An e-card from a friend or a computer virus?

Shannon Barrett , August 19, 2008

Have you received an email from a friend containing a free POSTCARD?  Maybe you should think twice before you open it!

For the past month Architel has been encountering problems with client workstations being bombarded by the so-called XP Antivirus 2008.

The XP Antivirus 2008 is one of the latest counterfeit antispyware programs floating around the internet. XP Antivirus 2008 usually pops up after you installed a video codec that come with Trojan, malware and virus but recently we’ve seen it show up come via email with a subject line variatieon of “A POSTCARD FROM A FRIEND”.

XP Antivirus 2008 normally generates fake and misleading system popup error messages so end-users will be tricked into purchase XP Antivirus 2008.

All of our clients use anti-virus software but even the best AV software fully updated can be vulnerable.  Getting infected by this virus will at the very least cause you hours of lost work and frustation.  Most of the time a full system rebuild is required.

The best way to avoid being infected is to stay vigilant, avoid opening unsolicited attachements and if you have and question give us a call.

Catagories: Architel , IT Support | Trackback |

Scott’s new friend!

Alexander Muse , August 8, 2008

Catagories: IT Support | Trackback |

Architel is Hiring! Engineering and Support Roles

Alexander Muse , August 8, 2008

Looking to work for a dynamic, hot, awesome, progressive, young, super, forward looking company? Good luck! How about finding a place where you can make a difference? Where you can actually change things? Where the people running the business don’t assume they know everything (well almost everything)? Architel might be the perfect place for you. We completed our expansion at the INFOMART creating more than 25 open seats that need smart engineering and support folks ready to make a change.  We also recruited an 8 year veteran of Buchanan Associates to augment our operations management and help lead Architel past $10MM in revenue next year.  Open positions include project management, senior systems engineers, field technicians and operation technicians.

You can apply online here or stop by our offices on the second floor of the INFOMART some time (our office has the 9′ Hulk in the waiting area - don’t worry, but please don’t make him angry)…

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Think like a computer

Joe Rider , August 8, 2008

How do biologists study animals?  Most probably read a lot of books, watch a lot of documentaries attend seminars and conferences but what does this really teach them… only what others already know or have found pertinent enough to be documented.

Computers like animals can be studied in a similar way.  In fact specifically with computers all of these things are arguably necessary but the legendary biologists are best known for the time they’ve spent with the animals in their own environment.  I have to assume that the reason they do this is because there is something about the way another species acts that can’t be documented.  Fortunately for humans we have the cognitive capacity to “relate” to these creatures and in the same way we can learn to think like a computer.

Some techs whom have spent their careers reading knowledge base articles and attending classes may wonder why some attain mastery in the field faster than others.  I believe this is because documents, articles and even spoken language in regards to computers are all translations to  they way a computer truly “thinks”.  This is why techs who perform only specific tasks or have spent their careers as a deployment “grunt” under-perform in an environment where direct computer interaction and communication are required (i.e. - troubleshooting).

Fortunately enough, computers are probably the most predictable creatures on the planet.  The key to success in troubleshooting is living amongst the creatures (on the job experience) figuring out WHY they do what they do not, simply, that they do them.  Deployment skills will get you nowhere and in my opinion are totally useless.  You can have 10 pages of all the things you’ve ever deployed on your resume and all I’ll see is “can follow instructions” because really that’s all it is. In fact, in my interviews I only ask a few technical questions because once you do understand the system in it’s entirety you can easily identify others that have the same ability.

The key to a successful career in any troubleshooting industry, including biology, is thinking like your subject, gaining understanding through experience and direct interaction.  You will never be good at troubleshooting if the person next to you is answering all your questions much like you could never truly be good at chess by asking Garry Kasparov each move you should make against your opponent.  You have to first understand how each move affects the system as a whole and then move with intention.  The same is true with computers, biology and kung fu.

To summarize to fix a broken computer you MUST know how to build them, you MUST know how to break them and you MUST be willing to step outside of your comfort zone to get your hands dirty but be careful… computers bite too.

Catagories: IT Support | Trackback |

Making work, fun… 1.0

Joe Rider , August 5, 2008

Everybody can admit that there are aspects to every job that are less than glamorous.  Here is how Architel Team Leads handle call “saves”.

