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Category Archives: Rick
Mazateco Mission Trip
Andrea and I are taking a Mission trip to Oaxaca, Mexico. The Mazateco Mission trip will provide professional dental services (mainly tooth extractions) free of charge to the unreached people group of the Mexico providence of Oaxaca. We will be assisting by establishing relationships with the people and helping wherever we are needed. The people groups mainly consist of tribal cultures. We need spiritual and financial assistance. First, prayer for us in the area of personal growth and commitment to God and his leading and lordship of our lives would be greatly appreciated. Second, prayer to help bridge the communication gap and prepare hearts and minds for a life changing repentance to God and faith in Jesus’ gift. To help offset some of the cost of going we are offering “Date Night” baskets to those who feel led to help.
Each basket consists of:
1 – Colander
1 – Spaghetti Dinner (Noodles, Sauce, Mini-loaf of French Bread)
1 – Bottle of Sparkling Grape Juice
2 – Glass Goblets1 – Coupon for 1 evening of babysitting. (This is where you say, “WOW!”)
and Assorted Chocolates!
The basket will come decoratively wrapped in a cellophane bag complete with a bow.
Because each basket will be hand made, brands and styles of individual items may be differ from picture.
These baskets are available for donations (retail value 17.50).
Posted in Andrea, Rick
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Installing Windows 7 from a USB device.
I found a great blog post instructing users how to create a bootable USB device for installing Windows 7. This method uses only built-in tools that anyone running Windows and has a Windows 7 installation cd has access to. The original post can be found at: http://kmwoley.com/blog/?p=345.
Required:
- USB Flash Drive (4GB+)
- Microsoft OS Disk (Vista / Windows 7)
- A computer running Vista / Windows 7
Step 1: Format the Drive
The steps here are to use the command line to format the disk properly using the diskpart utility. [Be warned: this will erase everything on your drive. Be careful.]
- Plug in your USB Flash Drive
- Open a command prompt as administrator (Right click on Start > All Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt and select “Run as administrator”
- Find the drive number of your USB Drive by typing the following into the Command Prompt window:
diskpart
list disk
The number of your USB drive will listed. You’ll need this for the next step. I’ll assume that the USB flash drive is disk 1. - Format the drive by typing the next instructions into the same window. Replace the number “1” with the number of your disk below.
select disk 1
clean
create partition primary
select partition 1
active
format fs=NTFS
assign
exit
When that is done you’ll have a formatted USB flash drive ready to be made bootable.
Step 2: Make the Drive Bootable
Next we’ll use the bootsect utility that comes on the Vista or Windows 7 disk to make the flash drive bootable. In the same command window that you were using in Step 1:
- Insert your Windows Vista / 7 DVD into your drive.
- Change directory to the DVD’s boot directory where bootsect lives:
d:
cd d:\boot - Use bootsect to set the USB as a bootable NTFS drive prepared for a Vista/7 image. I’m assuming that your USB flash drive has been labeled disk G:\ by the computer:
bootsect /nt60 g: - You can now close the command prompt window, we’re done here.
Step 3: Copy the installation DVD to the USB drive
The easiest way is to use Windows explorer to copy all of the files on your DVD on to the formatted flash drive. After you’ve copied all of the files the disk you are ready to go.
Step 4: Set your BIOS to boot from USB
This is where you’re on your own since every computer is different. Most BIOS’s allow you to hit a key at boot and select a boot option.
Posted in Computer Fixes
Tagged Bootable USB, bootsect, diskpart, Install from Flash Drive, Windows 7
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My On-line Resume
Richard L. Jones, CCNA, A+, N+, MCITP
940 S Hopewell RD
Hopewell, OH 43746
http://www.rickandandrea.com/
Profile
Highly passionate and motivated P.C. repair technician with outstanding problem-solving, analytical and decision-making skills. 3 years of formal experience, 7 years informal experience in computer maintenance, network administration and technical troubleshooting. An excellent communicator with the ability to converse complex concepts into easily understood terms.
Education
Western Governors University – Salt Lake City, Utah Aug. 2010 – Present
Bachelor’s of Science – Information Technology – Network Administration
Certifications
Cisco Certified Network Associate
CompTIA Network+
CompTIA A+
MCITP – Enterprise Support Technician
Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician
Professional Experience
Technisource, Inc. – Central Ohio Technical College – Newark, Ohio
August 2010 – November 2010
PC Support Specialist
As a PC Support Specialist at OSU Newark I was responsible for resolving Windows and Mac issues experienced by faculty and staff members in an enterprise networked environment. The included the support of operating system issues in Windows XP/7 and Mac OS X, the Microsoft Office 2007 suite, hardware and software repair, workstation imaging, batch file designs, setup of networked laser printers. As a PC Support Specialist for a technical college, instructing faculty on effective use of current technologies was a top priority, therefore exceptional communications skills were necessary.
Supported Technologies
- Windows 7, Windows XP, Mac OS X
- Ricoh and HP Laser Printers
- Phone Support
- Virus Removal
- Hardware and Software Repair
- Active Directory Users and Computers Maintenance
- Microsoft Office 2007
- BitLocker
Integrity Computers – Lindale, Texas March 2007 – March 2010
Desktop / Network Support Technician
Responsibilities included the diagnosis and repair of computer and network issues. Common issues included Internet connectivity, printer problems, the identity and
removal of viruses, Operating System installs, hardware installs, and the optimization of networking devices and creating software images. This included providing IT support for multiple small businesses in the area which were on service contract.
