Ronald Pacchiano

Remote Desktop: A Complex Past Remote access and small business technology have evolved considerably since 2006 when I wrote an article called Better Living Through the Remote Desktop. The article discussed how to configure Windows XP Professional’s Remote Desktop feature; which let you access and control an office PC from a remote location, just as […]

If you’re looking for ways to cut costs on your day-to-day business operations, one way is to use free small business software as alternatives to the expensive software installed on your office PCs. Licensing software for use on your office systems can be very expensive; Windows 7 and Microsoft Office 2010 alone can cost more […]

The biggest challenge to keeping a small business computer secure, reliable and functional is the people who operate it. People are notorious for not following instructions, opening virus infected emails, browsing questionable websites and installing unauthorized software onto their systems. Resolving these issues can be challenging, time-consuming and, at times, expensive. These situations are challenging […]

Small Business Networks: Troubleshoot a Downed Internet Connection Whether you work from home on a single PC or you manage small business networks, chances are good that, at one time or another, you’ve opened a Web browser and instead of being greeted by Google you got “Page Not Found.” Fortunately, troubleshooting a downed Internet connection […]

Have you noticed that the 64-bit version of Windows 7 seems to have become the dominate offering by computer manufacturers? Small business computers with a 64-bit OS can now be equipped with six, 12 or even 16GB of memory. This is a big improvement over the 32-bit version of Windows 7, which has a maximum memory […]

The television show South Park once aired an episode where people woke up one morning to find that the Internet had disappeared. No one was able to get online. There was no email, no news feeds, no online shopping and no social networking. People panicked and chaos ensued. It was funny to watch, but the […]

Internet-based fax services offer a convenient way to send, receive and archive faxes, but they can also solve a big problem for any small business that relies on VoIP for its telecommunications. While VoIP can help your business save on phone bills and consolidate your business communications, it doesn’t always play well with fax machines. […]

Have you ever wondered if your employees are being as productive as they could be? According to IT research firm Gartner, non-work-related Internet surfing results in an estimated 40 percent productivity loss each year for American businesses. That’s not hard to believe. Between real-time news feeds, instant messaging, social networks, online gaming and video websites […]

Purchasing a router for your small business network is not the same as purchasing one for your home. While consumer routers have improved tremendously over the years, they’re not well-suited for the needs of small businesses, which have specific requirements. Odds are that the $39.99 router on sale at Best Buy isn’t up to the […]

Securing the small business computer systems is no trivial task, as there is a wide variety of threats to defend against. The majority of the threats we hear about are the flashy ones, such as a denial-of-service attack (DoS attack) against Amazon or eBay or a disastrous new virus wreaking havoc. Ironically, the most devastating […]

Losing a laptop, whether accidentally or by theft, is a traumatic event. But the pain of buying a new computer pales in the face of losing the data from an unprotected laptop. A few simple steps toward data protection can avoid an invasion of your privacy and the real likelihood of identity theft. Do you […]

As an IT consultant I work with a lot of small business owners. One thing that continues to surprise me is how many of them don’t use a server. Most of them run their entire business from a handful of desktop and/or laptop computers. Why? They all say their business isn’t big enough to justify […]