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Black background and white print graphic of telephone and the numbers 911, with words "Police", "Fire", "Medical" and "Emergency"

Today many of us take for granted that first responders and law enforcement are just a 3 digit dial away – but what if we cant dial that simple number? Asking ‘what if’ from time to time, and thinking through the results can be a wise move. 911 services have become a rock solid staple in recent years but it still relies on dialing 9-1-1. Though careful education, children can help play a vital role in family safety by understanding how 911 works and the responsibilities that go with it. A great informative website that promotes 911 usage for children is www.911forkids.com and is full of videos, materials for discussion, and articles on the matter.

Technology has complimented existing 911 services with the advent of TTY for those not able to use a traditional telephone, but it doesn’t stop there. Assistive technology equipment is available for a variety of needs such as wireless emergency dialers that can be carried on a lanyard for unexpected emergencies when a person is not capable to reach a regular telephone or over sized buttons for those with poor sight.

Cell phones have played a vital role in 911 usage providing contact to first responders not possible before, but did you know that many traditional cell phone GPS  are only accurate to within a 300 foot radius? Smart phones with navigation can be much more accurate, but if your smart phone is indoors or does not have the battery draining enhanced GPS equipment turned on, it too will only be accurate to roughly 300′. Certainly this is something to keep in mind if you are unable to speak into the phone to give an exact address.

Like all land line carriers, ICTC phone service can be a lifeline, helping all of our customers be connected to first responders and medical help from only 3 digits away.

Continue reading »]]> It happens to everyone – the dreaded “My computer is soooooo slow!”  Not to worry, it happens, and your computer doesnt have to be that slow forever. When I examine a PC for the complaint of a slow computer there are three main places I look to increase performance:

• ram
• “extra programs” that do not really need to be installed
• and lastly  a fragmented hard drive.

Ram (or Random Access Memory) is often times confused with data storage such as a hard drive when in fact the hard drive is a completely separate device altogether. Ram is used to hold information that the computer will need immediate quick access to, like a program running or a picture that you are looking at for instance. It is capable of quickly moving large amounts of data from temporary storage to the processor. But it has limits and it can qickly be consumed if your computer doesnt physically have enough memory. A hard drive by contrast can hold exponentially more data than what your computers ram can - it is the device that holds all of your “stuff” - even when the computer is turned off. Hard drives have made dramatic increases in regards to how fast data can enter and exit the drive over the last few years, but it still pales in comparison to how fast ram can move data. To help understand ram and a hard drive, I use the analogy of water as data. Consider that a swimming pool is a hard drive – it holds alot of data, but it takes a long time for it to drain, and it takes even longer to fill it with a garden hose. Ram is more similar to a 5 gallon bucket – you can scoop water up and dump it out very quickly, but it certainly doesnt hold as much water as a swimming pool.

Task Manager from Windows 7

 Here is the catch that ram has when it runs low. When your computer uses all the ram physically available, it is forced to use a portion of the hard drive as “temporary ram” sometimes called swap or cache. The limitations of hard drive acces speeds are which dramatically slows the entire computer. So what is the solution – well it is easier than you think. First, make sure you have enough ram. To do this check we need to look at how much ram you have and compare it to how much you are using by pressing ctrl+alt+delete (2000, xp, vista, and windows 7 are all similar) and click task manager. From there click the performance tab. Note in the graphic that my computer has ‘about’ 8 gig of ram, and about 5.4 gig of ram is still available – this shows that there is still plenty available and that ram isn’t an issue slowing down my computer. Should the available ram be a much smaller number, then something needs to be addressed – possibly reducing the ram load by closing programs or adding more ram if the computer can support it. What if all your programs area already closed? – Take a look at the processes tab and you will see how many applications are really runing behind the scenes. Likely you will find that there are many programs that have been installed where by themselves they dont use much ram, but cumulatively they use a considerable amount.

Take some time and look under add/remove programs in XP or programs and features in Vista/win7 – some housekeeping in here by uninstalling unecessary programs may be  a great help – buta word of caution is in order. While uninstalling programs that run behind the scenes will help reduce ram usage and free up processor power, you may inadvertantly uninstall something that you really wanted, so take care and review cloesly what you are removing. If you dont know what programs you can safely remove, try to do some research on the item before removing it. A good rule of thumb is if you recognize the program, it comes from Microsoft or other known vendor and doesnt have the words ‘coupon’, ‘tool bar’ or “shop” in the names then it is likely something that you want to keep.

