From shared hosting to dedicated server hosting, the fundamentals of how things operate are very similar in the webhosting world.  However, technology has improved so much in the last few years.  Hosting companies now offer low virtual private servers (VPS) and cloud hosting environments capable of scaling to the demands of a growing business.

What is cloud hosting?

Traditional hosting generally involves a single piece of hardware.  Whether it’s a windows web hosting environment or Linux, cloud hosting expands on the concept of virtual servers to provide access to multiple servers.  This guarantees the website owner access to the processing power, memory and bandwidth of any server within the cloud as the need arises.

How does this benefit a website owner?

As a company’s website becomes more popular, demands on limited server resources often causes a site to slowdown.  The more users, the more work the server hardware has to do to meet the demands.

There are times when a server sits idle, doing very little work.  There are times however, when sudden surges of web traffic can cause traditional servers to crash.

With your site located in a cloud hosting environment, as demand for resources increase for your website, your site can avail of other server resources in the cloud.  You site can potentially have access to all idle resources located in the cloud.  This allows your site to be scalable when the need arises.  It also allows your business to address expansion demands with minimal effort.

Ensuring your site is available means a more reliable user experience.  Happy customers mean more business!You’re probably thinking cloud hosting is expensive right?  Not really.

This is a demand service and you pay only for the resources you consume for your billing period.  It’s much like your electricity bill.  You only pay for what you use.  The cost of having unhappy customers telling their friends about your site not being available could be much larger from a reputation perspective.

What’s the drawback of cloud hosting?

Because your website is part of a cloud and not associated with a particular piece of physical hardware, many website owners become concerned about the security of their data.  This doesn’t mean other people in the cloud have access to your files.  You still have control over your own website and security measures are taken by the hosting company to protect the integrity of your site as if it were hosted in a traditional environment.

This does mean it is important for you to have a security strategy in place and fully understand the implications of using this type of hosting.  This is however, no different than any other form of website hosting.

What about the future of cloud hosting?

As more and more competitors jump into this market it has become one of the fastest growing segments of the IT industry.  It is clear this is the future for large organizations who want a guaranteed level of service and uptime.

Cloud hosting is the future.  It will allow you to scale your business as the need arises.

Why would you want to create a backup of your FaceBook?

With any thing you do with your computer, it is great to create a backup of the information you have.  Creating a backup of what you have stored on FaceBook is no different.

Many people use FaceBook as a place to store and share their photos and videos with their friends.  This is at times, the only copy.  Having a backup copy of what is on your FaceBook gives you access to these photos and videos on your own computer, not just on FaceBook.

What is included in a FaceBook Backup and is it created?

A backup of your FaceBook account will include the following:

• FaceBook profile information you have added
• FaceBook photos you have uploaded and shared
• FaceBook videos you have uploaded and shared
• All posts on your Wall
• All of your messages you have received on FaceBook
• All friends you have added on FaceBook
• Any other content you have shared on your FaceBook profile

All the information is included in a single backup file that you can download and open on your computer system.

To create a backup of your FaceBook account, you must use the tool built into the FaceBook service.

1. Login into your FaceBook account
2. Click on “Account” in the top right hand corner of the screen
3. Click on “Account Settings” in the drop down menu that appears

When the Account Settings screen appears, make sure you have the “Settings” tab selected.  Scroll down until you locate the section that reads “Download Your Information” and click on “Learn More”

This will cause the following screen to appear where you will click on “Download” to begin your FaceBook backup.

Once you click on this, you will be presented with a window telling you the FaceBook backup may take some time and you will have to click “Download” again to start the process.

One you have started the FaceBook process, you will receive the message indicating you will receive an email instructing you how to download the backup of your FaceBook account.

Be patient.  Some backups of large FaceBook profiles have taken many hours to complete.  Starting the backup of your FaceBook account does not affect you using FaceBook or your computer.  You can continue using both.  You do not have to leave your computer system turned on either for your backup to complete.

