Time to Change All of Your Passwords. Seriously.

Yesterday, news broke that a Russian crime ring known as CyberVor has stolen over a billion username/password combinations, as well as a half billion email addresses from popular sites all over the web. While there is currently no way to confirm whether your information has been compromised, or even which websites have been hit, it would be prudent to assume that at least one of your online accounts has been jeopardized, and take action to ensure the security of all of your online accounts.

When creating new passwords for your accounts, do not reuse passwords for multiple accounts. That way, if one of your accounts gets hacked, criminals won’t automatically have access to more of your accounts. There are several strategies for making sure the new passwords you create are secure. See this list for ideas.

Two-factor authentication (a.k.a. two-step verification) is another option provided by some websites that offer can offer an additional layer of account protection. For example, after entering my username and password at my bank site, I am always prompted to answer at least one of my pre-defined security questions. Another site that offers two-step verification is Gmail (more info). For more sites that offer two-factor authentication, check out this article by Lifehacker.

A couple of additional security tips:

Do not set your computer/device to remember passwords.
Make sure your computer/device is set to lock when it “sleeps” or you walk away from it. It may be inconvenient to keep logging in, but it will be even more inconvenient if your information gets stolen.
Avoid logging into sensitive sites on public Wi-Fi if at all possible. Other users on the same network with the right software may be able to see your information as it is being transmitted.

While no online account is completely safe from hacking attempts, creating strong, unique passwords, using two-factor authentication, and only accessing accounts on secure network connections go a long way toward keeping your digital information out of the hands of criminals.

Do you have any additional security tips to share? If so, please share them with our readers in the comments section below.

Print from any device, anywhere, to the library’s printer!

This week, the library upgraded its wireless printing system. The old system limited which devices could print, and the process of installing the software was fraught with annoyances. With the upgrade, sending a print job from anywhere is as easy as sending an email attachment!

How to Print

To print your document, photo or web page, go directly to our printing portal page:
http://printeron.net/egcl/mainbranch

Follow the on-screen instructions and press the green button to print your document.

The email address you used when submitting your print job will be your login at the print release station.
Enter your email address and remit payment using the print release station at the reference desk.
All print jobs will be rendered on letter (8.5” x 11”) sized paper. If the print job is set for larger paper, content will be resized to fit the smaller paper.
To see a full list of file types that can be printed, visit: http://bit.ly/1ptF3di

Items on Secure Pages

Any items that require a login, such as boarding passes, Facebook pages, encrypted pages, Google Docs, etc., will need to be downloaded or converted to an image or PDF file before sending. Please see a librarian if you need assistance.

How to Print from a Mobile Device

Mobile devices can use the same procedure as other devices. Alternatively, Android and iOS users can download the PrinterOn app from Google Play or the App store.

You can print most types of files, including photos, web pages, PDFs and Microsoft file types. Web pages and photos can be printed directly from the app.

To use print preview, tap this icon:

To adjust print settings, tap this icon:

Android devices

Other files can be printed directly from within the “My Files” or “Gallery” locations using the “Share Via” function and selecting the PrinterOn app.

iOS devices

To print an email attachment, launch the native Mail app. Navigate to the email which contains the attachment. Tap and hold the attachment and select “Open in PrinterOn” from the next menu.

Printing from a Cloud Storage App

Launch Box/Dropbox app
Navigate to the item you wish to print
(Box only—expand options using the icon in the top right corner)
Tap the “open in” icon.
Select “open in PrinterOn” and a preview will open.
If necessary, select your printer by scanning a QR code, selecting a saved printer or searching for a new printer.
To select copies and page range where applicable, tap the option icon in the top right corner.
Tap print to submit.

Privacy and Security

This portal uses SSL to ensure the security of your transaction. The printer for this portal uses a privacy system. Your documents are held in a privacy print queue until you are present at the printer to authorize their release.

Documents are not printed until you enter your email and remit payment at the print release station next to the printer located at the reference desk.
The document is permanently deleted upon processing.
Documents left unprinted for more than 24 hours are automatically deleted.
Once printed, documents cannot be re-printed.

Questions?

If you have questions or comments about the new service, please share them below or contact a librarian.

MakeUseOf Has the Answers to Questions You Didn’t Know You Had

Staying current with IT news, trends, and tips is a fundamental part of my job in the library. While I get this information from a variety of resources, there is one website that keeps surprising me with helpful information on a variety of subjects of interest to me and the patrons I assist. I’d like to take this opportunity to give a shout out to MakeUseOf, a free online resource with timely articles, reviews, and help guides for all things tech. What really makes this resource shine is its ability to speak to both new and veteran users at the same time without confusing or boring either!

The home page at MakeUseOf displays headlines and teaser text for their most recent articles. I find this layout somewhat chaotic, so I prefer to sort the articles by category before browsing. Selecting “Topics” in the header menu will display the articles by category. The “Answers” section leads to a user forum where registered members can ask and answer questions from the MakeUseOf community. Check out the “Top List” section for “best of” lists for a variety of software and services on multiple platforms. For in-depth technology guides, have a look at their “E-books” area.

As a registered user of MakeUseOf, you can earn points for sharing their content on social media, as well as participating in the forum, polls, and other activities. Those points can be redeemed for rewards, such as entries in drawings for free hardware and software. My favorite benefit of membership has been receiving the newsletter. Each email has a few headlines with teaser text that can be easily scanned, with more information just a click away. I have happened upon lots of very useful information in these newsletters that I didn’t even know I needed! You can opt-in to the newsletter by selecting the social media icons at the top of any MakeUseOf page, and then selecting the blue “Email” button.

What do you think of MakeUseOf? If you have another tech info source you love, please share it in the comments.

Our Library Catalogs Just Got More Accessible

As part of our recent library renovation, we made some improvements to the catalog search/event signup computers based on feedback from our patrons.

In addition to upgrading the machines to Windows 7, we broke up the centrally located circle of catalog search/event signup computers in order to distribute them throughout the library. Now, two catalog search/event signup computers remain centrally located, and the others can be found on either end of the main room of the library (by the Teen Area and the Periodicals area). As always, there is a separate catalog search computer in the Children’s Room. Please note that a library card is not needed to access these computers.

The catalog search/event signup computer stands located at either end of the library are mounted to the wall. By default, they are set to be standing stations, but the height of the unit can be adjusted to wheelchair or child height using the buttons on the front right of the keyboard tray:

Two catalog search computers are still located in the center of the library. One is a standard walk-up station, and one is optimized for patrons who prefer to sit and/or view a screen in large print. We hope to add a second seated catalog station in the future.

If you are interested in increasing the text size on this computer, click one of the icons to open a catalog or event page. At the top of the screen, you should see a button labeled “Text Size”:

Click on the arrow to select a size, or click on the button itself to toggle between preset sizes.

Please let us know what you think about the changes (or suggest more improvements) in the comments below. Your feedback helps us become a better library!

Internet Explorer Found to Be Vulnerable

This past Saturday, Microsoft announced that a major vulnerability was found in all supported versions of its internet browser, Internet Explorer. Even if you know and follow the rules for surfing safely, you are still vulnerable. Microsoft has not yet released an update or “fix-it” to address the issue. The best (and easiest) way to protect yourself is to switch to a different internet browser, such as Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, or Opera. There are some software settings and downloads that can help increase the security of IE, but these may require more tech savvy than some people care to muster.

For more details about the vulnerability, along with suggestions for increasing the security of your Internet Explorer installation, check out this article at the blog “Krebs on Security.”