Flash Drives -- Rugged Convenient Productivity Boosters by Samuel Mela
USB Flash Drives are arguably the handiest computer storage device ever invented. They are so small they can hang off a key chain or be embedded into an ink pen. Yet they can easily hold 2 gigabytes or more of data – roughly the equivalent of 1500 floppy disks. ... Flash Drives are also useful for ordinary tasks such as copying files between two computers in your home, or your computer and a friend's computer. ... If you don't know where the USB ports are on your computer, look in the manual, or any computer-savvy person can point them out to you.

Microsoft Windows Market Share Myths by Matthew Schwartz
Asking experts about Microsoft's market share will yield a variety of statistics, opinion, and debate. Common sense tells us that specific figures for user base size are accurate and informative. But below the surface of numbers and marketing is a more complex story. ... The majority of computer vendors who sell their hardware with software installed primarily distribute Microsoft Windows. ... It's been determined in federal court that Microsoft has used its desktop monopoly to arm-twist vendors into signing contracts requiring their sale of Microsoft software with their hardware.

Virus Liability Endorsement by Alexander Gordon
Businesses are relying more and more on computers, storing vital data in them and thereby becoming vulnerable trying to protect the data from being destroyed or lost forever. There are horror stories of companies closing due to critical, irreplaceable data loss due to various reasons. ... It should provide coverage for loss of data, replacement costs for hardware and software damaged by a computer virus or other malicious software; it also covers claims arising from damage as a result of hacking or unauthorized access to the system.

How DATA is LOST by Harald Anderson
Over 95% of the people and businesses that I speak with have experienced data loss. However the sad fact is that the majority of businesses are woefully unprepared and do not understand the serious risk of data loss. Do you have a disaster recovery plan? ... Much like damage done to your computer via various natural disasters, insurance may cover the physical hardware, but no policy will be able to save the information stored on your hard drive and other physical media. ... First, there are the obvious ways: Physical damage to the computer, such as fire or water damage, is one surefire...

Should A Computer Salesman Also Be A Technician? by Stephen Chapman
The job of a salesman is to sell something. Salesmen that are not skilled in the art of selling end up not making any sales. This is true whether the salesman is selling cars, white goods, or computers. Car salesmen are not required to be motor mechanics so why should we expect computer salesmen... A computer store often is a one or two person concern so if they were to employ a technician to fix the problems when they do arise then there are fewer people doing the selling, sales fall, and prices have to go up to compensate.

Data and MP3 Compression: Why Do We Compress? by Matthew Bredel
In the last article (Data and MP3 Compression: Understanding "Digital"), I explained what a "digital" signal is. Remember, data can be stored as raw, or "analog" signals (like cassette tapes, VHS, or records) or they may be digitized (converted into a series of 1's and 0's) which we can later... I remember about 7 years ago having to buy a big internal computer hardware card to fit inside my computer to watch DVD's from my new DVD-ROM. ... 2) Storage hardware has increased into the 100s of GB range in a very small package.

When Your Computer Fails: A Disaster Recovery Strategy for the Home-based Business by Pamela Bruce
If you are self-employed and work from home, you wear several hats, so to speak: you may be the marketing manager, accountant, receptionist or PR person. You are also your own technical support department and therefore responsible for safeguarding your data. ... These hard drives, which connect to your computer via the USB 2.0 or FireWire port (check which port your computer has) have fallen dramatically in price. ... The last thing you want to do is to hunt for these items while you are desperately trying to get your computer working again.

Computer Memory – A Vital Part of a PC by Paul MacIver
Any device that holds data for a computer for a short period of time is called computer memory. If you have spent even just a little time with any computer, you will hear about RAM, Hard Disks, or CD's and DVD's. All these are means to store the information from a computer. ... Cost: In earlier times, the cost of computer hardware was enormous, so whenever an upgrade was required, it was much cheaper to buy the parts and do an upgrade rather than to buy a new computer. ... Now the cost of hardware has gone down, and it is easier to replace the whole computer than to buy a few parts.

Four Basic Backup Steps by Buddy Shearer
"I have this cool backup tape drive in my new computer and a couple of tapes so I am all set!" That is true, you now have a level of protection that a lot of people do not have but are you going to do it right? Change the tapes regularly, replace them when their life runs out, clean the tape... If this is your home computer then think of a place where you can store it routinely. ... Store the tapes offsite. ... They are not indestructible and they should be cared for much like a volatile piece of hardware.

Data Backups – One Key to Business Survival by Rick Parrott
Your customer data is a precious resource that can literally be worth its weight in gold! If used properly, it can be mined over and over for additional sales and referrals. Do you use this gold mine to increase the profitability of your business? You should! ... Alternatives are to store your data backup on another computer on your network or copy it to a CD or DVD writable disk. ... Most data backups still use a tape drive to store the data. ... She had over five years of information on her computer when the hard drive decided to make her life interesting.