MSPNetworks Blog

If you feel like you have too many browser tabs open at any given time, then you'll be happy to know that you can sometimes save certain browser tabs as a standalone application on your device. This will give them their own icon and make accessing them much easier than constantly navigating to them through your web browser.

When someone mentions cookies, people start paying attention. Chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, snickerdoodles… Browser? While Browser cookies aren’t the most scrumptious, they do need some attention. Nowadays, many websites you visit have a popup asking if they want to allow cookies for that site and knowing what you are agreeing to is important. In today’s blog, we will describe what cookies are, how they work, and why they can sometimes be better than cookies with chocolate chips. 

Since its domain was first registered on September 15, 1997, Google has exploded from a relatively simple search engine to the massive assortment of platforms and services that fall under the Alphabet umbrella. That being said, most people tend to think of very specific aspects of Google’s Search function… like the amusing Easter Eggs that the platform has become somewhat famous for.

Let’s explore some of the many, many jokes and entertaining features that Google has added to Search over the years. Who knows, you might find out about a new favorite.

Full Disclaimer: Google Has WAY Too Many Easter Eggs to Cover Here Comprehensively

Honestly, this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. With these Easter eggs first being secreted into Google’s assorted offerings back in 2000, the sheer volume of these hidden features has grown to be truly significant. Plus, some of them are no longer active, being tied to a specific day or event—for example, the search for “2/22/22” made the phrase “Happy Twosday 2You!” appear on that day, but no longer. 

Others have been rendered inoperable with Google’s shift to an infinite scroll format, rather than pages, as the “Goooo…gle” indicator housed many of these Easter eggs as well.

Many, many of them, however, are still active, with more being added all the time… just do a quick search for “Barbie” for a practical example of how up-to-date these Easter eggs are kept. So, let’s explore some that are (as of this writing) still active.

A Tiny Sample of Google’s Easter Eggs

• Searching for “dvd screensaver” will cause the Google logo in the top left corner to begin bouncing around the screen, changing colors as it goes, similarly to—you guessed it—the screensaver that DVD players would display after remaining idle for too long.
• Searching for “text adventure” and then using the Ctrl+Shift+J shortcut to open the developers console will give you access to a Google-themed text-based adventure game, where you set out in search of the letters in the word “Google.” As a bonus Easter egg within an Easter egg, responding “no” to the introductory prompt “would you like to play a game” produces a reference to the 1983 movie WarGames.
• Searching for “puppy/puppies/dog/canine” or “kitten/cat” will produce a button that, when clicked, will cause a paw belonging to the corresponding animal to swipe up and leave a paw print behind.
• Searching for “define anagram” asks you if you meant to search for “nerd fame again,” which itself is an anagram of “define anagram.”
• Searching for “pi” will produce the Google calculator with the pi symbol prominent. Clicking it will start a memory game that takes the player through the digits of pi.
• Searching for “meteor shower” will darken the screen momentarily as three meteors pass by, shifting back to the way it was once they have passed.
• Searching for “netwon/Isaac Newton” will produce a button with an apple tree on it, which causes an apple to fall down the screen when clicked, just as the legend goes about how the physicist conceptualized the theory of gravity.
• Searching for “han/greedo shot first” will show the alternate result, posed as a “Did you mean” at the top of the screen. 
• Searching for “the one ring” will ask if you meant “my precioussss,” in a nod to Gollum from The Lord of the Rings.
• Searching for “world’s best boss” will ask “Did you mean Michael Scott” as a reference to Steve Carell’s character from The Office.
• Searching for “breathing exercise” will pull up a functional breathing exercise that you can follow along with.
• Searching for “pac-man/google pacman/play pacman” will pull up a functioning game of Pac-Man with a board designed around the Google logo. 
• Searching for “the answer to the ultimate question of life the universe and everything" brings up the Google Calculator, presenting the answer “42.” This is a reference to the Douglas Adams novel The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, and has been around since the first Easter eggs were developed—even predating the calculator feature it now appears in. 

When We Said This Was a Tiny Sample, We Meant It

There are dozens more Easter eggs to have fun with, and we encourage you to seek them out and see what the developers at Google do in between major projects to keep themselves sharp. If you find a fun one, be sure to let us know when you call us to learn more about our managed services!

It probably isn’t hard to think of a time when you’ve stumbled across something that would be useful for work while you were doing some personal browsing. What if I told you there was an easy way to send a website to your browser to view later? Thanks to Google Chrome, this is the case.

