Most of us spend the majority of our workday on a computer but a lot of us may not know the best way to maintain good visibility with your computer screen. Using your computer monitor improperly or under less than ideal conditions can cause chronic eye strain and fatigue which can put a real cramp in your workflow. When you're using your computer, try these tips to keep your eyes - and yourself - from working quite so hard:

• Check your monitor positioning. When sitting at your workstation naturally, your monitor(s) should be between 20 and 40 inches away from your eyes; it should also be between 5° and 20° below eye level. Having a display outside of this range can put unnecessary strain on your eyes.
• Use low contrast wallpapers. If your network policy allows it, change your wallpaper to a neutral plain color or lower contrast image that makes your desktop items easier to see. Having bright or vibrant wallpaper images makes icons and text harder to see.
• Use a comfortable resolution. The resolution of your screen is what makes the type or images that are visible seem larger or smaller. If you have to lean forward or back to clearly see the text on your screen, you probably need to adjust your resolution.
• Don't be afraid of zoom features. Most software programs like Word, Excel, and Outlook, alongside all web browsers (Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Firefox, etc...) have a built-in zoom feature to make text easer to see when reading or typing. Use the feature by holding down the [CTRL] or "control" key on your keyboard and moving the scroll wheel on your mouse (forward to zoom in, backward to zoom out).

Using these simple steps can keep your eyes healthy and can even make you more productive! If you need help using any of these features or have any questions about them, you can always call the Lasco Technical Support team to help you out!

We've all been aware of how prevalent credit card fraud is and there is countless information on how individuals can protect themselves. But, how does a business protect themselves from credit card thieves placing orders online or by phone? 

Many times a business cannot re-coup their losses. In many cases, the owner of the credit card is not liable for the purchase and the credit card company is not obligated to investigate. 

There are some safeguards a business can use to protect them against credit card fraud.

1.  Be sure to collect all the information from the credit card.
   1. Name of cardholder
   2. Full credit card number
   3. Complete address and phone number associated with card holder. This will allow you to use the address verification service which will compare the billing address supplied by the customer with the bank's current database.
   4. Make sure to get the 3 or 4 digit code. The code does not appear on any receipts so unless the user  has the physical card they will not be able to give this to you.
   5. Another option is to call the credit card issuing bank and request that they contact the customer to verify the charge.  According to Visa, using the card verification method can reduce chargebacks by as much as 26%.
2. Be careful about orders being shipped or billed to places other the card holders  billing address.
1. This can be a sign of fraudulent use, request phone numbers for both  addresses . With this information you can use a web site like "www.anywho.com", this integrates telephone numbers, maps and e-mail addresses to confirm if a billing address is legitimate or not.
3. Watch out for unusually large next-day orders. 
1. Orders of  non-typical size or a next day delivery at your business should always be a red flag, while not all these are fraudulent they are the most typically used. 
2. For International orders some countries especially developing nations, have a bad reputation for fraud. Experts actually advise against shipping any order internationally that have different "bill to" and "ship to" addresses.
4. Do everything possible to validate the order before shipping it.
1. When orders are not placed in person, anything you can do to prove the customer is the true credit card holder is beneficial.  One way, may  be to ask for a  fax of their drivers license. Most times the fraudulent users will not have this physical item  and therefore may give up.
5. Take immediate steps to reduce damage if fraud is discovered. 
1. First, call the police and report the crime. 
2. Then call the cardholders issuing bank and ask someone to make a courtesy call to the cardholder. Let the bank know you have the address where the charged product is being shipped.
3. When cardholder calls you, convince him or her to report the crime to the police in the city where the product was shipped. It may be possible for you to recover the stolen merchandise.

The last tip, and probably the most obvious, trust your instincts. If the caller does not seem confident in the information he or she is giving or you feel uncomfortable sending the merchandise, don't do it.  It may be better to lose an order than to risk giving it away.

Article submitted by: Sherri Sheldon, Bank Services Support - Item Processing/Check 21

Original article written by the NFIB Small Business Legal Center and posted online here: http://www.nfib.com/business-resources/business-resources-item?cmsid=29075