How To Create Beautiful Documents Without Any

Every once in a while you need to create a beautiful flyer, invitation or brochure. This can be really tricky, especially if you are not a graphic designer. Most of the companies spend hundreds of dollars to hire professional designers that design their business cards or posters. Even regular people need some beautiful wedding or birthday invitations sometimes.

The first time you come across such a problem, you do not even know where to begin. Designing such documents yourself sounds complicated. You have no idea what software to use, or how it should look like. Most of the people, even the ones who do not know anything about graphic design, have heard about the Photoshop software. It allows you to edit images. But is it really the best choice for designing a flyer or invitation?

You might think there should be an easier way to create this kind of documents. There should be a way that would allow creating beautiful documents even for people who do not have any graphic design knowledge. This is true. There are many powerful text editors that allow you not only to write text, but also add various graphic elements into your documents. The best and most well-known example of this is Microsoft Word.

However, if you are a Mac user, the better choice for you is Apple's Pages app. Just like Microsoft Word, Pages is powerful text editor, but it has a couple of advantages over Word. To begin with, it is much more user friendly, faster and cheaper.

Despite all of this, the most important advantage is templates that come with the app. Pages include loads of pre-designed templates for various documents, such as invitations, brochures, business cards, flyers, etc. So if you want to design a beautiful invitation, just select one of the invitation templates and add your own content into it. Every template has text boxes and sample images. Replacing the sample photos is as easy as drag and dropping the new image onto the image placeholder in the template. Adding text is as easy as typing it into the pre-designed text boxes.

The best part of this is that all the templates are created by professional designers. This means that even if you have no knowledge in the graphic design, you can still create professional documents with the couple of minutes of work. So the next time you will need a beautiful flyer or invitation, you know where to start.

By John Ethan Perry

Best Anti-Virus Software For Your Android And iPhone Device

The increasing popularity of different operating systems paves the way for more security threats out there especially in the internet as one becomes vulnerable to malware, identity theft and other advanced internet attacks. Many of us forego the thought of buying anti-virus software as this is expensive and more often than not, valid for only a year or if you are interested, you can extend the license up to several years but the cost goes up as well.
However, getting antivirus software can be your best defense especially if your knowledge about computer repairs is limited. Although the software can be expensive, knowing which one is the best will hopefully provide the best value for your money. Additionally, there is some excellent free anti-virus programs out there that can help cover most of our security needs and would be perfect for those not-so technology savvy people out there.
Anti-Virus for your Mobile Devices
Depending on the OS that you have on your mobile device, the best software should include anti-malware apps especially if your OS is Android. Although Android is impenetrable by viruses, malware can hamper the functionality of your mobile device. The popularity of the Android OS also makes it a favorite for hackers so do ensure that when you are installing software or apps, go directly to the official website such as Google PlayStore or if you have an iPhone, go check out iTunes.
If you want to install a security app for your Android device, consider checking the features of the apps. It is best to look for an app that thoroughly cleans, deletes malicious threats and offers real-time protection. Google's Android Device Manager works perfectly for Android users as well as CM Security, Malwarebytes, Avast, Sophos, Bitdefender and AVG. These antivirus are free though if you want added protection, you can also upgrade depending on what you need but for basic security, these are the best out there.
On the other side, if you are an Apple user, then be sure that you are well protected from viruses entering your iPhone especially if you do nothing but the basics like texting or calling. If you are opening emails and the likelihood of sending the said virus to other recipient is a real threat, then you can download some software that will help you scan your email's attachment. One of the best is the VirusBarrier but it is not a free app,. If you want a free one, do try Norton or McAfee.

  By Patrick Laurence

Tips and Tricks Make Excel a Fun Work

10 Excel Tips and Tricks which are dead useful:

1. Automatically SUM () with Alt + =: Did you know you could add an entire row or column by simply clicking the first empty cell? Click, press ALT + '=' and simply add up the numbers in every above cell.


2. Number Formatting Keyboard Shortcuts format: There is a true logic behind the keyboard shortcuts, which otherwise seem random to you. For example, to format a number as a currency you have to use the keyboard shortcut CTRL + SHIFT + 4. It may seem random to you, but SHIFT + 4 gives you a $ sign. So if you want to format a currency, you simply put CTRL + $. You can do the same with formatting a number as percent


3. CTRL + ' to display formulas: While in the process of misbehaving troubleshooting numbers, have a go at the formulas first. See the formula used in the cell by simply hitting the two keys: Ctrl + ' (also called the acute accent key) which is the furthest to left on the row with number keys. It is tilde (~) when you press shift.


4. Go directly to the Start and End of Column Keyboard: Sometimes, data sets are bottomless pits. You could scroll till the end of eternity or use the shortcut CTRL + down arrow to jump down the last filled cell or vice-versa.


5. Repeat the same formula for multiple cells: Typing the same formula for all cells, No! First you need to create the formula in the first cell, and then take the cursor to the right lower corner of the cell. See the cursor turning into plus? Now simply double click to copy the formula and drag it on the rest of cells in the column. Bingo, problem solved!