Let’s discuss how you can use Chrome’s multi-platform nature to your advantage to access the same web page on different devices.

Chrome Users Have a Few Options to Push Web Pages Between Devices

First off, simply being signed into the same Chrome account gives you the option to access a page from your history, as activity from all devices will be tracked. All you have to do is access Chrome and open History by pressing Ctrl+H when using a computer, or accessing Recent tabs from the three-dot menu in the Chrome mobile application.

If you’re in the process of reading something, however, and want to proactively have it ready on another device to continue viewing it, Chrome also supports this. When using the desktop, there’s a small icon in the address bar that looks like a corner with an arrow emerging from it. Clicking this icon, or alternatively right-clicking on the browser tab’s title will give you the ability to Send to your devices, with a list of all devices you’re signed into appearing for you to select from. If you’re on an Android device, access the three-dot menu and select the Share option. You’ll be provided a variety of options, including one to Send to your devices.

We’re committed to doing anything we can to help make your time in the office easier, whether it's through tips like this or through our comprehensive IT services. Learn more about the latter by giving us a call at (516) 403-9001 today!

How often does this scenario happen to you? You’re going about your workday and are being quite productive, when all of a sudden you close the wrong tab in your web browser, putting an end to your productivity. This isn’t crippling downtime or anything, but it’s an inconvenience that we know you can do without. Thankfully, modern web browsers let you reopen closed tabs or windows to get back to where you left off.

How to Reopen a Closed Tab or Window in Google Chrome

For the purposes of this tutorial, we’ll use Google Chrome for our examples, but know that the other popular web browsers have similar functionality, and the process is similar if not identical to perform the same tasks.

First, close out one of your other web browsers. Go ahead, do it. We’re confident you can get it back, as long as you’re not filling out a form or there is other sensitive content on it that must be re-entered. After you’ve closed the tab or window, right-click the Plus icon as if you were going to open a new tab. You’ll see an option for Reopen Closed Tab. This will reopen the last closed tab, just like it says. You can even do this multiple times for multiple tabs, too.

For a quick reference, you can use the keyboard shortcut as well: Ctrl + Shift + T.

Reopen a Closed Window in Google Chrome

But what if you accidentally close the entire window without realizing it? Thankfully, Chrome has functionality for this, too, and it’s just as simple. Go ahead and open up a new window for testing purposes. Next, close out of it by clicking on the X button in the top right corner of the window. Go back to your current browsing session and right-click the tab bar at the top of your screen. If the last thing you closed was a different window, you’ll see the option for Reopen Closed Window. Go ahead and click it. Your closed window should reappear.

The keyboard shortcut for this is just as easy: Ctrl + Shift + W.

That’s all there is to it! It’s a simple but helpful tip to be just a little more productive with your day.

What other tips would you like to see us write about on our blog? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe.

It’s easy to open up far more tabs on your web browser than you need, especially when so many tools are cloud-based. If you find yourself in need of a quick way to close all other tabs besides a handful or so, we’ve got just the tip for you. You can close all open tabs to the right of your preferred window, or you can close all tabs outright.

Close All Other Tabs

If you have one specific page that you want to remain open, then it’s very easy to close all other tabs that you have open. All you have to do is right-click on your chosen tab and select the option for Close Other Tabs. You’ll notice that all other tabs will close, leaving you with just your chosen tab open.

Close Tabs to the Right

If you want to leave multiple tabs open, however, you can do this pretty easily, too. You can close all tabs to the right of your chosen tab. Just take a moment to organize your tabs so that all the ones you want to close are on the right side of any particular tab. To close them all out, right-click on the chosen tab and select Close Tabs to the Right. All tabs to the right side of this tab will close out. Pretty handy, huh?

Sometimes it’s the little tips that make a big difference in the way you go about the workday, and this one can potentially save you loads of time and frustration. For more great tips and tricks, keep your eyes on our blog feed.

When you go to a website you have never been to before, there is often a splash page that asks if you would like to accept cookies. It doesn’t mean you are getting a care package, it just means that you accept a formal interaction with the website you’re on. Let’s take a look at browser cookies

What Are Browser Cookies, Anyways?

In a way, a browser cookie is a little bit like a name tag that your computer wears when it communicates with a network. When your computer connects to the network in question (generally speaking, the Internet) a text file is generated. That file is what is known as a cookie, and it helps the browser give you the most customized browsing experience it can.

