If you are looking for a free parental control software you might want to look into K9 Web Protection.   You can control your kids computer activity by limiting web sites they can visit (by category) as well as limiting times they are allowed to use computer.  You may download it here:
http://www1.k9webprotection.com/

If you need help installing or configuring it we will be happy to schedule a service call.

Sometimes its hard to memorize multiple passwords.  Password Agent can help you store passwords for all of your web sites and other sites.  Best of all if you need to save less than 25 passwords (per file) you can use it for free.  Download it at:

http://www.moonsoftware.com/pwagent.asp

If you ever wanted to save a page or an article as a PDF for later viewing or to send it to a friend (pages on the Internet can change at any time).  There is a free solution to your problem:

CutePDF - Create PDF for free, Free PDF Utilities, Edit PDF easily;.

This great little software package will allow you to print articles from the web or save your word excel documents in PDF form (useful if you are not using Office 2007 that has that functionality).  It works just like a printer.   To use it you will go to File->Print-> and choose CutePDF printer.

We recommend using Firefox for all of your Internet browsing needs.  Today we will talk about few extensions that would improve browsing, increase productivity and simplify your life.

1. Forecast Fox - http://forecastfox.mozdev.org/
   Provides weather Forecast at the bottom of your browser window.
2. Stumble Upon - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/138
   Helps you discover new and interesting web sites
3. Scrap Book - http://amb.vis.ne.jp/mozilla/scrapbook/
   Helps you save web pages and manage collection

Did you ever need to access your home or business computer when you were away on the business trip? 

Today we would like to share a tool that will help you do just that. 

Visit www.logmein.com and sign up for a free account.  After you download and install their software you will be able to access your computer from anywhere in the world (just make sure to leave your computer on).

Our computer hold a lot of important information, from bank records, financial information and documents to music libraries and digital pictures.  Most of us would be devastated if all of these information was lost, however only a fraction of computer users actually take time to back up their valuable information.  We’ve been at a lot of the service calls where all or some of the information was lost.

Restoration of you data can be a very expensive and its not always certain that you will be able to get all of your valuable information back.  The best way to protect yourself from loss of your valuable files is to back up your computer. 

When it comes to backing up your computer you have a lot of options.  We will discuss few of these options in this article:

• Backing up your files on CDs or DVDs.  -  Depending on the size of your data you will need to have a lot of them.  Remember that CD/DVD have a relatively short life span.  If you only have few files this might be the cheapest option.  You will also be able to store copies off site.
• Backing up files on external hard drive - This option will alow you to save a lot of information and with prices of external drives falling this might be a great option.  Please keep in mind that you might want to get more than one hard drive to protect yourself from possibility of fire damage.
• Online Storage -  This might be a good choice for offsite storage.  You need to make sure that your files are kept private when you a choosing a provider.  This type of storage will also require that you pay a monthly fee.

There many option of backing up your data.  Whichever method you choose please make sure that your data is safe.  If you need help with choosing or setting up backup solution please contact Iowa Computer Services for help.  We are always happy to help you in any way we can.