NOTE: A call “save” is necessary when the Help Desk is flooded with calls and the PBX passes calls to Team Leads. The negative annotation to this procedure is that it is slightly disruptive to the days production.

Gleaming the Qube
The qube is transferred amongst team leads to identify the next “call saver”. Once the holder of the Qube takes a call (from a client), no matter how short or long, they can then pass (qube must be thrown) the qube to the next Team Lead in the rotation.

Fumble Turnover Clause:
If the qube is dropped and recovered by another Team Lead, EVER, the person whom fumbled the ball must take a chair shot from at least 10′ away and the person whom recovered the fumbled qube is exempt from the next rotation. The qube must land in the chair without bouncing out. If it bounces out the offending fumbler must take two consecutive call saves as a penalty. If the chair shot is made successfully the fumbler gets to immediately pass the qube without penalty. Each time a fumble occurs the offending Team Lead must take a chair shot unless he/she recovers the fumbled qube before another Team Lead. The first chair shot starts at 10′ and each recurring fumble extends the shot by 5′ (i.e. - first shot 10′, 2nd shot 15′ etc.).

Catagories: IT Support | Trackback |

Architel is hiring Pinoy Engineers!

Alexander Muse , August 2, 2008

Architel® is seeking a highly skilled Microsoft engineer to support, manage and troubleshoot Microsoft servers, Microsoft Exchange and XP desktops. The position is home-based and pays between 200Php and 350Php per hour. Hiring bonuses for various certifications (see listing at end of job description).

DESCRIPTION

As a Microsoft engineer for Architel®, the candidate must:

• Have VERY strong spoken and written English skills.
• Have a quiet place to work from at home (this position is home based).
• Have a reliable Windows PC running Windows XP (if you are skilled in Linux or OSX we can make an exception).
• Have more than three years of experience support Microsoft systems.
• Have a college degree in computer science or equivalent.
• Be able to work from 8AM to 6PM U.S. Central Standard Time (GMT -6:00)
• Be a good troubleshooter!

Each day you will be responsible for various predetermined tasks. Each task must be documented in our ticketing system. You will also be responsible for taking support calls from our clients and helping to resolve their issues.

TECHNICAL EXPERIENCE REQUIRED

• Experience managing, troubleshooting and implementing Windows 2003 Active Directory Domains.
• Experience managing, supporting and troubleshooting Exchange 2003.

HIRING BONUSES

Are you a Microsoft Certified Professional? Architel® will pay hiring bonuses for engineers who have achieved the following certifications:

Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) 2003 (four networking exams, one client operating system, one design exam and one elective exam for a total of seven). Bonus of 20,000Php after 90 days of employment with Architel.

Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) 2000 (four operating system exams, one design exam and two electives for a total of five). Bonus of 15,000Php after 90 days of employment with Architel.

Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) NT 4.0 (four exams including networking essentials, Windows NT Workstation, Windows NT Server and Windows NT Server). Bonus of 5,000Php after 90 days of employment with Architel.

Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) 2003 (two networking systems exams, a client operating system exam and an elective exam). Bonus of 8,000Php after 90 days of employment with Architel.

Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician (MCDST) (50 hour course plus two core exams). Bonus of 5,000Php after 90 days of employment with Architel.

Only one bonus may be earned. Your MCP transcript must be shared before the 90th day of employment is reached. You will need your Transcript ID and Access Code.
https://mcp.microsoft.com/authenticate/validatemcp.aspx

ABOUT ARCHITEL®

Architel® provides IT support services small businesses (with between 20 and 100 employees) primarily located in the Dallas Fort Worth area. Our service provide turnkey support for businesses including day-to-day desktop support, server support, Exchange support and networking support. Our offshore employees work from home and enjoy the advantages of higher pay and reduced expenses associated with a daily commute. Learn more by visiting http://www.architel.com

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Startup Happy Hour (Monday night at INFOMART)

Alexander Muse , August 2, 2008

The Startup Happy Hour is this Monday at 5PM.  Love to see you there!  Please RSVP HERE.