Basically, by creating these browser/HTTP/Internet cookies, your browser retains data that is tracked during your browsing sessions—tech-talk for the time you spend on a website. The first time you visit a website, the website’s host server shares information with your browser that is saved in the browser as a cookie. The next time you visit that website, your browser shares that data with the website so it can show you information based on your prior sessions.

This is how a website can keep you logged in when your browser is closed out and reopened, or save the items you’ve put in a shopping cart. Cookies are actually what makes the “back” button work in your browser.

However, Some Cookies are Different

It is important that we acknowledge that, so far, we’ve exclusively discussed first-party cookies—those created by websites you visit directly. These cookies are for the most part harmless, provided you’re not visiting unsafe websites.

There are also third-party cookies, which come from other websites than the one you’ve navigated to. Online ads often generate these to help track a user’s online behaviors.

Session cookies are those that help you retain information only during a specific browsing session, and marketing cookies track your activity to customize advertisements to your apparent interests. Have you ever noticed Amazon ads that display items similar to what you’ve recently been looking for? These marketing cookies are the reason that’s possible.

There are also cookies that give webmasters the information and metrics they need to improve their websites, called performance cookies and analytical cookies. These track things like the amount of time a user spends on different parts of the website and which pages are the most popular amongst visitors.

Of Course, Cookies Have a Bad Name for a Reason

It isn’t a secret that there are malicious cookies out there, those that collect more data than you’d like to share and potentially leave it on the table for threats. This is why you should be sparing in the number of cookies you enable on your company devices, and it doesn’t hurt to clear out your cookies every so often.

Removing Cookies in Different Browsers

In Google Chrome:

• Click into the three-dot menu
• Click into Settings
• Click into Privacy and security
• Click Clear browsing data
• Select Advanced
• Determine the time period to delete cookies from, and click Clear data

In Mozilla Firefox

• Click into Options
• Click into Privacy & Security
• Click into Cookies and Site Data
• Select Clear Data

In Microsoft Edge:

• Click into Settings
• Click into Privacy and services
• Find Clear browsing data, and Choose what to clear
• Select your time range and click Clear now

It is important to understand what your technology is capable of, or at least have a resource who does. We can be that resource for you. Call (516) 403-9001 to learn more about our IT support and consulting services.

Goodbyes are always painful, but we suspect that this one for Microsoft’s Internet Explorer will be more on the bittersweet side of things. Long a staple in the web browsing world, Internet Explorer has largely been removed from devices running Windows 10 and Windows 11. Let’s take a moment to discuss the approach Microsoft is using to slowly phase Internet Explorer out of the web browsing space.

First, it should be mentioned that Internet Explorer is not necessarily “dead,” so to speak. Its successor, Microsoft Edge, does in fact have an IE mode that allows organizations to utilize the browser for specific needs, like if a web page or application requires the use of IE for whatever reason. Still, in most cases, you will find that Internet Explorer is no longer available, nor does it need to be.

For those of us who are running Windows 11, you might notice that Microsoft omitted Internet Explorer entirely from the operating system. Now, Windows 10 users will notice something similar happening, with version 20H2 having removed Internet Explorer. Do note that enterprise and server editions of Windows 10 remain unaffected by this. The same can be said for any users of Windows 8.1, 7, or lower; if you are using one of these earlier versions of Windows, you get to keep your precious Internet Explorer.

Internet Explorer might still be available in the Start menu, but instead of opening the web browser, you will instead be redirected to Microsoft Edge. All file types that would normally open up in a web browser like IE will open in Microsoft Edge, assuming you have not changed your default app settings.

Eventually, Microsoft plans to remove any and all traces of Internet Explorer from their operating systems. Users who want to use IE will have to use IE mode through Microsoft Edge. For those worrying about future compatibility with IE mode, worry not–Microsoft will support IE mode well into 2029.

What are your thoughts on Microsoft’s approach to the end of Internet Explorer? Will you miss the old Internet browser or have you long since moved on to other options, like Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to contact us with any questions about what this means for you and your business.

Bookmarks are an essential part of being productive with your Internet browser, but what happens when you switch to a different one, like Google Chrome? Do you have to manually add all of your bookmarks back to the browser? Nope! Let’s go over how you can import your bookmarks directly to Google Chrome and save some time.

