CIO Solutions
October 2014 - Issue 46            
Find It Fast
CIO in the News: Security Updates
Costumes & Cauldrons Party on Oct. 23!
Check with the Tech: Fixing Damaged Cables with Sugru
App of the Month: Popout for Youtube
Employee Spotlight: Joe King

 

Quicklinks

CIO Logo 

CIO Logo  

                  

CIO Solutions  

Website
       
Follow us on Twitter

 

 
Join Our Mailing List!   

 

 

Birthdays

 

Day Nguyen - Oct. 27

 

 

 

CIO Anniversaries

 

Julie Mendoza -20 yrs- 10/6

David Ashamalla-6 yrs- 10/1

Ryan Popke -6 yrs- 10/13

Hugh Hollis -1yr- 10/14

Kelsey Kerrigan -1yr- 10/21

 

 

 

 

 

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

 

 

 

Techies Day

October 3rd

 

 

Happy Halloween!

October 31st

  
CIO Solutions is Keeping You Safe

   

 

If you scan the headlines on a regular basis it's easy to come to the conclusion that all the news is bad, and maybe even getting worse. We're regularly bombarded with news of security breaches, and it seems that as our technology advances our level of vulnerability increases. This may be true, however, each advance also grants us new opportunities for growth and innovation.  

 

At CIO we're committed to guiding our clients toward these advances, and guarding against the vulnerabilities. It is our job to keep our clients innovating and benefitting from all that technology has to offer while also keeping you safe and informed. In addition to being the frontline of security, we are passionate about fostering an educated user community through great customer service and collaboration.

      

If something in these troubling headlines piques your worry or interest do not hesitate to call, or email in to ask about it, we're always happy to talk to you. Please join us for Cauldrons and Costumes on October 23, as happy as we are talk to our clients on the phone we're even happier to see you in person, shake your hand, and thank you for letting us be a part of your business.

 

 

Cheers,
John Petote

CEO, CIO Solutions 

CIO in the News: Security Updates

 

Read All About It!

CIO Solutions, Santa Barbara's leading IT firm is committed to keeping our clients safe and secure amidst security exploits, and viruses

 

  

 

This fall, CIO has successfully helped clients recover from the Cryptolocker virus. Thanks to an experienced team and a commitment to dynamic preparedness we have protected our client's businesses.

      

We have also stayed ahead of security exploits such as Shellshock and Heartbleed. Security exploits take advantage of a vulnerability in existing software, and they can be difficult for some teams to detect. Once found, it is crucial to patch and update the software to resolve the vulnerability. Our strategy with these exploits is to research, react, and resolve. 

      

Our CTO David Ashamalla, and the rest of our NOC (Network Operation Center) team keep abreast of the latest security news. Knowledge is half the battle and the CIO team is committed to growing our knowledge and keeping our clients safe. Ashamalla explains, "At CIO, we guard our customer's data, as if it were our own. We do this with a combination of smart people, the right processes, and well-chosen techno-logy.Exploits these days are more sophisticated than ever, and move faster than ever before. In the event attempts to hold your data for ransom, our backup solutions have enabled our customers to recovery quickly, with minimal business interruption."

 

CIO Solutions has been providing IT management and design services to the Central Coast since 1986. CIO specializes in helping businesses focus on their core business by designing and managing their IT department. In addition to managing IT networks, CIO also provides consultation on Private Cloud Services, Enterprise Storage, Virtualization, VoIP Phone Systems and other solutions.


michelle

 

 

Marketing Contact: 

Michelle P. Baca
805-692-6700 x349

 

  

 

 Coming Soon! Client Appreciation Event! 

 

Wednesday, Oct. 23rd at 6pm 

Costumes and Cauldrons

Client Appreciation Party!

 

Get ready for CIO's Spooktacular Fall Client Appreciation Event. Dust off your best costume, and come join us for a night of tasty concoctions from our bubbling cauldrons. Come in your best costume to compete for a $100 gift card in our Costume Contest. Enjoy soups made by CIO employees and vote for your favorite. Hope to see you there! 

 

RSVP here for you and your guest! 

 

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

 

 

 

Office Administrator:

Lia Nicole Moniz

805-692-6700 x106

 [email protected] 

Check with the Tech: Fixing Damaged Cables with Sugru
Check with the Tech 

For those of you who've never heard of it, Sugru is one of the greatest DIY/Tech improvement products that has popped up over the last few years. It's a silicone modeling clay that has more uses that you can imagine, think play-doh, but it is heat (and cold) resistant, waterproof and sticks to pretty much everything.