Are you interested in connecting with the local startup community?  We are working to build a vibrant startup community here in Dallas every bit as interesting and dynamic as San Francisco, Boulder, Boston or Austin.  The first step is engagement.

The first Dallas ’startup happy hour’ went so well we decided to make it a regular thing (every other Monday).  We hope to see you at the INFOMART High Tech Bar at 5PM.  If you need directions or help finding us feel free to call me at 214.550.2003 or if I am not available try our help desk at 214.550.2002 (during business hours only).

Upcoming ‘Startup Happy Hours’ (always on a Monday between 5PM and 8PM):

August 4th, 18th

September 1st, 15th, 29th

October 13th, 27th

November 10th, 24th

December 8th, 22nd

Please RSVP on Upcoming HERE (we are trying to keep the group under 50 people).  Directions HERE.  The ‘Startup Happy Hour’ is sponsored by SpringStage.  If you are interested in sponsoring an event please contact me (Alexander Muse) at 214.550.2003.

Catagories: Architel | Trackback |

Open source SharePoint!

Alexander Muse , July 31, 2008

Who said the Europeans were all bad?  Due to recent EU legal action against Microsoft, the company was forced to release the specifications to Sharepoint and as a result open source Alfresco now emulates Sharepoint.  According to Martin Heller,

…as popular as SharePoint has become, administrators and users don’t always like its restrictions. When you install SharePoint, you must also install Microsoft SQL Server, even if your standard database is Oracle or DB2 or MySQL, and you must install it on Microsoft Server 2003 or 2008. When you use a SharePoint site, you must also use Microsoft Internet Explorer to be able to access its full functionality, even if your standard desktop is a Macintosh or your standard browser is Firefox. Alfresco removes those restrictions, as well as being open source.

Catagories: Architel , Microsoft , Open Source | Trackback |

3G iPhone Advisory to Architel Clients PLEASE READ!!!

Alexander Muse , July 11, 2008

Architel is asking all clients who are interested in using the new 3G iPhone to wait a minimum of 30 days before migrating to the new platform.  We are attempting to activate three units for internal use, complete with Exchange integration and as of 7PM we have not been successful.  There are many known and unknown bugs/glitches/problems that make migration of mission critical email and phone services to the 3G iPhone inadvisable at this time.  Clients wanting to migrate to 3G on August 11th should enter a ticket indicating they are going to be migrating ASAP (we will get you on the migration list).  In any event, here are just a few known issues:

http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/11/itunes-activation-servers-go-down-iphone-3g-customers-being-sen/
http://www.9to5mac.com/iphone-screen-lottery
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9109298
http://www.informationweek.com/news/personal_tech/iphone/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=208808483
http://gizmodo.com/5024372/apple-cancels-all-iphone-3g-orders-releases-ibrick-3g
http://www.realtechnews.com/posts/5862
http://smoothspan.wordpress.com/2008/07/11/iphone-activation-servers-fail/
http://gizmodo.com/5024187/apple-and-att-stores-having-difficulty-activating-iphones-update-its-the-ipocalypse
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/11/six-million-ibricks-and-growing/
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080711-launch-woes-turn-iphone-parousia-into-activation-apocalypse.html

Catagories: Architel , IT Support | Trackback |

My next post…your next sci-fi novel

Joe Rider , July 10, 2008

So they think the Earth’s moon was created by a Mars sized asteroid crashing into our planet. I also read the other day that the reason for Mar’s asymetrical hemispheres is theorized as to have been caused by a giant asteroid colliding with it.  They’ve sudo-proven (  :P  ) this be analyzing the opposite angle of the southern hemisphere, looked for and found ripples caused by the collision.  One more fact… some smart guys somewhere in the hills have a 7 mile long particle accelerator that they are affraid to turn on as some physicist theorize that the miniature black holes they are trying to re-create cold envelope our existence.

So carbon tears holes in the atmosphere.  When carbon levels went down the atmosphere renewed.  Could we use some kind of controlled carbon blast to tear a hole in the atmosphere big enough to house the biggest ion propulsion rocket ever imagined.  Could we then use this giant ion propulsion rocket to move the Earth out of the trajectory of this giant que ball, the way you’d think of God’s as big?

i see this as the only solution.

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