Archive: April 2005

April 29, 2005

Cnet Editor Blasts Tech Vendor Embargos

CNet's Senior Editor, Molly Wood blasts tech vendors for holding on to the "old" strategy of Non Disclosure Agreements...

April 29, 2005

Verizon's Dilemma - To WiFi or Not

For several months Verizon has offered free WiFi service for subscribers to its DSL service. In an effort to...

April 29, 2005

Laplink Updates It's Remote Access Web Service

Laplink Everywhere competes with GoToMyPC and LogMeIn, which let you access a remote PC via a web browser -...

April 29, 2005

Should You Update Software?

Often times Adobe Acrobat Reader and other programs will inform you that you should update your software. A NY Times...

April 28, 2005

Corel WordPerfect's Small Business Edition

It's a tough battle for anyone creating a word processor, but Corel continues to push out steller products. This...

April 28, 2005

HP Survey Confirms: Growing Business WANT Technology

HP released a survey yesterday showing trends in the SMB sector. The survey, for the most part, didn't show anything...

April 28, 2005

Wireless Access Without WiFi

WiFi is just great - when you can get it. While roaming the streets of New York or some...

April 28, 2005

Microsoft Front Page To Include Blogging Tools

Yesterday in the Blog Herald there was an excellent article about why Microsoft would crush SixApart, creators of TypePad...

April 28, 2005

Not Blogs. Not RSS. Newsletters Remain The Killer App

I know that my comments will rain on the gleeful parade of blog totting, RSS blasting writers. However, while RSS...

April 28, 2005

Verizon: Launching New 'Net Based Service

What a party it is in the telecommunications market with so many vendors competing to offer low cost and...

April 27, 2005

Online Business Is Growing As the ONLY Business

There's thousands and thousands of brick and mortar small business across the United States (and the world for that matter)....

April 27, 2005

Flirting With Disaster? Don't. Be Prepared

Disaster recovery is a topic that so many businesses here about, I fear many turn a deaf ear and...

April 27, 2005

Book Review: Get More Out of Microsoft Access

I've used Microsoft Access for many years. It's not simple to use, but is feature rich and enables one...

April 27, 2005

PDA Management For Distributed Users

PDAs and cell phones are often technology tools that the end user figures out on their own, installs whatever they...

April 27, 2005

Microsoft Office Expands Reach With SAP

You'd think the Microsoft Office empire could grow no more, but Microsoft and SAP will work together to ensure that...

April 27, 2005

Internet Fraud: If Users Were Just Wiser

We hear so much about Internet fraud happening online, but sadly so much of the fraud could be stopped if...

April 26, 2005

Register.com - Building Web Sites With Your Telephone

Until last week, I would not have believed that there were still people, smart business owners, who didn't want...

April 26, 2005

Dealing With Customer Support Online

Doing customer service online can be much more important than offline. At a physical retail store, an angry customer...

April 25, 2005

Tech Consultants: More Than Tech...Business Finances

As technology consultants, we (I used to be one) can get caught up in the technical side of our...

April 25, 2005

The Next Microsoft OS Will Be More Secure

The next version of Windows, code named Longhorn, will have security (as previously announced in 2002) embedded in a...

April 25, 2005

25 Questions: Business Continuity Planning

Harvey Betan, Business Continuity Planning Consultant; Contributing Writer Smallbiztechnology.com In my previous article I started to explain what Business Continuity...

April 25, 2005

Using Infographics In Your Business Communication

Eileen P. Parzek, SOHO It Goes! Contributing Writer, Smallbiztechnology.com We learn early in life that "a picture is worth...

April 25, 2005

64bit Computing Explained

TechReport.com offers an excellent overview of 64bit computing and helps you decide if it is for your business or...

April 25, 2005

64bit Windows OS + 64bit CPU = A Much Faster Computing Experience

For those who need more computing power on their Windows' machines, Microsoft is joining the 64bit party with the release...

April 24, 2005

Blogs: Business Week (C+) | CIO Insight Mag (A+)

My fellow writers in the blog-universe are happy that Business Week has blogging as its cover story and in fact...

April 23, 2005

D-Link's Technical Support: EXCELLENT

I've had an ongoing problem with making a wireless print server from D-Link work. For some reason I can...

April 22, 2005

Email: Don't Go Crazy Using It Too Much

Email is no longer just something you check at work - it's now in your home, in your car...

April 22, 2005

The Challenge For "NON-Microsoft" Web Browsers

It's easy for developers to add all sorts of fancy bells and whistles to web browsers that compete with...