 

 

 

 

Background

 

Sugru was the result of a college project by Jane Ni Dhulchaointigh (I can advise on pronunciation for anyone who's interested) which morphed into a Kickstarter campaign. Sugru, much like Jane's surname is Irish (Gaelic) and Sugru comes from the Irish word sugradh which means play. *Apart from sharing Nationality I have no connection with Jane or Sugru.

 

Uses

   

There are hundreds of uses for Sugru with new ones popping up all the time (seriously, check out their homepage) for the purpose of this article I'll just be covering cable repair. The one odd little thing about Sugru is that it lasts longest if it's kept in the refrigerator, if the packs are left at room temp they tend to go hard after about 5 months. They last up to 18 months if kept in the refrigerator.

 

Cable repair/ damage prevention

     

One of the most common things I use Sugru for is repairing frayed or damaged cables. Laptop power bricks are a regular one, when the cables become frayed from users winding them round the power brick. USB cables are another one, iphone cables, proprietary dongles, damaged flash drives all fixable.

 

It should be noted at this point that all the cables/devices should actually be functional before you tackle them with Sugru (if your power cable is cut in half, Sugru probably won't be much help).

      

If you have cables that are going to be used frequently then using Sugru preventatively is an excellent idea. Reinforcing cables that are expected to be used frequently will significantly increase their lifespan.

 

Below is a regular example of a frayed cable.

  

  

  

  

It still works, but obviously its future doesn't look to hot.

      

You just grab a pack of Sugru, open it up, slap it onto the cord, shape it how you want it and that's it. It really is that simple. You can smooth down the surface of the newly molded Sugru by using a cloth dampened with soapy water and it will give it a shiny glossy type finish but personally I've never found this necessary.

 

Once you've done all your molding and shaping you'll have something that looks like this:

 

You leave it to set (I generally leave it overnight) and then you're all set. That's all there is to it.

 

Here are a few different cables that have been given the Sugru treatment: 




Tiny SD card readers which are too small to grip?
Sugru grips!
Reinforced cables and phones (or hard drive) bumpers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Project Engineer

Joe King

 

App of the Month: Popout for Youtube

 

This month's app is actually an Extension for use with the Google Chrome Browser. It was designed by local software developer Justin Force, who works as a Senior Software developer at Appfolio, neighbors of ours in the Castilian Office Park. Justin is also the partner of Michelle Baca, CIO's Service Coordinator.  
     
Initially conceived as a way to solve his own problem watching You Tube videos in Chrome, once published in the Google Store Justin's extension quickly spawned an international base that currently numbers over 40,000.

 

      

If you enjoy watching YouTube videos, and have ever wished you could watch the video in its own resizable window without the distraction of the rest of the YouTube site, then this extension is for you. Here's a video that demos an older version, but it still works the same.

     

Install the Popout for YouTube Google Chrome extension and you can pop any YouTube video out of YouTube and into its own resizable window!

  

Send your favorite free app to [email protected] and it may find its way into our newsletter!

Employee Spotlight: Joe King, Project Engineer

 
Full name:
Joseph Michael King
 

 

Family info: 

Married to Tara & have 1 daughter, Molly (2 �)

  

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in a small town called Athy, in Country Kildare Ireland (about 60 miles from Dublin)

 

When did you move to Santa Barbara?

September 2014, I've been coming here since 2008 as my wife was born and raised here.

 

What you like best about the Santa Barbara area:
The weather is a pleasant change for someone who grew up in near constant rain!

 

When did you start working at CIO: 

September 2014

 

What you like best about working at CIO:

The people, if you don't like the people you work with then you need a new job. 

Dreams/Aspirations:

Just for me and my family to always be happy and healthy.

 

What would you do if you won the lottery:

Maybe take some time out to finish my dive certifications, travel more I'd love to travel to Asia and South America.

 

Favorite color: 

Blue 

 

Favorite food: 

Steak & potatoes with extra steak! 

 

Favorite book/movie: 

Any rugby related book or biography / The wind that shakes the barley.
  

Anything else that is interesting about yourself:

Before working in IT, I worked in the family construction business as a carpenter. I also enjoy keeping and growing marine coral.
CIO Solutions does not knowingly participate in SPAM. If you wish to be removed from this list, please follow the link below and you will be taken off this list. Thank you for your interest in our
e-Newsletter. 
Share