Windows XP and Office 2003 EOL (End of Life)

End of support for Windows XP and Office 2003 is coming on April 8, 2014.

This means Microsoft will no longer make and distribute updates and patches for either product. They will also not provide tech support after that date.

Research suggest SMBs (5 to 249 Computers) are significantly behind Enterprise and Consumer populations in replacing Windows XP systems. About 40% of US SMBs are still on XP and Office 2003. According to SpiceWorks over 70% of their user base is still on XP.

The new versions of Office (2013 and 365) are NOT compatible with either XP or Vista. Continue reading

Why I volunteer with Citizens Corps and CERT

Recently a friend of mine asked my why I volunteer, specifically she was asking about the time I spent volunteering in Citizens Corps and CERT. Here is what I told her.

Why I volunteer? And Why with CERT? I could probably write a Novella about it.

As you might remember, I was raised on the Gulf Coast and hurricanes and tropical storms were a constant threat. I learned early in life, that if a neighbor or different area of town had damage and destruction, it was our duty to go and help. At 8 years old I was replacing drywall, patching / redoing roofs. When I turned 16 I bought a car and used my dad’s trailer to haul off debris. Sometimes I was paid by the home-owners sometimes not.

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Prepping tip by Ed Hultgren friend and guest writer

Shelter- We need shelter…period. Even though we all know that guy with the hairy back, We humans cannot maintain our delicate body heat without some kind of covering, beyond back hair.

We need to stay within a small margin of degrees to function. Normal is around 98.6 right? Some are a little cooler some a little warmer but it’s still a narrow margin. If our temp rises or falls more than 4 or 5 degrees, we’re in trouble.

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