6. Delete/Add columns keyboard shortcut: It takes you all day to manage columns and rows in your spreadsheet. Here's how you save a little time: Press CTRL + minus and it will delete the column you have placed your cursor on and CHTRL + Shift will add a new column.


7. Adjusting width of column(s): There's a way to get rid of those useless #### entries. Simply click on the column header and move it on to the right side. Double click when the cursor becomes a plus sign and your work is done.


8. Copying a number or date pattern: This one is damn easy! Enter the information in two rows to establish the pattern. Highlight those and drag your cursor down to the number till which you want your cells to fill up respectively. This will work with numbers, dates and months.


9. Tab between worksheets: So cross-checking different worksheets every time means you have to touch the mouse and all that. Why don't you simply enter CTRL + PGDN and if you want to go reverse type CTRL + PGUP.


10. Double clicking format painter: With a simple mouse click, you can now duplicate a format in other cells with only a click. Many excel users use it by double clicking on the format painter to copy the format into multiple cells. Yay!

So these were some amazing excel tips that are deemed to come extremely handy in times when you need to save even an itsy amount of time. It is always easier when you make your data easier to manage.

By Patrick Kee

IT Support Helps Your Business Run Smoother

There are a lot of ways that IT support can help your business run smoother. You cannot be expected to do everything on your own. Especially if you are the "be all" for your business, you need to focus on other aspects including marketing and sales. By focusing on the areas that directly affect your profits, you can ensure that your business is thriving. Someone else can provide you with the support you need for IT.

You may not be aware of all of the technology out there that can assist your business. Each and every year, new strides are being made that make it easier for businesses to run. IT support is able to tap into this technology more to provide you with more. This includes more assistance where you need it the most. For example, did you know that there are hosted phone systems that you can get where you can eliminate the need for a receptionist at the front desk?

An IT support person can walk through your business and tell you about all of the areas that can be enhanced through the addition of technology. This may cost you a little bit of money initially, but it is a wise investment. Eventually the help on your IT will allow you to enhance various aspects of your business which can save you labor and increase your profits. Both of these are good for business and will affect your bottom line in a positive way.

By having support from a third party, you get documentation and communication where you need it the most. This includes guarantees in terms of what you need to hear - such as reduced downtime on your website and that help is a phone call away so you never have to worry about IT issues that linger. Even if you are fortunate to have an IT department, they may be limited in their knowledge - and this is where your business may be at a point where it cannot grow because of their limitations.

IT support can help you with your website, your cloud server, your email, your website design and virtually anything else that you need assistance with. When you have someone who makes it their business to give you what you need in terms of IT, your business runs smoother. This is because you have dedicated people who are always looking out for you. They ensure you don't have downtime and have access to all that you need.

In today's day and age, you can't be without IT support in one capacity or another. The more support you have, the smoother everything runs. The good news is that you don't have to do it all by yourself. All it takes is raising your hand and asking for some assistance. Finding a third party company that anticipates your needs is out there - and can make a world of a difference on your business.

Formed in 1997 and located in Houston, Dallas and Austin Texas and in Dubai, ERGOS is an IT solutions provider that stays ahead of the curve, providing innovative IT services. We provide our clients the kind of service that we would want. ERGOS provides managed IT services, IT infrastructure, Cloud IT and business solutions that Power Your Business and empower your work force. Our three technology divisions, Managed IT Services, Cloud IT Solutions and Business Solutions (Web Hosting and Development, Search Engine Optimization, Business Process Analysis) will address all your IT needs.

By Jeff Weigang

Do You Know How Much Information Your Smartphone Leaks About You?

Smartphones and handheld devices are an integral part of everyone's life now. Everything has gone mobile these days! Right from our work to social lives, to banking and even shopping. Mobiles have become an inevitable component of our lives. Unlike our earlier mobile devices, which focused on voice-based communications, today's phones involve varied types of capabilities including computing and sensing. Although these abilities are highly useful at times, these capabilities at times pose some serious privacy concerns. The common components of a mobile phones that businesses or attackers utilise to snoop on users, include sniffing on their mobile phone sensors using the microphone, camera, and GPS receiver in most phones.

Although there are varied systems that use video-cameras, sound waves, or even magnetic fields, to sniff data, the most widely used technique is interception of the Wi-Fi signals emitted by users' smartphones. Triangulating on that signal can estimate the phone's position to within a few meters. Some are also involved in collecting a unique identifier, namely a MAC address, for each phone, which allows building behavioural information of customers (Source: TechnologyReview -1).

Businesses today are aware that tracking mobile devices can lead to generation of valuable information about customers, which can then be utilised to serve them better or reach to a much effective group. And this may be precisely why 'Indoor positioning' is slowly picking among businesses. U.S. retailers like Family Dollar and American Apparel have also experimented with indoor positioning. Indoor positioning is a practice of locating objects or people wirelessly inside a building using a network of devices or signals emitted by devices.

