evidence that the attack started at least seve...

See all of the photos https://photos.app.goo.gl/4Y7wKiSi4ZuATaSq1 Another enjoyable presentation for the members and guests of the Big Bear Computer Club . If you live anywhere close to Big Bear Lake CA, this is a great club to get involved with. If you need help with your computer or smart devices, you can get FREE help if you're a member.

A short excerpt, close to the end, of a Remote Presentation (Webinar) for the members of the ICON PC Users Group in Brentwood LI, NY https://youtu.be/BXXLvDifxkQ As you can see, webinars or remote presentations don't need to be boring. (It's still more fun to be there in person.)

https://blog.avast.com/equifax-website-hacked-now-what

https://photos.app.goo.gl/9bKZ8WOrUj4KaD0v1 The PCUG in Trumbull was a very lively and involved club that asked a lot of questions both during the presentation and during the Q&A session that followed the presentation. If you live in the area, it's a club worth joining.

https://goo.gl/photos/L4ecqGx6y5VYeSmw6 Last night I had the pleasure of doing a presentation for the BCUG members in Middletown, NJ. The presentation was well received and I was asked many questions during the presentation and at the Q&A session that followed.

https://goo.gl/photos/1jt5v6mKSFxgcneW8

Some of you may even know what this is. Most probably don't. This includes  records  ( the music kind not data.) from  1898 through the 1950's (before many on here were even dreamt of. ) If you're interested you'll find more information and digitized recordings  of the original records at  https://twitter.com/great78project ENJOY !

If you still aren't saving money on your subscriptions using Blink Health, https://www.blinkhealth.com/a/BHFAN340 , what are you waiting for ??? I've already put it to good use on those items my insurance company doesn't cover. Stop Overpaying for Your Prescriptions! Stop overpaying for your prescriptions! I just saved with Blink Health and you can too. Plus get an extra $20 off. BLINKHEALTH.COM

An old scam that's still very much alive. For me, it's the second attempt. https://blog.avast.com/2015/ 09/24/got-an-aging-parent- tell-them-about-the- grandparent-scam/ This time it started off as "Hello Grandpa". Since I didn't recognize the voice, I asked: "Who is this."  He simply said: "don't you recognize me, it's your oldest Grandson." My reply was very simple: "Sorry, I didn't recognize your voice. What's my oldest Grandsons name?" There was a slight pause and next, I heard the dial tone.  The scammer obviously knew the scam wasn't going to work. This is one of those scams that tugs at your heart strings since it's coming from "family" so you need to be extra careful.  Especially when you don't recognize the voice or, the speech mannerism isn't what you usually hear from the relative that's supposedly on the other end of that phone line. My phone call came from the f...

As popular as it is on the cybercrime circuit, ransomware is not bulletproof. You can outsmart it, with these 4 anti-ransomware practices: Our first, most basic advice is the strongest: keep backups . If you have workable versions of what cybercriminals have “kidnapped,” they have no power over you. Always keep your operating systems and program software updated so you have the latest protections, and install a strong antivirus system that includes ransomware protection. If your files do get infected, don’t lose hope: instead, search through the many free decryption tools available online to see if someone has developed a way for you to free your encrypted files. Good guys release decryption tools just as often as bad guys launch encryption attacks. And while you may be tempted, don’t pay the ransom . Paying does not guarantee your files’ safe return. Once they have your money, the cybercriminals may decide to just leave your files encrypted. Paying also motivates them to strike agai...

Heat, the greatest killer of all electronic equipment. Even my laptop gets some help with keeping it cool. They don’t have to be expensive. Here are some examples

Striving for excellence is an ongoing project that never ends. Achieving that goal reaps it’s own rewards. Avast and AVG: The only free antivirus to score 100% in AV-Comparatives Real-World Test

Watch a live map at: https://intel.malwaretech.com/pewpew.html Avast ( https://www.avast.com/ ) protects you against this outbreak. More information here: https://blog.avast.com/ransomware-that-infected-telefonica-and-nhs-hospitals-is-spreading-aggressively-with-over-50000-attacks-so-far-today

If you didn't know what's special about today , now you do. That makes today a great day to start using the free Password Manager that comes with the Free version of Avast Antivirus . ( https://www.avast.com/f-password-manager ) Remember, it isn't safe to use one password to protect everything that needs password protection, even if that password is a strong password. Be smart, stay safe, be free.

https://youtu.be/bqY410346Ek

Today Alice and I together with our friends Darryl and Liz attended the Baylor Medical Center 30th Annual Transplant Reunion in Dallas Texas: https://goo.gl/photos/mjC2HMrUjEkNEUNF8 https://goo.gl/photos/2rQ1KetS4zh9LYJu9

Happy Easter to all that celebrate this very important holiday. It happens to be a very special Holiday in my household. 11 years ago today, we received the great and lifesaving news of my wife's impending liver transplant. The transplant occurred on 4/17/2006 If you aren't yet an Organ Donor, Monday might be a very good day to become a life giver after your own life ends.

https://goo.gl/photos/ZkdRTJpsu2pWkQqd9