Supported Technologies
- Wireless Networks
- Windows XP, Vista and 7
- Linux (Ubuntu)
- Mac OS X
- Building and Running Ethernet Cables.
- LAN Management (Routers, Switches and IP address issues)
- Phone Support
- Virus Removal
- Hardware and Software Repair
- Active Directory Maintenance
Calvary Commission – Lindale, Texas March 2007 – May 2009
Technology Director
My responsibilities at Calvary Commission included the maintenance of a 30 station workgroup network. This involved the troubleshooting and resolution of all software and hardware issues and the use of either global polices (XP Pro) or registry tweaks (XP Home) to secure workstations and limit users from performing potential security threatening tasks. This position also included the building of cabling, setup of network shares and the resolving of printer, workstation and network errors. When needed my duties also included the assigning of technical issues to office personnel with adequate abilities to resolve them. A key area to my success at Calvary Commission was being able to perform the above tasks in very cost effective ways.
Supported Technologies
- Windows 98, 2K, XP
- Building and Installing Ethernet Cables and Patch Panels
- Phone Support
- Virus Removal
- Hardware and Software Repair
- Website Maintenance (http://www.calvarycommission.org)
Technical Skills
OS/Environments: Linux (Ubuntu), Windows (XP, Vista, 7), MS-DOS, Mac OS X
Platforms/Protocols: Personal computers, server, routers, hubs, switches, Frame Relay, Ethernet, TCP/IP
Software: Microsoft Office Suite, Quickbooks, Microsoft Visual Studio, Adobe Photoshop CS2, Dreamweaver
Languages: HTML, CSS, ASP.NET
Networking: Cisco Catalyst Switches, Cisco 2500 series routers, LAN, WAN, TCP/IP, Frame Relay
Posted in Rick
Tagged A+, CCNA, Columbus, customer service, Mac Technician, MCITP, Network+, Ohio, PC Technician, resume, system support specialist
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Download my Resume
I am currently seeking a PC/Mac Support Technician position in the greater Columbus, Ohio area. Below you will find links to my resume in pdf format.
Posted in Rick
Tagged A+, CCNA, Columbus, customer service, Mac Technician, Network+, Ohio, PC Support Specialist, PC Technician
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A+ Study Material
I am offering my CompTIA A+ cram guide for others to have. While studying I found that certain hardware and operating system concepts were my weak areas. Therefore, I made a study guide to help me in my weak areas. Below is the guide that I came up with. If you are serious about passing the A+ you have to use multiple sources of study material. This is my little contribution to help you. Good luck on exam day.
Warning: I am in no way an instructer. Furthermore, If you do not put a lot of effort into your studies you will not pass and it will be noones fault but your own. I am in no why responsible for anyone but me and my family .
Posted in Computer Fixes, Rick
Tagged A+, A+ Practice Test, CompTIA A+, Study Materials
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Deleting Active Desktop Components
WARNING: Editing the Windows registry can render your computer useless. By using the below advise there is an understanding that you know what you are doing. Therefore, I cannot be held liable for your mistakes. Proceed at your own risk!
There may be a situation when you need to delete an active desktop component via the registry. In this example we will be walking through deleting an active desktop component for the Default Users profile in Windows XP. This profile is what is used to build profiles for new users when they log-on.
First we need to open regedit.exe and load the Default User hive.
- Click Start -> Run
- Type regedit
- Highlight HKEY_USERS
- Click File -> Load Hive
- Browse to C:\Documents and Settings\Default User . If you are unable to see “Default User” then you need to enable the showing of hidden files and folders. To do that open “My Computer” -> Click Tools -> Folder Options -> View -> Click the radio button next to “Show Hidden Files and Folders”.
- Double click the ntuser file at the bottom. This is the registry hive for setting specific to the default user profile. Consequently, these will be the registry setting for new users who login.
- Once you have loaded the hive, you will be prompted for a Key Name. This can be whatever you want it to be. I like to choose “Default User Profile” for the sake of simplicity.
- Now click on the plus(+) sign next to HKEY_USERS and the plus sign next to the name you typed in the box in step 6.
- The key you need to delete to eliminate the Active Desktop component from displaying will be under:
- HKEY_USERS\name entered in step6\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Desktop\Components
- Once there you will see numbered folders on the left. These corespond with the lists of Desktop Components in the setting screen. Delete the numbered folder on the left and you will be deleting the Active Desktop Component.
- Reboot and login as a new user and the component will not display.
Obviously this is a good fix in a networked environment. This will eliminate you from having to make changes and coping the current profile to the Default User profile (we all know we shouldn’t be doing that).
Posted in Computer Fixes, Rick
Tagged Active Desktop, default user profile, deleting active desktop component, registry
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Small Church in Mexico
This picture was taken while on a short-term missions trip with Calvary Commission. I gave a short testimony in this small church in a barrio.
Posted in Rick
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