If you try to start another backup of your FaceBook account, you will receive a message telling you the backup of your FaceBook is pending.

Once the backup of your FaceBook account is completed, you will receive an email indicating the backup has completed.

When you click on the link to download the backup of your FaceBook account, you will be asked to provide your password to confirm you are who you say you are.

One you have provided the correct password, you can click “Download” to obtain your backup of your FaceBook account.

Once the backup of your FaceBook account is downloaded to your computer, you can browse the information you have put on the service.  Many people are surprised at the amount of things they have included on their FaceBook account once they start looking through the backup.

With most netbooks users have complained of small screens, minimal battery life and limited pre-installed software.  The new HP Mini 1103 addresses these pitfalls and offers Newfoundland users a netbook with a six-cell battery, full Corel Office Suite and a free, ad-supported Microsoft Office bundle.  Additionally, they’ve tossed in McAfee security suite to boot.

What users will notice is this isn’t the fastest nebook on the market and the Intel Atom N455 processor that’s included will at times appear sluggish but it still isn’t the slowest netbook out there.  However, the software included with the new Netbook HP Mini 1103 more than makes up for its sluggish performance.

The HP Mini 1103 has an estimated street price of $299 and will ship with a keyboard that is almost the size of a full sized keyboard, coming in at about 93% of the size.  The battery has a life of of over 5 hours, making it one of the best in this class of netbook.

Shipping with a 10.1 inch screen, 1 GB of memory, web cam, a 250 GB Hard Drive and Windows 7 starter, the HP Mini 1033 weighs only 2.8 pounds and offers a balance of performance and portability that is really hard to beat in the netbook market.

With a complete 1-Year warranty, the HP Mini 1103 makes this netbook attractive to any computer user.

Some of the security patches issued have been speculated to close security holes in Microsoft’s flagship operating system Windows 7.  It is thought these updates will help prevent hackers from exploiting the operating system in an upcoming Pwn2Own contest slated to begin in early March.

Of the 12 Microsoft Updates, three were considered Critical, Microsoft’s most serious threat level.  The remaining nine Microsoft updates are considered important.

One of the Microsoft security updates addresses zero-day vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer which was apparently being exploited already by hackers.

It is recommended that users use the Microsoft Update or Windows Update services as part of their operating systems to install the latest security updates.

According to Intel, the flaw in the support chip would have led to failures over time in connections to hard drives and DVDs.

With this recently discovered flaw, PC production will be affected worldwide, impacting production of more than 500 computer models.  Intel anticipates it will cost $1 Billion to correct the problem with the chip.

The problem is apparently in the silicon design of the chips themselves, meaning it will take Intel approximately 12 weeks to manufacture a fresh set of chips.

AMD has a similar technology and is now poised to take the lead in this arena.

All this hard disk storage does come with a catch.

The new drives will require users to switch to GUID Partition Tables (GPT) instead of the traditional Master Boot Record (MBR) based partition tables.  Traditional MBR partition tables allowed for a maximum partition size allowing 2.19TB of data, but the new Western Digital 3TB drive with GPT allows the partition size to go beyond this limitation.

People wanting to use the new Western Digital 3TB Cavier drive using 32-bit Windows XP operating systems will require a piece of software – Paragon GPT Loader – which is included free to earlier adopters of this new 3TB hard drive.

Additionally, users wanting to install the largest hard disk drive in their computer systems will find that not all software applications can use GPT but again, Western Digital has come up with a workaround – a HighPoint Rocket 620 half-height SATA card that it ships with its new 3TB hard drive.  This card handles the emulation (if needed) and allows software to work with their new 3TB hard drive.

With the Western Digital 3TB Cavier drive expected to cost around $230 retail, you can pick up two Western Digital 2TB drives for approximately $180 retail.