Nordstrom is also one such business using indoor positioning. They acknowledged that in an attempt to serve their customers better, they are tracking their movements through their stores. They are using specific software to track how much time you spend in specific departments within the store. The sensors within the store collect information from customer smart phones as they attempt to connect to Wi-Fi service (Source: CBS local - 2). Yet another example includes Forest City Enterprises. They triangulate cellular signals to monitor foot traffic in nearly 20 shopping centers they own and/or manage. They claim that the data helped them decide on various crucial aspects that affected user experience.

As far it is for businesses, these interceptions sound highly useful. But how about the users who aren't aware of their movements being watched over! With the rapid proliferation of applications, the problem of privacy violations based on sensors of mobile devices is expected to grow. Most mobile phone platforms available lately are insufficient to protect their users from such leakage of information. For better privacy across mobile phone users, desirable uses of sensors and good privacy protection solutions are important.

By Oushee Ouseph

Difference Between Web and Software Development

As website and software are two different concepts, their history is also separate and not quite connected to each other. The British CERN physicist Tim Berners-Lee created the first World Wide Web (WWW) in the year 1990. Three years after the first website was built, CERN officially announced on 30 April, 1993, that the World Wide Web would be completely free to access for everyone. An interesting fact is that earlier, before the invention of HTML and HTTP, protocols such as the Gopher Protocol and File Transfer Protocol were used to retrieve specific files from a server.

Conversely, there is a long standing debate over the creation of the first fully made software program. It is said that the first piece of software was produced by Ada Lovelace during the 19th century for the proposed analytical engine. Unfortunately, the program never got implemented. Again, there are concrete records that the first software theory was proposed by Alan Turing in his famous essay, Computable numbers with an application to the Entscheidungs problem.

Many people assume that both websites and software are created on similar platforms. However, this is not true as their functions and utilities are completely different. A website is a place you visit in your web browser while a software system is an application that is installed and used on a computer. It is a non-tangible part of a computer.

A typical website is hosted on one or more computer servers. Its area is linked to the internet to run single or multiple webpages. A software package includes written programs and related documentation for operating distinct functions of a computer system. In most cases, these programs are stored in read or write memory. Interestingly, both these technical functions have turned into largest businesses of 21st century. Innumerable software development companies have sprung up in the recent past and their share in the gross world product (GWP) is also increasing meteorically.

Again, it is important to mention here that the job of software developers is to create software programs that also run on servers, internet, browsers, etc. In other cases, it runs on computer systems and electronic devices. Nonetheless, the software developers need to learn much more about the fundamental operating system platforms. A higher level of expertise in programs is expected from them in comparison the web developers. The goal of a software development company is to provide cost-effective and reliable solutions to various businesses matching their relevant needs.

By Prakash Singh Chauhan 

Understanding the Difference Between Performance Testing and Load Stress Testing

When developing a website, you need to put the site through rigorous tests to ensure that it can perform at its best at all times. Whether you already have a website and have noticed your traffic numbers dropping or you are in the process of launching a new site, then you will want to look at the performance testing and load stress testing solutions available.

There is a distinct difference between the two and both are just as important as the other when it comes to ensuring your site is running well, even in peak periods.

Performance testing is used to determine response times, duration and time lapses in the system. This type of software tests the entire system, addressing performance issues and ensuring the system is reliable. It identifies problems; such has how long pages take to load, enabling you to make the necessary changes.

It is important that you are aware that customers that visit your site will move to one of your competitors if they cannot find what they are looking for, the pages take too long to load or they cannot access the site at all. The problem is that a majority of these customers will never return to your site, which means you've lost potential income because your site wasn't performing adequately.

Performance testing is responsible in testing the behavior of the system and the speed the pages take to load. This testing should be carried out on a regular basis and used to monitor the site at all times, enabling you to address any issues quickly and effectively before it becomes a serious problem.

Load stress testing is the other important software that you will want to invest in, you can see a return on investment within a short period of time as it tests your system, identifying problems and giving you the ability to make the necessary changes as quickly as possible.

Load stress testing determines the load on the system in terms of volume and endurance. This software can identify the behavior of the system and how much it takes to reach breaking point. It identifies memory issues, buffer overflow, bandwidth issues, system failure, response times and so much more.

Load stress testing helps identify issues with the database, hardware and network. It is a useful tool to see how the application will behave after a crash, ensuring you have the relevant steps in place to ensure it gets back online in the shortest space of time.

When choosing your software solutions for testing, it is important that you choose wisely. There are a wide variety of load stress testing and performance testing solutions on the market, each one offering different reporting options and system checks.

You should be focused on ensuring that your website is running at its best at all times, which means it can load pages quickly, perform under load and will not reach breaking point when you have a couple of hundred visitors visiting your site throughout the day.

Your developers should work with the testing software to ensure that when you launch your site you have peace of mind that all problems have been managed. If you already have a website the load testing software can monitor the system, identify issues and inform you as and when they happen, reducing the risk of too much downtime and giving you the ability to repair the issues quickly and effectively.

Always choose your software from a reputable supplier that is dedicated in helping you achieve online success in terms of productivity, visibility and brand.

By Simon Pri