Add Bookmarks from Other Web Browsers

Before proceeding, know that you need to have your previous browser installed on the device if you want to import bookmarks from it.

Chrome gives you the capability to directly import bookmarks from other web browsers. You can do so by clicking on the three-dot icon in the top-right corner of the web browser. From here, select Bookmarks > Import Bookmarks and Settings. From here, click on Import and select the browser you want to import from, as well as the Favorites/Bookmarks option from the checklist. After you see the blue checkmark on the screen, click on Done.

Add Bookmarks from an Exported HTML File

If you have exported your bookmarks as a HTML file, you can import them through the same process as outlined above. Instead of selecting the browser you want to import from, simply select Bookmarks HTML file. From here, just select the file that you want to import and you should be all set.

Sync Bookmarks Across Devices

The previously mentioned methods only work for your desktop version of Google Chrome, so you’ll have to sync your bookmarks if you want them on your mobile device. To do this, make sure you are logged into the same Google account on both devices, then click on the three-dot icon in the top-right corner of Chrome. From here, select Settings. If you want to sync only bookmarks, disable the slider and check the box for Bookmarks.

We hope you found this tip helpful; be sure to subscribe to our blog for even more great tips.

Privacy is a sensitive subject nowadays, especially online. Regardless of the browser you have elected to use, properly using it will have a large impact. Let’s review a few ways that you and your team can help secure your business and its resources and go over these settings.

Promoting Privacy Via Your Browser Settings

Here, we’ve assembled a few best practices that you should keep in mind to help reinforce your browser’s security.

Revise Default Permissions, as Necessary

Before a website is able to access some of your data and peripherals, like your location, your camera, and pop-up windows, it needs to ask you for permission to do so. Too many people set these permissions to on—carte blanche—by default, potentially opening themselves to various attacks and threats.

For instance, by accessing the camera and microphone without informing the user, a cybercriminal could invite themselves to a peek into your personal life, listening and watching for personal moments and data to exploit. Pop-up windows could themselves host threats, and automated downloads could install nasty pieces of malware.

Instead, you should make sure that these permissions are set to Ask before allowing them, while also simply turning these permissions Off when you have no reason to enable them.

Block Third-Party Cookies and Trackers

While websites will often use their own cookies to keep track of users to improve their functionality, there are a lot of other cookies present from third parties that are tracking you as well. By blocking cookies that don’t come from the site you’re browsing and leaving the native ones to operate, you can minimize threats against your business from these sources.

As for trackers, you should be able to switch them off entirely. Trackers have begun to replace cookies as a means of, well, tracking a user’s online behaviors. As a plus, blocking a tracker has a decreased probability of breaking a website, as blocking cookies can at times do. If you cannot block trackers via your browser, you may want to reconsider which browser you are using.

Use Smarter Tools and Utilities to Minimize Your Risks

While different browsers offer different security features, there are certain choices that can help you make the most out of any situation. For instance, you should not sign into any of your accounts on more than one browser. If you’ve decided on Firefox for your Facebook use, only sign into Facebook from Firefox and not from Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge. While you may have disparate Google accounts attached to these services (a company one for work and a personal one for your own use), Google understands that they are all you and will take it upon themselves to merge your activities into their own reference files. You should also avoid using your accounts from Google or Facebook as a form of sign-in, as this will give those companies access to your behaviors on those sites as well.

There are, however, some browser extensions and alternative websites that can help you take back some of your privacy. Some add-ons help to shield your activities from this kind of tracking, while some online services are anonymized and therefore more secure. Identifying the most secure options and committing to them will be crucial to your continued success.

The Internet can be a wonderful resource, but it can also be considerably risky to work with if not prepared. Trust MSPNetworks and our team to help keep you out of trouble. Give us a call at (516) 403-9001 to learn about our many services, including those that can improve your security.

Data and cybersecurity is hard enough without vulnerabilities coming from one of your most utilized applications. That’s the scenario after a bug was found in some of today’s most popular Internet browsers putting billions of people’s data security at risk. Let’s take a brief look at the vulnerability and how you can ensure that it won’t be a problem for you or your company.

Chromium Bug Explained

Internet browsers such as Opera, Edge, and Chrome are built on top of Google’s open-source Chromium platform and therefore share a lot of the same code. Unfortunately, researchers found an exploitable vulnerability in the Chromium code that would allow hackers to bypass the Content Security Policy on websites, leaving them able to steal data or run malicious code. 

