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Steve Jobs
The world lost an unabashed free-thinker and innovator yesterday.
We, in the IT industry, will morn Steve Jobs’ passing.
He changed they way man interacts with machines forever.
Non-profits can save BIG on software from Microsoft
Do you operate a not for profit corporation? Did you know that many software companies like Microsoft will give your non-profit the software it needs free of charge?
You need to know how to ask, and we can help with that.
Office 2011 and the Mac are real winners
Ok I’ll admit it.
For a decade and a half I was a “PC-guy”. I viewed the Mac as a “toy” operating system for artsy types and other “unsophisticated” users. Aside from the perceived snobbery of the Apple “in crowd” the main reason I eschewed the platform was the lack of compatibility with mainstream applications.
My how times have changed.
The new version of MS Office, for example, takes Mac OS compatibility with the PC to a new level. Gone is the clunky email tool “Entourage” replaced with a full-blown version of Outlook which, with very few exceptions, delivers all the features of its PC brethren. Word, Excel and Powerpoint also join the ranks with incredibly easy-to-use and full-featured renditions of the productivity staples.
In addition, Apple has brought so many innovations to the notebook genre, that one would truly be remiss not to at least consider switching to Mac form the PC.
To name a few, the multi-touch gesture support especially in Mac OS Lion creates a user experience unlike any other. Single, double, triple, and even quadruple finger gestures, taps and swipes bring the OS alive and put the user in total control of a beautifully interactive computing experience.
The battery life, form factor and overall beauty of the newly-designed Macbook Air have to be experienced to be believed. Mine runs for at least 7 hours on a charge and weighs less than 3 pounds. Heck, it even comes with a video tutorial on how to make the change from being a PC user to a being a Mac user.
How “Smart” is your smartphone?
Have you got a Blackberry, Android, IPhone, or Windows Mobile handheld?
Sure… you can get your e-mail on it, but are your calendars, contacts, and to-do lists instantly synced to and from your device to your office PC?
If not, they should be!
Did you know that RIM (Blackberry) gives their enterprise sync software for Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes away free for the asking? Yup, unlimited users too. You’ll need someone to install and set it up, of course, and that where CARISMA can help.
Apple IPhone, Android, and Windows Mobile users can sync directly to Microsoft Exchange with no additional setup or software required.
All good stuff, there for the asking FREE!!!
Windows Small Business Server 2011 Upgrade Process Gets High Marks
We recently took two clients from Windows Small Business Server 2003 and 2008 respectively to the new 2011 version of the product using the published migration instructions provided by Microsoft.
We have to say that the process was, on the whole, painless and simple to perform.
Unlike previous versions of SBS that would not allow another SBS server to exist on the same network, 2011 will co-exist with your old SBS server for 21 days in “migration mode” allowing you to take your time performing the migration steps.
During the upgrade process, the two servers operate in harmony with each other sharing the Exchange mail delivery responsibly and Active Directory functions.
Clear and concise steps are provided for the migration of Exchange Mailboxes, user data files, and Sharepoint sites.
Once all the data are moved, server roles are transferred and an orderly demotion and subsequent removal of your old SBS server is performed.
The net result is a seamless upgrade with minimal user impact and no loss of user profile data, customizations or calendar and appointment functionality.
In fact, the most painful step of the entire migration was re-issuing the new self signed certificate for remote access by smartphones and laptops. But even this process was simple and clear.
In short, if you are running an old version of Small Business Server such as 2003, there are many benefits to the 2011 upgrade.
- Incredible improvements in Exchange functionality
- HTML email on android and windows mobile devices
- Very robust Outlook Web Access (OWA) e-mail client
- Web-based access to network file shares
- Vastly improved administrator functions and consolidated tools for security and update management
With the obsolescence of Server 2003 fast approaching, this is a great time to begin planning for an upgrade to 2011 Small Business Server.
Contact us for pricing and and full feature upgrade proposal
Apple IPhone 5.0 reportedly launches October 4
Microsoft To Release New Phone OS Code Named “MANGO”
Microsoft is prepping to begin pushing out the Mango update to Windows Phone, possibly as soon as September 27.
In prepration for the rollout of the “Mango” operating system update for existing Windows Phone users which is expected this week — mostly likely starting on September 27 — Microsoft officials are laying the groundwork.
The Windows Phone NZ site broke the news on September 26 that Microsoft apparently would allow developers working with the near-final Mango bits to move straight to the Mango release-to-manufacturing (RTM) version of the operating system. Microsoft officials confirmed the news — via a Tweet — a number of hours later.
Myths of Online Data Backups
1
Online Backup Services are only half the answer.
We’ve all heard the radio ads for online backup solutions. While they have their place there are some very good reasons why you should still be taking local backups and here’s why.
- Online backup services are file-based. File based backups cannot recover a windows server from a complete crash. If you are using only online backup for your server you will have to completely re-create your server from installation CD’s and rebuild your entire network before you can even begin restoring files from your online backup service.
- Online backup services depend on your internet connection for backup and recovery. If your internet connection goes down (as it probably will in a disaster situation) you will not be able to recover your backed up files.
- Most businesses have upwards of 20 to 30 Gb of corporate date on their servers. The time required to transmit that amount of data across even the highest speed internet connections is more than 20 hours. In order to retrieve your data in the event of a server crash you would have to wait for nearly a full day.
Why should you be using local disc-based backups instead of or in addition to Online Backups?
- Local disc-based image backups give you immediate access to your files
- Local disc-based image backups give you the ability to completely restore a server to the same or different hardware in less than one hour.
- Local disc-based image backups are portable and be easily loaded into Virtualization environments such as VMware. Thus in an emergency, your server backup images can be taken to another location and brought up to run-state in just hours.
If your business cannot afford downtime, you need to talk to us!
Virtualization Works!
Server Virtualization Saves Money!
If you haven’t explored the option of server consolidation, you are literally burning money on power bills and hardware TCO (Total Cost of Ownership)
Talk to a server specialist to learn how Virtualization can help you make your IT infrastructure:
- Faster
- More Cost Effective
- More Robust
- More Reliable
- Less Expensive to Operate