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FormaTech IT Services Blog

FormaTech IT Services has been serving the Napa area since 2001, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

Sam is co-founder and COO of FormaTech IT Services, he's been into computers since he was knee high. Current IT interests include Security and Mobile Tech.

Are Smartphones Getting Any Smarter? Not Really.

Are Smartphones Getting Any Smarter? Not Really.

Have you noticed that the difference between this year’s latest and greatest smartphone isn’t much different than the one you shelled out big bucks for last year? You aren’t alone.

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Tip of the Week: Adding a Watermark to a Word Document

Tip of the Week: Adding a Watermark to a Word Document

If you need to make something very clear about a document, adding a watermark to it is an excellent route to take. Microsoft Word 2016 (if you have Office 365, this applies too) makes it especially easy to do so. For this week’s tip, we’ll review the process of adding a watermark to your Word documents.

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The Nigelthorn Malware is a Lot Less Friendly than its Namesake

The Nigelthorn Malware is a Lot Less Friendly than its Namesake

You can never be too careful about what you install on your computers. In this most recent example, Google Chrome users are finding themselves targeted by a new type of malware called Nigelthorn.

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Businesses Thrive with Dedicated Proactive Maintenance

Businesses Thrive with Dedicated Proactive Maintenance

Managed IT service is a great way for the small business to save money on their IT support costs while still getting the coverage they need. One of the ways that an MSP is able to keep their costs down is by proactive maintenance. If an MSP had to fix every computer problem a company had after it became a problem, the service would largely be untenable for the small business. Today, we look at the proactive maintenance feature of our IT management strategy and how our clients save a lot of money as a result.

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Intro to Your Tech: Plug-In

Intro to Your Tech: Plug-In

Ahh, the Internet. It’s an incredible tool that helps people all over the world get work done on a daily basis. It’s often thought of as a tool to achieve a means, but like any other tool, it works best alongside others just like it. Plug-ins are additional ways that web-based applications and software solutions help make your use of them even better.

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Smartphones Are at the Center of the Internet of Things

Smartphones Are at the Center of the Internet of Things

The Internet of Things can be used to create a lot of opportunity for your organization, but there are considerable risks that your business can’t forget about, no matter how tempting it is to take advantage of them. Even though security remains a prime concern for businesses, it’s clear that the Internet of Things isn’t going anywhere. Therefore, you might as well embrace it, or at least prepare for it.

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Your Network is at Threat from the Inside, Too

Your Network is at Threat from the Inside, Too

It’s no secret that a business’ security is one of its most important considerations. It would seem that there is a daily reminder of this unfortunate fact - but it’s even more unfortunate that many people aren’t aware of where many threats can actually come from. Below, we’ll discuss how some threats start on the inside - as well as what you can do to help stop them.

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Tip of the Week: How to Manage Your Network Profiles

Tip of the Week: How to Manage Your Network Profiles

Your Windows computer has all kinds of different settings that let it connect to different networks. While this might not seem like major difference, it could have a drastic effect on your organization’s cybersecurity. This week’s tip is dedicated to helping you make sure that your network profile is as secure as possible.

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How Alexa Can Become Your Most Valuable Employee

How Alexa Can Become Your Most Valuable Employee

An assistant has long been a greatly desired resource in the office setting. Typically, assistants do all the “grunt work” that the executives don’t have time for. Executives have long relied on a steadfast helper to make their professional lives easier, but capital for additional help may not be there. To counter this, small business owners are now using devices like Amazon’s Alexa to help them manage their busy schedules. You can too! Here’s how.

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Stress Makes Your Employees and Business Suffer

Stress Makes Your Employees and Business Suffer

While the hope is that the office will be a haven of productivity and collaboration, it is also a prime breeding ground for huge amounts of stress. While different people may react differently to stress, it ultimately will hold a business back if left unchecked. In this blog, we’ll explore different kinds of stress, and how you can reduce it in your business.

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Intro to Your Tech: Protocol

Intro to Your Tech: Protocol

Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure. Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. File Transfer Protocol. Internet Message Access Protocol. Post Office Protocol. While it may not be outwardly apparent, we certainly rely on quite a few protocols in order to use our computers and more directly, the Internet, as we do. Today, we’ll introduce you to what a protocol actually is.

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Depending on Your Situation, VoIP May or May Not Make Sense

Depending on Your Situation, VoIP May or May Not Make Sense

Voice over Internet Protocol can be a mighty attractive piece to any organization’s communications strategy. Any solution that eliminates huge upfront costs and allows an organization to scale their solution to fit the needs of their business is one that is truly beneficial. Today, we take a look at the pros and cons of instituting a VoIP solution and how it can put your organization in a good position.

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Why Managed Services Make More Sense

Why Managed Services Make More Sense

Businesses need a lot of services to stay ahead of the competition. The “as a service” model allows businesses to save a lot of money in the long run by making previously inaccessible services much more affordable for the average small organization. We’ll walk you through the value you can take advantage of thanks to the “as a service” model.

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High-End Tech Suggestions for the Small Business

High-End Tech Suggestions for the Small Business

There is certainty in that the small business can benefit from new technology. A problem sometimes rears its head when a business wants to improve their technology all at once and the costs associated with both implementation and downtime start to spike. For the responsible business owner, it has to be a matter of putting need over want, and instituting solutions that will work to build profitability, which will ultimately provide the capital needed to institute new technology. Today, we will look at some technology implementations that many small businesses consider, and how the implementation will bring the best return on investment.

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Gmail and the G Suite Get Overhauled with A.I.

Gmail and the G Suite Get Overhauled with A.I.

Google has just completed an overhaul of its G Suite productivity suite in efforts to improve collaboration and make the software more secure. To understand what the marketing giant was looking at, we’ll go through some of the changes they’ve made and explain why the changes were necessary.

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Is Microsoft Teams the Best Option for Your Communication Needs?

Is Microsoft Teams the Best Option for Your Communication Needs?

Communication is a crucial part of any business, which means that a business will require the tools that allow it to communicate effectively. There are many solutions designed to fulfill that precise need with assorted features and functions. One of these tools is Microsoft Teams. Let’s review some of what it has to offer a business user.

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Intro to Your Tech: RAM

Intro to Your Tech: RAM

This week for our Intro to Your Tech series, we’re going inside the heart of the computer. Random Access Memory, better known as RAM, is an important part of your computing experience. RAM is often cited as one of the main components listed when someone is looking to sell a computer, but what is it and what does it do?

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A Brief Rundown of Unified Communications’ Benefits

A Brief Rundown of Unified Communications’ Benefits

Communication is crucial in all walks of life, but especially so in the business world. In order to maintain ideal operations there must be reliable lines of communication connecting each and every employee to every resource they need to accomplish their goals. Unified communications are an excellent way to accomplish this.

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Your Network Infrastructure Needs to be Secured

Your Network Infrastructure Needs to be Secured

If your business isn’t protecting its technology infrastructure, you need to rethink your priorities immediately. After all, hackers aren’t going to wait for your business to secure itself. They will instead seize any easy opportunity to steal your organization’s sensitive data. There are countless threats out there that want to take advantage of your business, or at least see your sensitive data on-sale at the online black market. We’ll walk you through some of the most important factors regarding your organization’s security.

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Intro to Your Tech: Business Intelligence

Intro to Your Tech: Business Intelligence

Any business owner will tell you, the more you know about your business and its relationship with its customers, the better decisions you can make. For years, small and medium-sized businesses have been rolling out solution after solution to try and make their business run as efficiently as possible. Today, we’ll go into the concept of business intelligence, how it works, and why your business needs it.

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