In previous blog posts we evaluated the advantages and disadvantages of free email. Hosted email solutions are the alternative to using free email services. With hosted email you can have a greater amount of control and support throughout the entire emailing process. Typically when you send an email with a free email service and the recipient never receives it you are basically stuck just trying to send it again. With a hosted email solution you can request support from a server administrator to review logs and track what happened to the message. In many situations a free email service will not offer help in any way and you are stuck without being to email that recipient. The hosted email solution gives you access to the people and tools needed to resolve the problem.
Why won’t the fax machine die???
For a moment, if we may, let’s first consider what a fax machine actually is, rather than what it does. Fax machines are a combination of antiquated technology. It is simply a document feeder, attached to a low quality scanning element (which reduces document quality), and transmits the scan through an ancient modem (which takes a long time).
Back in the day, this was all new technology and was great, because you could send a ‘picture’ through the phone line. We all know very well that nowadays, we can do better. Most fax machines transmit data over an analog phone line at a rate of 14,400 bps (that is Bytes per second, BYTES!). That is very slow, even for modem standards. For a comparison, we now have broadband lines that are capable of more than 100mbps (100mbps X 1000Kbytes X 1000Bytes = 100,000,000 Bytes!).
Buying a Printer
Tired of spending so much money to print? Tired of repairing your old printer so often? Tired of making several frequent trips to the supply store for toner? Here is a breakdown of which type of printer you should buy!
How many printers does your business have? Why do you need more than one?
- Multiple printers in an office are often hard to manage and maintain.
- Document security issues can warrant a personal (secure) printer.
How are the printers hooked up and arranged in the office? Is it necessary to share printers?
- Shared printers are very difficult to troubleshoot.
- Walk time between printers could be spent more productively.
- Centralizing printing can increase productivity and decrease cost at the same time.
Problem With Buying By Features
Most service providers and software manufacturers sell by enticing you with a list of features and trying to be “price competitive” (meaning they want to be the lowest). After sitting through hundreds of these sales presentations and reviewing our internal systems, here are a few things that I have learned along the way.
Just because the product says it has a feature does not mean it does. I am not saying the product representative is lying because they are usually not. But what they don’t tell you is how it works and that it is a work around that will consume more time than it saves.
Internet Explorer vs Other Browsers
Many people ask, “What is the best internet browser out there?” & “Why should I use Internet Explorer over other browsers?” When you compare Internet Explorer 9 to other web browsers (i.e – Chrome, Firefox, Safari, etc.) there is really no comparison. Internet Explorer currently dominates the market share at 45.53%, while its closest competitors Firefox at 22.46% and Google Chrome at 19.79% as of October 2011.
Nothing Is Free
In our experience we have come to the conclusion that nothing on the web is free. Specifically, when you download “free” movies, music, games, software, etc. it may come with a little added bonus of “SPYWARE!”
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The 24×7 Myth
A common question asked of support teams for IT systems is: “Do you have 24×7 technical support?” This is a common feature and selling point in the managed service provider industry. A majority of companies claim to provide 24×7 support, but in practice you receive significantly less service.
That is NOT 24×7!
Let’s explore some common scenarios.
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Your Work Computer Is Not A Toy
Can you afford to be without your work computer for a few days, even weeks? Read the following email we recently received from one of our clients pertaining to this vary situation:
“Hello,
My husband’s computer is down and he used mine to check his email and opened a
message that may have contained a virus (it appeared to be from his father). I immediately shutdown and upon reopening all
things appear okay, but as you can imagine, I cannot afford to have my computer
inoperable even for a day. Not sure what you can do, but thought I’d better ask.
Thanks,
Customer XYZ”
Why “Free” Email Isn’t Really Free
In today’s modern world just about everyone has an email account. We use it to communicate with loved ones, friends and for work. Many users receive an email address from their employer but separate personal and work related emails by setting up a personal email account at one of the MANY free email providers. The majority of users don’t find it acceptable to “pay” for a personal email account and thus one of the free email providers is utilized. The problem is just because you don’t pay a subscription fee for your email doesn’t mean you don’t end up paying for it!
Purchasing New Computer Hardware
Purchasing hardware to upgrade your PC can be confusing, time consuming, and just downright frustrating to make sure that you are getting the right parts.
One of the first things to consider when thinking about upgrading is whether the cost of the upgrade will even be worth it. Thinking about long term costs, it could very well be a better idea to upgrade the whole computer. In many cases, it can be cost effective to simply add more RAM, or upgrade a video card. In some cases, especially when the computer is older than 4 years, it is probably a good idea to upgrade your whole system.