Do you remember earlier in this article, we discussed how a hard drive is used when the computer runs out of ram (swap/cached)? Every computer uses a certain amount of hard disk space as ram. We can at times experience slowness when the computer needs to access the hard drive – that slowness can be compounded when the disk drive is “fragmented”. A fragmented drive is when data is written and the file system arbitrarily places the data wherever it is most convenient so it can write the data as fast as possible. Unfortunately, this means that pieces of the same file or files may be stored in several different places on the hard drive….the files are fragmented. Not unlike an old record player, a hard drive stores data in tracks in a similar way and if the heads of the hard drive need to move to a different place on the drive to read the data there is a fraction of a second where it isn’t reading data. These fractions of a second can add up quickly and seriouslt affect performance. The solution is to run a program that will sort out the files and rearrange them in a way that the hard drive heads do not need to keep moving to read the entire file.

In Windows Vista and Windows 7, defragmenting is something that is scheduled by windows to occur automatically. The default time for the automatic defragmentation for Windows 7 and Vista is 1:00am every Wednesday morning. If you are like many others, you shut your computer down overnight or let it hibernate after a certain amount of time. You can manually defragment the drive at your liesure by opening “My Computer”, right click the C: drive, clicking the tools tab, and lastly click “defragment disk”. You may note on this same page a place where you can configure the schedule of the defragment process to a time when your computer is more likely to be on.

There are many other places where a computer can be slowed down, but likely after a quick checkup like this you will find your computer is quicker than it has been in recent “memory”.

Continue reading »]]> This day and age, many computer users like myself enjoy the benefits of a wireless router at home. I love the freedom to carry my laptop from my office to any room in my home for whatever reason and still be connected. Often times wireless networking is used out of necessity – like to avoid complicated, difficult, or plain messy wiring at home. Regardless of the reasons why we choose to use wireless at home there are a few things EVERYONE with a wireless router should know; and it all boils down to protecting yourself from a less than ethical person that might try to eavesdrop on internet usage.

Thankfully, modern wireless router manufacturers are well aware of these dangers and have built in some safeguards that encrypt the data between the router and the computer. The router does most of the work; usually the end user just needs to choose an encryption type enter a password on the router and then the same password on the computer. Pretty easy compared to the significant troubles that could come from an unwelcome guest using YOUR internet. There are several types of encryption options available with modern routers - some better than others. Each wireless device brand has different capabilities, making it well worth the effort to spend some time and read the (usually small) booklet that came with the router so you know what options you may have with your setting.

I am regularly asked “Why do I want to encrypt my router”. Well, its an easy explanation that can be summed up in a two words - liability and privacy. Did you know if your neighbor was using your internet to download unlicensed music it is tracable back to your router? The same goes for other illegal download activity such as inappropriate video, software, and hacking. Your privacy is also at risk as an unethical savvy individual could watch the data being sent between your computer and router thus potentially intercepting banking information, credit card numbers, or other personal information. It does help reduce the likelihood that anyone would be able to access your wireless network while living in the country, but it doesnt eliminate the risk. Wireless router signals can travel for well over a mile – all it takes is a little know how and some simple equipment available from many online retailers.

Securing your router is easy, takes moments to do, and can save a bunch of pain. But once it is configured the encryption is seamless and painless. It is certainly worth the effort.

Continue reading »]]> There is much more to your home or business phone cabling than two cans connected by a string. The Linebacker Maintenance Plan can protect you from the expense of repair charges and ensures professional telephone repair in your home or business.  With the Linebacker Maintenance Plan, ICTC repairs your existing wiring and connected jacks at no charge.

Without the Linebacker Maintenance Plan, you will be responsible for maintaining internal wiring. Should we be called to service internal wiring, charges may include a trip charge plus labor and material. The Linebacker Maintenance Plan is currently available in the Sanborn, Page, Tower City, and Hope Exchanges.

Continue reading »]]> DSL internet is a staple for internet delivery over twisted pair cabling – but for all of it’s capabilites it has limitations of distance from the cetral office. Typically a user can expect the capability of at least 1 meg internet speeds if the DSL modem is within 2 miles from the source. When closer than 2 miles from the source, speeds can increase dramatically, inversly speeds can decrease dramatically at further distances. ICTC has “Reach” DSL prodcts that are capable of reaching much longer distances with speeds over 1.5 meg.

Call for more information about DSL for your home, farm or business.