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| FixMeStick Review – A USB Malware Removal Solution Posted: 26 Nov 2012 10:00 AM PST Every once in a while I review products that interests me, especially products that are related to security. For many, anti-malware and anti-virus products tend to seem complex to use. Updating and scanning using such products can be intimidating, although newer versions tend to perform these functions automatically. The one thing that most anti-malware products have in common is that they required Windows to run in order to function. Unfortunately, when Windows runs so does the malware and viruses that may have infected the computer What if an anti-malware product is available that will automatically update itself, and then perform a full system scan outside of Windows? What if this product requires you to only run a single file within Windows, and then click a single button and have everything done for you? This is what interested me about a particular product called FixeMeStick. A USB Stick That Protects Your ComputerI always have an anti-virus and software firewall running on my computer, and keep all security software updated. I also ensure I only visit trusted sites, and keep Windows updated. Of course, even following such steps it is still possible for my computer to be infected with some adware or malware. While the type I do get isn’t very harmful, there are others that can do much more harm – think identity theft or preventing Windows from booting. If you have malware that prevents Window from booting, then besides performing some very technical steps, it could be difficult getting your computer to restart. Another option is to remove the malware outside of Windows and then try and boot into Windows. Such an option exists with FixMeStick. FixMeStick is a product that incorporates some of the best anti-malware and anti-virus engines on the planet into a compact USB flash drive. While this may sound complex, they creators of FixMeStick have made it dead simple to use. The basic premise is that you insert the FixMeStick device into a USB port on your computer. From there you run an application and following the instructions. The software on the device will then do all the work of updating its malware definitions, scanning your computer and then reporting the results. While the above steps may sound too simple, in reality, that is all that is required to use the product. Using FixMeStickI mentioned how easy it is to use FixMeStick, now below are the actual steps included with the product. FixMeStick includes a card with the product that outlines the two methods of using the device – each method involves only three steps. Method 1: Getting Started
Method 2: Advanced Users
Using either method will cause your computer to reboot and then run the software on the FixMeStick device. The software will then go through a series of steps to scan your computer for malware.
All the above steps are automated, except for the Results step which requires you to indicate how to handle any malware that is found. While the scan is running there are two additional options that you can select = “Custom Scan” and “Undo Quarantine.” The “Custom Scan” allows you to select which drives and folders to scan, so you don’t have to scan everything if you choose not to, while the “Undo Quarantine” provides the option to restore any files that you had quarantined from previous scans. The undo option is useful if you accidentally quarantined an important file and need to restore it back to its original folder. Results of My Computer’s ScanMy computer has two hard drives in a RAID 0 configuration so they appear as a single drive in Windows. After inserting FixMeStick in the USB port I was wondering how it would handle the drives. As it turned out, FixMeStick had no issues. I even expanded the “Custom Scan” option on the screen and noticed that FixMeStick managed to read my hard drives and display the entire folder structure. I didn’t use the “Custom Scan” option, but instead kept the scan on the default setting – scan all drives and folders. The entire scan on my computer took 1 hour 55 minutes and 16 seconds. During that time FixMeStick scanned 386,365 items on my computer, which isn’t bad for performance. It managed to find some minor malware, which I quarantined. Once I exited the program it automatically shutdown my computer, which allowed me to remove the FixMeStick device from the USB port before restarting my computer. My computer automatically restarted into Windows without any issues. My ImpressionsOverall, I am extremely impressed with FixMeStick. The creators have gone to great lengths to make it so easy to use the product. It doesn’t get any easier than loading a single program, clicking a button and then sit back and watch FixMeStick scan your computer for you. FixMeStick is available on their website and also I found it available on Amazon. As of this post, there are 48 reviews for the device with 43 reviews giving the product 5 stars and 5 reviewers giving it 4. That is a testament to a quality product. If I need to perform a scan on my computer in the future, I will definitely use FixMeStick.
 The post FixMeStick Review – A USB Malware Removal Solution appeared first on Technically Easy. | |||||||
| Choosing a Profitable Niche for Your Blog Posted: 26 Nov 2012 05:00 AM PST One of the easiest places to begin earning money online is through blogging. Virtually anyone with knowledge about any subject can begin a blog and through the proper promotion, can earn a decent income. However, one area in which beginners often have difficulty with is choosing a niche that will be profitable. Starting a blog and realizing there isn't a potential audience for the topic can be downright demotivating. Many internet marketers use complex techniques such as analyzing traffic data, average CPC, etc. for niche-related keywords. This can be daunting for a beginner and fortunately, there is an easier way. There are two fundamental features of your niche that must be present in order for it to be profitable which are: a large audience and products related to the niche. Follow the following four steps and you'll be well on your way to knowing whether or not your potential niche can be profitable. The first two relate to your target market and the second two relate to monetization potential. 1. Look at Your Competitors' TrafficOne of the first things to look at when determining if a niche will be profitable is your competition. Although some web developers prefer to choose niches where competition is scarce, generally these are less profitable. As such, take a look at how much traffic your competitors receive and how many subscribers they have. This can be a good indication of whether or not there is a large potential market for this niche. 2. Browse Niche-Related ForumsAnother strategy to determine the size of your profitable niche is to browse forums related to your niche. There are huge forums out there related to everything from internet marketing to personal finance to pets. Chances are, if there's a large and active forum related to your niche then there is profitability potential. 3. Examine Your Competitors' MonetizationIn order to create a profitable blog there has to be an income source. This may be through PPC sites like Google Adwords, or through affiliate sites like Amazon. Regardless, you'll want to examine where your competitors are earning their money from. If they all have similar monetization (as can be seen from the ads on their site) then you'll want to look into what the ads pay out and how they pay out. If on the other hand your competitors monetize through their own products then you may have a more difficult time earning income (unless you're eager to develop your own product as well). 4. Decide If Your Niche Will LastAnother factor that will determine the profitability and monetization of your niche is whether or not it is a long-term topic (also known as "evergreen" in the internet marketing world). Evergreen topics include fitness and well-being, personal finance, dating and relationships etc. Basically any niche that there will always be interest in. This is important to determine because if your niche is just a fad, your traffic will begin to dwindle and products related to your niche will begin to die off. Once you've looked at the above four factors you should be well on your way to knowing if your niche will be profitable. If it is, the next step is to develop it and promote it. A good way to get started in the promotion of your site is to buy twitter followers, but that's a topic for another post.  The post Choosing a Profitable Niche for Your Blog appeared first on Technically Easy. | |||||||
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