Logo-small1 Tobin Solutions Newsletter
We guarantee your best technology experience!
November 2010
Establishing Password Guidelines
Strengthen Passwords for Better Security
Meet the Tobin Staff...Jeremy Cherny
Outlook Tip: Delay Delivery of Email
Quick Links
Sevice Assistance
 Tobin Helpdesk
or call
414-443-9999

Join our 
 Mailing List
pencil-join
 
 Feel free to share this newsletter with friends and associates 
Forward to a Friend
Tobin Solutions provides a full line of computer support and management services 
Logo-small1
Managed Services
Software/Hardware Sales
Networks
Onsite & Remote Support
System Monitoring
Virus Protection
Spam Blocking 
Remote Servers
Web & FTP Hosting
Training
Disaster Planning & Recovery 
Contact us for more information
  Tobin Solutions Newsletter 
mouse
Our newsletters goal is to provide information about emerging
 technology, present money-saving and efficiency-improving ideas, and offer tips that will help you get more from your computers.
 For topic sugestions and feedback, please send an e-mail to:
Topic Suggestions
Tobin's Holiday Hours 
Tobin Solutions office will be be closed on the following Holidays: 
         - Thanksgiving Day        - November 25
          - December 24             - December 31

Emergency support will be available by e-mail to the helpdesk or by calling the helpdesk at 414-443-9999.

Establishing Password Guidelines 

Security policies that include password requirements for networks and web sites should be developed by business management.

 

Once a policy is set, it may be enforced by setting up rules on the servers. Be sure to weigh the need for security against the inconveniences caused by stringent rules.  Begin by creating a list of user guidelines that spell out expectations such as "users will not share passwords with others."

 

Network and Web site administrators can change settings so users are required to create safer passwords, change passwords according to a regular schedule, and follow other good practices.

 

Settings may also:

 

Require a minimum password length of 8 or more characters

 

� Require a combination of characters, letters, and numbers

 

� Set an expiration age

 

Prevent re-use of passwords

 

Lock out a user after a specific number of failed login attempts

 

Always consider carefully who should have access to the administrator account that allows server settings to be changed.

 

The next article explains how to create strong passwords.
 
Strengthen Passwords for Better Security 

security_lockIt's surprisingly easy for hackers and password-cracking applications to guess passwords that are not well designed. Strong passwords help prevent malicious users from accessing your personal or business information.

 

What makes a good password?

 

* Generally, the easier a password is to remember the less secure it is.

 

* Longer passwords are better (8 characters minimum, but try for 12 to 14).

 

* Complex, seemingly random passwords are hard to guess.

 

* Combinations of upper and lower case letters mixed with numerals and keyboard characters, such as ~{}[]-, make the strongest passwords.

 

Ways to strengthen passwords

 

* Substitute characters for letters.  For example, 3 for E, $ for S, @ for a, and ! for i.

 

* Use phrases of at least 5 words-either type out the full phrase or use the first letter of each word in the phrase.  For example, "Four score and seven years ago our forefathers" becomes fsasyaof.  This is made more secure by replacing letters with symbols and numbers and capitalizing some letters to produce 4s&7YaO4. 

 

* Use the same core password for all logins, but customize it according to the site following a system. For example, use the first (or last) letter of the name of the site plus the number of characters in the site name. For a Hotmail account, add H7 (H for Hotmail, 7 because Hotmail is 7 letters long) to the base password to produce H74s&7YaO4.

 

* Create a password based on an imaginary keyboard pattern so you don't have to remember the characters of the password. For example,imagine a triangle using 7ukjhgy or 7uykgjh. Make every other letter a capital for extra security.

 

Password conventions to avoid

 

* Names: yours, a child's, a pet's or relative's, the city you live in, etc.

 

* Numbers: your phone number, birth date, license number, address, etc. or any of these associated with your spouse or children.

 

* Obvious sequences of numbers or letters.  For example, 123456, ABCDE, wxyz.

 

Good password habits

 

* Change passwords frequently, especially if they are short.

 

* Change passwords according to a schedule. For example, change your passwords on the second Tuesday of every month.

 

To check the strength of your passwords, visit https://www.microsoft.com/protect/fraud/passwords/checker.aspx .

 

J. Cherny
Meet the Tobin Staff... 
Jeremy Cherny, Owner and President

Jeremy is a textbook example of an entrepreneur.  In 1982, as a 16-year-old high school student, he began working at a neighborhood computer store during the early days of PCs.  Soon he started his own side business, Computer Generations, which taught customers how to use the computers and software they purchased.

 

When a better-paying job at a shoe store appeared, he was thinking of taking it but his mother discouraged him saying, "Do you want to give up selling computers to touch smelly feet?"  He stayed at the computer store, continued his side business, and began working on a degree in Business and Management Information Services at UWM.

 

After graduation, he was hired by Firstar Bank as a developer but continued running Computer Generations on the side, expanding it to provide IT services to small businesses.  He changed the name to Systems Consulting Company, then Techno Spec, before settling on Tobin Solutions, which is based on his middle name.

 

In 1996, Jeremy decided to devote himself to developing his own business full time, left the bank, and set up shop on the dinning room table. Within two years, he hired his first employee and moved Tobin Solutions to the Milwaukee County Research Park.

 

Services and space have continued to expand, and Tobin Solutions now has a staff of 10 and over 75 clients, including accounting firms, insurance agencies, nonprofits, law firms, manufacturers, and other closely held small businesses.  Client IT needs are met by Tobin offerings such as network installations, a helpdesk with full remote support, training, Web hosting, and other computer hardware and software services.

 

Jeremy does have a life outside work with wife Sara and sons Joey, 7, and Michael, 4. He recently ran in the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon, posting a respectable time of 5.75 hours. Participating in activities with his sons such as camping and serving as Cub Scout Master keeps him well-grounded and balanced.

OUTLOOK TIP: Delay Delivery of E-mail

Delivery of an e-mail message created in Outlook may be set to occur in the future.

 

This might be of value if you want to send a message when you know you will be away from your computer.  If you use a POP3 mail account, Outlook must remain open until the mail is sent. On a network with an Exchange server, Outlook and the computer can both be closed.

 

To arrange to send a message at a later date and time, with the message open follow these steps:

 

1. In 2007 Select the Options tab and go to step 2. In 2003 click Options and go to step 3;

         

2.  Choose Delay Delivery in the More Options group;

         

3.  Under Delivery options, click the box in front of "Do not deliver before:";

 

4. Set the date and time for delivery; and

 

5.  Close the window. 

 

delay delivery

 

The message will be delivered on the date selected.

One caveat: The message will display in the receiver's In Box with the date it was created, not the date it was received. Depending on how the recipient sorts and displays mail, your delayed message might not be seen immediately.

We sincerely hope you appreciate our service as much as we appreciate your business!
Please mention Tobin Solutions to people who might benefit from our services. Or, let us know a potential client's name, and we'll make the contact. 
Let us know who could use our services  
The best compliment is a referral!