What is the Content Security Policy?

The Content Security Policy (CSP) is an Internet standard that was designed to eliminate certain types of cyberattacks. The policy provides access to website administrators to set the domains that an Internet browser sees as legitimate. An Internet browser with a CSP will block scripts that aren’t loaded into the policy’s parameters. Most websites on the Internet use CSP.

How Does the Hack Work?

In order to use the CSP vulnerability in the Chromium-based browser, the hacker first needs to gain access to a web server. There are several ways this can happen, but most commonly, they can use a brute-force attack--that is an attack where so many different iterations of login credentials are used that eventually the password is discovered--is used. Then the attacker alters the JavaScript to allow the nefarious cofe to work, bypassing the CSP completely.  So while it actually takes a successful hack to exploit the vulnerability, it is still extremely dangerous due to the amount of trust people have in, what claim to be, secure websites.

What You Can Do to Ensure Your Browser is Secure

This is a great example of how even the most trusted software could have long-standing security vulnerabilities. The Chrome browser, which reached 5 billion downloads in 2019, carried this vulnerability for over a year. Since being discovered, however, the issue has been patched. As a result, users of Chrome, Microsoft’s Edge, Opera, and Vivaldi will definitely want to update to developers’ newest versions to ensure your browser doesn’t carry this very dangerous vulnerability. 

Staying safe online requires your browser to be updated and patched. If you need help ensuring your business is running patched and up-to-date software, contact the security professionals at MSPNetworks today at (516) 403-9001.

Everyone knows some keyboard shortcuts. The normal ones that allow you to copy, cut, paste, lock your computer, select all, and more. Today, we thought we would tell you about some browser-based shortcuts that can definitely save you time and effort. 

The first thing you are going to want to do if you want to try these shortcuts out right now is to open up a new browser window so that you can follow along with the blog. 

Jump to Address Bar: Ctrl+L

Say you are looking at a recipe from another culture and there are ingredients that you aren’t familiar with. By pressing Ctrl+L you will highlight the text in the address bar. This will allow you to simply type in your query or web address and not have to wrestle with the url without using your mouse at all.

Add the Dot Com: Ctrl+Enter

Do you want an easy way to navigate to a website without having to type out the whole URL? As long as you know the domain name of the site, you can press Ctrl+Enter and it will fill in the “www.” and “.com” bringing you to the website you want to go to without having to enter it manually. 

Open a Search in a New Tab: Alt+Enter

Let’s return to the recipe example. If you would like to search a specific term, but you don’t want to navigate away from the page, typing a query in the address bar and pressing Alt+Enter will automatically open up the search in a new tab.

Open a Website in a New Tab: Ctrl+Alt+Enter

Pressing Ctrl+Alt+Enter will combine the two functions. It will open the domain in a new tab. This is super useful to navigate to a new site quickly. Try it now using “Wikipedia”.

Open Clear Browsing Data: Ctrl+Shift+Delete

After you are done browsing, you may want to delete cookies or some other stuff you might have picked up while you were browsing. Pressing Ctrl+Shift+Delete will open up the page where you can control these settings and clear your browsing data.

These shortcuts will definitely help you navigate your web browser a little bit more efficiently. For more great tips and tricks return to our blog next week. 

Google Chrome is rolling out a neat little update for everyone over the next week (it may already be out for some users by the time this posts). It’s a feature that I know I’m personally going to love, and I didn’t even realize how badly I needed it until now.

Let’s take a look!

Organize Your Browser Tabs in Google Chrome

If you are like me, there are probably times when you have way too many tabs open in your browser. I know when I’m doing research or shopping around for something, I tend to have dozens of tabs open while I’m looking around and trying to make a decision.

Google Chrome is finally offering some sweet sweet salvation for tab-hoarders (Google’s official term is more generous, calling us tab-collectors instead). In an upcoming update, Chrome will allow you to group tabs together and color-code them.

The update should be rolling out this week, but it will hit everyone at different times (Google deploys their updates out slowly).

Once the update has been installed, which by default, Chrome will do automatically, you’ll be able to right-click on tabs and group them together. You’ll be able to apply a color to tabs to keep the top of your browser organized.

Let’s have some fun in the comments - how many browser tabs (counting this site too) do you have open in your browser right now? Are you a tab-hoarder, or a tab-minimalist?