April 22, 2005

The Writing Is On The Wall: Microsoft Embracing Linux

For as long as Linux has been around, Microsoft has resisted supporting this alternative operating system. Linux's growth means...

April 21, 2005

Destroying Your Hard Disk's Data The Right Way

When it's time to get rid of your hard disk, due to a hard disk upgrade or just getting an...

April 21, 2005

Web E-Mail: The Best is Yet To Come

I've been using Earthlink's web e-mail client for years and have played with AOL's web based email system. Sure, you...

April 21, 2005

Consultants Is VOIP For Your Customers?

Just because a technology is available does not mean that it is for your business to use - be it...

April 21, 2005

A Field Guide To Hosted Applications

Hosted applications are gaining in popularity for two reasons: It's cost effective (pay monthly, as a service, no huge upfront...

April 20, 2005

Blackberry Software: It's Reaching The "Tipping Point"

When a product begins to create an entire ecosystem of products around it - you KNOW it's a success. Blackberry...

April 20, 2005

TalkSwitch IP/PBX Phone Systems Deliver the Best of Both Worlds to Customers

Since CentrePoint first released TalkSwitch many years ago, I've loved the product. A simple, feature rich appliance and an...

April 20, 2005

Search: Built Into Your Operating System

Search is a very important tool, but often does not work as well as it should. Google (preceded by Yahoo...

April 20, 2005

Wireless Gets Even Better: BlackBerry Prints Via Bluetooth

Technologists, guys/gals on the cutting edge of technology have the most fun and productivity it seems. At the Wireless...

April 20, 2005

Answers.com Recognized by Forbes and PC Magazine

Congrats to Answers.com! GuruNet Corporation (AMEX: GRU), creators of Answers.com, announced today that the reference-based search engine was recently...

April 20, 2005

Software As A Serivce - Hosted Applications

Research firm AMI Partners writes in a report Software-as-Services: Moving On Demand To In Demand with SMBs that "Although interest...

April 20, 2005

Best Software's Peachtree Customers Get Electronic Bill Payment Options

Best Software today announced that it will soon offer electronic bill pay, through the company's partnership with Metavante Corporation, beginning...

April 20, 2005

Jupiter Research Launches A New Research Channel - SMB Marketing

Now tech SMB markters have another option for buying research on SMB's: Jupiter Research. In addition to Garter, IDC, AMI...

April 20, 2005

Book Review: "Snort Cookbook" - Securing your computer system

This book is for those charged with securing computer systems The principles of securing a computer system are no...

April 19, 2005

Palo Alto Software Donates Business Plan Pro to SCORE

The Service Core of Retired Executives is one of the best places a small business person can go to...

April 19, 2005

Book Reviw: Firefox & Thunderbird Garage

If you want to go beyond just using Mozilla's Firefox and Thunderbird, web browswer and email client respectively, you'll want...

April 19, 2005

When Traveling Check Your Wireless Coverage

As you get ready to so some traveling this summer with your family, make sure you can stay connected (at...

April 19, 2005

Broadband Service Prices Are Falling

Broadband telephony provider, 8x8 recently announced a VideoPhone bundle and price reduction. I usually don't post "sales" information but this...

April 19, 2005

Tech Portals Are Branching Out

Cnet @ Work, PC World and other sites are no longer a haven for consumer gadgets are gizmos but...

April 19, 2005

The Pros and Cons of Using Open Source Software

Open Source or "free" software is a huge debate in the IT community. Do you use Microsoft and other "proprietary"...

April 18, 2005

VOIP Another Case For Businesses

I've been writing quite a bit about the use of the Internet for telephone calls and hope you are...

April 18, 2005

Challenging QuickBooks and Money For The Wrong Reasons

Intuit Quickbooks and Microsoft Money own the largest share of financial software, with Intuit having the biggest chunk. I've used...

April 18, 2005

Microsoft: Advertising Old Software For Your To Learn

There's a lot that can be done with Windows that many people don't know how to do. In the...

April 16, 2005

An intellectual Discussion of Spam's Death

USA Today's Andrew Kantor gives us an overview of why spam could, in time, kill itself by putting itself...

April 16, 2005

On The Tech Horizon: WiMax

Just to keep you updated, INTEL is working on premiering WiMax, WiFi on steroids as Business Week writes. WiMax's...

April 16, 2005

There's Many Blogging Options But Don't' Get Confused With The Hype

The Associated Press writes that Blogs are Web sites where individuals can muse about politics, hobbies or everyday life. A...

