Implemented properly, email can be a superb tool for businesses.  Incorrectly used, it can cause disastrous problems.  Let’s take a look at some ways email is good and bad; and how we can improve business and personal communication using email.

First, email is not a substitute for a phone call or personal meeting.  Email is impersonal and without careful attention to syntax, can cause ill-will.  All emails need to have a proper subject line; let the person know why you are sending them an email, it doesn’t have to be overly long.

Every email is not a high priority.  If each email you send is set to a high priority status, then it will be treated as if it came from the boy who cried wolf.  Save the use of high priority for those times when it is truly important the email be responded to promptly.

Write the email as if you are being graded, because you are.  While a person may not say what they are thinking, email with spelling errors, grammatical issues and other faux pas do register and are a representation of you.  Use upper and lower case letters where appropriate.  If the email is written in all lower case, it shows the person really doesn’t care.

Email is not instant messaging or texting.  In an email there is no 140 character restriction.  This seems to be a trait by those fairly new to the world of technology and communication.  Use of proper English is always apprectiated.

If it’s important, pick up the phone.  Many times a question can be answered or a resolution found by simply talking to the other person.  If emails keep going back and fourth like a tennis ball, be the adult in the room and call the other party.  Also if the discussion is of a sensitive nature, use the phone, it will be greatly enhance your image.

Stop before pressing the Send button.  Take some time to reflect on your message and make sure it will be interpreted in the manner you hope it to be.  If time is not of the essence, let the email sit in the draft folder overnight, as you may have a new perspective on it in the morning.

If you use Web based email in addition to a program like Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express, there are some additional steps you should incorporate into your email process.  When sending an email from the Web, use the CC to send the email to yourself.  This provides you with the ability to store the email in the proper Outlook folder when you get back to your desk. You could also move the sent emails from the sent folder.

Remember, an email may last forever!  Don’t put something in an email which may embarrass you or your company.  If you wouldn’t say in on the 6:00 news, don’t put it in an email.

This article was written by The Boss of HITman Services, a computer and IT company, based in Clifton Park and serving the Albany, Troy, Schenectady and Saratoga Counties of New York.

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While all current desktop versions of Windows are vulnerable, they are only susceptible to the vulnerability through Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.  Using other browsers in Windows does not open the computer up to an attack.

You can decrease your risks using browsers such as Firefox and combining it with the proper add-on software.  NoScript works very well as long as the user does not allow all code to be run from every Website.  If you are not familiar with the site, don’t allow scripts to run.

If you’re on the Internet, your computer can be hacked. While you may feel safe browsing the Internet in you pajamas in the safety of your home, you’re not.  It takes the proper tools along with an air of caution to minimize risks.

This article was written by The Boss of HITman Services, a computer and IT company serving the Albany, Troy, Schenectady and Saratoga Counties of New York.

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The body of the email looks legitimate as it has a privacy policy link at the bottom along with copyright information.  The colors are also correct.

As with other similar types of attacks, the perpetrator is attempting to get the recipient to click on one of the links embedded in the email.  Proper protocol states you should never click on a link in a email unless you have absolutely no doubts whatsoever, as to the legitimacy of the email.

If you receive an email from LinkedIn indicating you have pending messages, the best thing to do is log into your LinkedIn account and check.

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One way to put more time into your day is to turn downtime into productive time.  And technology can help us achieve this goal.

Whether you’re waiting for your car to be repaired, a plane flight or a doctor’s appointment, the following methods will put some extra time into your life, so let’s get started.

As far as equipment goes you will need to have a Smartphone.  This article will focus on using a Smartphone with either the Palm or Windows Mobile operating system.  The reason for this is the wide array of software available.  A PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) could be used to help with some of the tasks outlined below, but not all.

The second item is broadband access.  This can be either on a per KB basis or unlimited data.  Text messaging is also a worthwhile addition.

For software you will need a package similar to Documents To Go.  This software allows you to transfer documents and spreadsheets from your PC to your Smartphone.  Additionally you will need an email program.

Now that we have the basics covered, we can explore how the Smartphone can help to get more time out of the day.

Is there a book you’ve been trying to read for a while but just haven’t had the time?  Many books are now offered in electronic versions.  There “e-Books” can be downloaded onto a Smartphone and read whenever you have the time.  The following Websites offer books which can be downloaded: ebooks.com, ereader.com and manybooks.net.

Do you have a PVR (Personal Video Recorder) at home?  If so, with the proper hardware and wireless plan, you can catch up on the shows you have tapped.  You can even use this to schedule shows you would like to tape in the future.

Are there asks in your Smartphone which can be accomplished where you are?  Even if you are only able to add notes, this could help you move the task along.  This may be a good time to review all upcoming tasks.

Microsoft Word documents can be worked on and when you get back to the office the changes can be uploaded to your computer.  The same is true of spreadsheets, although the small screen size hampers much productive work with spreadsheets.

Review your calendar.  Did you make any noted from a previous meeting which you forgot to set as a task?  Reviewing your calendar at quiet times might create a new thought.

Texting gives you the ability to communicate with other while at the same time, not disturbing people around you and keeping the communication private.

There are just a few ways a Smartphone can help us.

The email comes from Mail Delivery and shows Subsystem Delivery Status Notification (Failure)

The email contains an attachment which holds the payload.  The attachment is called Forwarded Message.html

The body of the email message is as follows, (we substituted the email address):

Note: Forwarded message is attached.

This is an automatically generated Delivery Status Notification

THIS IS A WARNING MESSAGE ONLY.

Delivery to the following recipient has been delayed:

name@domain.com

Message will be retried for 2 more day(s)

If you get a message like this, delete it.

This business owner spends a substantial amount of time out of the office and communication with her staff is vitally important.

After listening for a while I suggested a solution  which would save her about 30 minutes per day.  I informed her the change would be seamless and would not require any additional technical time per month.

At first she didn’t want to increase her monthly costs and was reluctant to make the move.  When she realized it amounted to only a few dollars per day, she decided to go ahead.

I spoke with her recently and she is very happy with her decision.  While it hasn’t eliminated all her frustrations, it has dramatically reduced them.

We see a lot of computers come in to our Clifton Park computer repair center, loaded with spyware.  Many times it is from children or guests using the computer to surf the Web.

When the computers come in we strongly recommend that every password the user has get changed.  While this may be quite a bit of work, the ramifications for not doing so are great.  They include impersonation in social media sites, financial ID theft, money transfers and more.

If you find yourself in the position where your computer has been compromised, do not change the passwords from that computer.  Make sure you change them from a computer you know is safe.Preview

For more tips, please download our free security guides at HITmanServices.com.