Watch for Western Digital’s 3TB drive to begin shipping and for the price to drop as the drive becomes more mainstream.

With that being said, there are several large scale full service IT companies operating in Newfoundland.  These companies offer a range of IT services from system integration, application development, IT consulting services as well as computer sales and service.  Many employ a variety of personnel with software and hardware experience, certified in network design and implementation and capable of handling any IT needs.

The bulk of the full service IT companies in Newfoundland are located in St. John’s on the Avalon Peninsula.  Companies such as X-Wave Solutions, Compusult, and InfoTech Solutions have managed clients throughout the province and have also established a national and international IT presence.  Such information technology companies in Newfoundland have formed partnerships with large manufacturers such as IBM, Dell and Hewlett-Packard, allowing them to access to the system integration and expertise from within those companies as well.

Due to the nature of these IT businesses, the hourly charges for service are typically higher than what a “computer company” would charge.  However, what a customer is buying is much more than the expertise, they are buying access to the entire infrastructure and service mechanisms built into these larger IT companies.  It usually means customers have access to many added-value services as well.

If it is a full service Newfoundland IT company you are seeking there are many than can meet all your needs.  Just remember these are not your typical “computer stores” and do more than simply sell computers.

Offering a variety of computer hardware, computer software and computer accessories to Labrador West, Ken-Tech promotes service and places service on the same level as their technical knowledge.

As authorized agents for Bell Aliant DSL and Satellite Internet services, Ken-Tech Computers has access to technology to get you connected whether in an area serviced by traditional internet or a remote location of Labrador.  With trained computer technicians on staff, Ken-Tech Computers is well equipped to ensure your computers are working when needed.

Ken-Tech Computers, Labrador West’s computer support specialists.

When it comes to selecting a web hosting company price is important but one should never sacrifice reliability to get a better deal.  One of the more common questions many small businesses in Newfoundland ask is “How much is it going to cost?” when exploring their options for building a website and establishing an online presence.

A better question to ask is “How much is it going to cost if my web site is not available because my web host is not reliable?”

Dollar cost is a factor that should fall towards the bottom of the list especially when it comes to web hosting.  The impacts appearance for a business can be huge, especially if there’s constant website outages because of a less than reliable web hosting.

Reliable web hosting companies should provide a balance of features, disk space, bandwidth and availability, all backed by reliable and available support.  Look for safeguards such as backups and network redundancy with the ability to have phone support when necessary supplemented by online chat support.

Any reliable web hosting company would have a backup regiment.  Backups are a critical part of any web hosting and if your web host is reliable, it should provide a combination of daily and weekly backups.  Your web host should also provide you with an option to perform your own backups.  Never trust the safety of your online data and the operation of your online business entirely to your web host no matter how reliable you see them.

There are many options available for the small Newfoundland business when it comes to finding reliable web hosting services.  Companies like Newfoundland’s Affordable Hosting located in Corner Brook, NL provides feature rich and reliable hosting packages at affordable rates.  They keep customer to server ratio at a minimum meaning you site will be available when your customers come visiting.

Explore the options in your local area and use the simple guidelines above when choosing a reliable web hosting provider here in Newfoundland.

Formed in 2006, Iglutek Computers Inc grew from the merger of three previously existing companies operating in the Labrador region.  Northland Computers Inc, Iglutek Limited Partnership and Iglutek Information Technlogy System Inc combined forces to become a leader in the Labrador IT community.

One of the few full service computer companies in the Labrador region, Iglutek Computers provides service and support for all levels of computer users from the personal user to small business.  Offering a combination of computer hardware sales and software sales, Iglutek Computers provides tailored services.

Some of the services offered through this Labrador computer company include

• On-site or Depot repairs & service
• Computer Network Setup
• wireless Networking Services
• Virus & Malware Removal Services
• Disaster Recovery Planning

Locally owned and operated, Iglutek Computers Inc strives to deliver the best possible service of any Labrador computer company.