April 16, 2005

Technology Part 2: The Age of Skype and What This Means for Your Business

Skype, for very good reason, is getting a lot of press. It started out offering, free PC to PC...

April 15, 2005

Virgin Mobile - Embracing Technology For Cusomer Service

Yesterday I activated one of three pre-paid phones that I purchased for a project. I have never used one of...

April 14, 2005

Google Video Hosting Service

It's no longer a rumor, but now Google is launching a video hosting service - click the "submit your...

April 14, 2005

Networking Your Home For Business and Pleasure

I've got an digital projector, DVD/VCR and movies on a hard disk at home. Recently I've loaded thousands of MP3...

April 14, 2005

Old School Chores No More: Memory, Hard Disk upgrades

For a long time I have not heard late 1980's tips like adding memory to your PC, upgrading your hard...

April 14, 2005

The Flat Earth Society

Technology Commentary By David Strom, Editor-in-Chief, Tom's Guides Publishing I am sick and tired of hearing about how the Internet...

April 14, 2005

Sit Up Straight If Your Notebook Computer Will Let You

I've found that using the Microsoft Natural keyboard and Logitech's trackball mouse are the easiest ways to work on...

April 14, 2005

Microsoft's Deal For Office Purchasers Is Very Good

Microsoft has a web site that offers notices of various "sales" on Microsoft products at here. A sale running now,...

April 13, 2005

CRITICAL FLAWS: Microsoft Office and Access

If you use Microsoft Office (who doesn't) and Microsoft's database, Microsoft Access, critical flaws have been found, reports News...

April 13, 2005

Dear Small Business: Get In Yahoo Local For Free

Yahoo wants to beef up it's local listing of small businesses and is going to put YOUR small business...

April 13, 2005

'Net Based Phone Calls. More Powerful Than You Think

For those who rely on telephone service more than most, especially when international communication is important, moving your telephone...

April 13, 2005

Simple Backup Has Its Place

Smallbusinesscomputing reviewed the backup services of SpareBackup a service which does a backup with no user intervention. For VERY,...

April 12, 2005

When Technology Is So Cheap You Just Throw It Away

My Palm Tungsten E has been repeatedly crashing, causing all my data to be lost several times over the past...

April 12, 2005

Survey Says: Email Customer Gets Worse

It costs so much money for companies to receive and place customer support telephone calls, why aren't more using email...

April 12, 2005

Video: Collaboration For Your Business

Cnet's has a VERY good video about how to implement collaboration in your business. See it here. I find that...

April 12, 2005

Adobe About to Release Linux-friendly Reader

Remember how I've been telling you that in order for Linux to grow, it is going to have to...

April 12, 2005

Troy Wild: Novell's SMB Warrior Fighting With Linux And Resellers

Troy Wild is Novell's product manager for small business solutions and although I would think he felt that he has...

April 12, 2005

Plaxo: It's A Business Tool For More Than Address Books

Every now and then I get an email from a Plaxo user asking me to update my contact information,...

April 12, 2005

Keep Your Email & Computer Secure With Encryption

When you send a regular email message it's like sending a postcard to a friend. Everyone who the post...

April 12, 2005

IBM/Lenovo - Not Sitting Still:
Researching Longer Battery Life

The great thing about mobile technology is wireless mobility. But no matter how wireless you are and able to connect...

April 12, 2005

SpyWare Continues To Be A Concern Of IT Managers

Network and online security company, Trend Micro, commissioned a study by Cnet's Trech Republic that proves that spyware is...

April 11, 2005

TechTarget Launches A New Magazine: CIO Decisions

I received the first issue of TechTarget's CIO Decisions magazine today. According to the web site CIO Decisions' mission...

April 11, 2005

Bluetooth: It's Growing Up. Use It More.

Bluetooth is a technology with so much potential but used so little. For the most part Bluetooth is used to...

April 11, 2005

Blogs: Ignore The Media And Create a Blog

A headline of one of the New York Times stories today was, "Blogs Incensed Over Pulitzer Photo Award". When reading...

April 11, 2005

Silex's USB Servers: Powerful & Simple Network Tool

Last week I tried out one of Silex's USB servers which enable you to connect any USB device directly...

April 11, 2005

Using Flash In Your Web Site: Do It With Caution

Web sites built using Macromedia's Flash are fancy, flashy and nice looking. However, they take a longer time to load...

