‘Small Business’ Archives
Alternatives to Outlook
I've been asked about this more times than I can remember, so I figured I'd just do an article about it....What are some alternatives to Microsoft Outlook. To fully disclose I still cling on to my Outlook for my windows machine, but I do use other software for my linux machines. So I've done some testing and some asking around and found [...]
Removing Crapware
Crapware (or bloatware) is unwanted software alreay installed on a new PC. This software has started to come bundled with other software you may want on your computer. For example most software I install on my computers now, I have to pay close attention to, because it wants to install a browser or toolbar or sometimes even virus or [...]
Q&A Monday: Adobe PDF Printing Alternative
Question: I am currently looking for a more cost-effective solution than adobe for printing PDF files. I am not looking to edit or create forms, just to print existing documents to PDF. While looking around I've found a couple products, but they wanted too much money for the full versions, any suggestions? Davina Knight Raft [...]
Conserving Bandwidth Tips
In today's world, IT budgets all over the place have been cut down to the bone, and maybe you're users are starting to hog up all the bandwidth and you don't have the money in the budget to increase the bandwidth, what do you do? Well there are ways that you can squeeze more out of your current bandwidth by adding some software or hardware [...]
Q&A Monday: Controlling the IT Budget
Question: I am under great pressure from management to decrease our IT budget for next year, while providing the same level of services. I've spent time with my team trying to figure out service contracts or software upgrades to cut, what are some of the ways you've cut budgets? Judith R. Eastman Knoxville, TN Answer: It has been some [...]
Q&A Monday: Hold onto spare parts?
Question: Jim, I have a boss that constantly wants us to keep computer equipment, even though most of it is trash. He claims that the parts will come in handy if we need them down the line, but we have some computer parts for over 10 years, does it really pay to hold on to technology? Bobby Hancock Mountain View, CA Answer: I have [...]
Bad Manager Behaviors
This week I started thinking about the bad managment behaviors that could quickly kill the moral of your workers. Luckily, I've dodged this bullet and havn't had any horrible managers, but have seen my share of them and the havoc they bring on their teams. Some of these problems can be worked on and corrected and some are just personality [...]
Safe Web Browsing Myths
More often than not, if you are reading articles from this site, you consider yourself a savvy computer user. Though many of us think that we are using the internet in a safe way, we are actually vulnerable to malware or viruses. The problem I often run into, is that people think getting infected is about going to seedy internet sites or [...]
Windows Security Best Practices
In todays age, you can not be too secure when it comes to your network it's better to be safe than sorry. In the current economy I've seen many companies consolidate jobs and add new burden to already over-burdened admins. One of the places where this will hurt companies is the network security departments. I've learned many security faux [...]
Q&A Monday: Hide Accounts from XP Welcome Screen
Question: I am currently setting up a couple of computers for a small business and not in a domain, and they prefer the Windows XP Welcome menu to log on to the computer. I have set up an Administrator account and would like that account to be hidden from the welcome screen. Adam E. Jones Dallas, TX Answer: To [...]