April 11, 2005

Online Fraud: When Online Keep It In Mind

Online fraud, or phishing is not going away, but is only getting more sophisticated, which makes it all the more...

April 11, 2005

Customer Service: When to Use A Computer, When To Use A Human

With advances is technology it's getting much easier to make customer service automated - taking away the human element...

April 9, 2005

IT Cheat Sheets

Have you ever wished you had a handy reference of computer terms and tips? SearchSMB has compiled a list...

April 9, 2005

GoDaddy: We Won't Go Offshore
Using Customer Support As a Competitive Advantage

Domain Name and Internet services mega-provider, GoDaddy has opened it's third customer support call center and REFUSES to go offshore...

April 8, 2005

Book Review: Linux On Your Desktop

Using Linux on the server is the domain of technology experts. However, if Linux is going to grow it's...

April 8, 2005

Pay Per Click Adv: Don't Get Burned

Pay Per Click advertising is one of the best ways a small business can advertise online. 1. Cost &...

April 8, 2005

Why Dell Continues To Grow

While many of its competitors are facing various problems Dell continues to smoothly execute and find room for even...

April 7, 2005

Solutions for Printing While On The Road

The NY Times has such a great article about mobile printing solutions when traveling. The article reads IT'S not unusual...

April 7, 2005

Google: Making Storage A Commodity. Why It Will Win. Just Like Dell

There's one thing that Google is CLEARLY making a commodity and just like Dell if it can take this...

April 7, 2005

Ziff Davis Strengthens its Reseller Channel Editorial Team

I think one of the leading voice for resellers is CMP Media's VarBusiness which has a print magazine and online...

April 6, 2005

Desktop Linux Making Inroads on Campaign for Wider Retail Distribution

Linspire, Inc. today announced the availability of its new desktop Linux operating system, Linspire Five-0, at more than 1,000 major...

April 6, 2005

WiFi Urban Renewal: It Can Happen In Your City

David Strom, Editor-in-Chief, Tom's Guides publishingSince I moved here, I have found that there are two things that get Californians...

April 6, 2005

Google's Gmail - It's The Best

I've used Microsoft Oulook, Microsoft Oulook Express, Netscape Mail, Mozilla's Thunderbird, Qualcomm's Eudora and other email programs. By far,...

April 6, 2005

Forced Microsoft XP Service Pack Upgrade

If you don't want to download Microsoft XP Service Pack - you might be forced to if you are using...

April 6, 2005

The IT Generalist Makes A Comeback

There's three kinds of IT people. 1) Those who know one thing well (xml, security, etc) but aren't much use...

April 6, 2005

Skype: When Developers Might Hinder Your Growth

Every great software vendor has a network of developers who add value to their core product suite by making...

April 6, 2005

Why Wireless Carriers Are Hindering You

Washington Post's Rob Pegoraro writes Despite immense advances in technology, we face the same basic constraints that our grandparents...

April 6, 2005

No-Data-Backup Horror Stories

Data backup is so important for businesses but many businesses back up businesses two ways: 1. No back up 2....

April 5, 2005

IBM Thinkpad - The Mercedes of Notebook Computers

Once again IBM continues to show its leadership in building absolutely amazing notebook computers with the release of its latest...

April 5, 2005

Book Review: Getting Started with SharePoint Collaboration Services

There's nothing like teamwork for making progress on a project, but sharing information and building on each other's successes...

April 5, 2005

Document Manager Is Snoozing in the Corner

Your relationship with your trusty document provider -- your copier -- has become a bit predictable. First it was...

April 5, 2005

Do You Know Where Your Vehicle Fleet Is?

Smaller companies can get that "Fedex" like tracking with Verizon's new fleet management service for only $50 per month and...

April 5, 2005

Study: Linux and Microsoft Are Equal

A recent Yankee Group study reports that there is very little difference between the cost of maintaining a Windows versus...

April 5, 2005

Don't Let Your Modem Get Hijacked

Have you ever heard your computer's modem dialing in the middle of the night - with no intervention by...

April 5, 2005

Linux's Growth Might Be Led By Government Use

Linux continues to challenge Microsoft's dominance in the market and grow in use world wide. Server growth is explosive but...

April 5, 2005

Broadband Prices Are Decreasing

It's not only storage (ie Gmail) prices that are lowering but broadband as well. Verizon announced plans to charge...

April 4, 2005

The Trepid Google-ization of Smallbiztechnology.com

Today I switched fully over to Google's email server Gmail. I have had an account for several weeks, but...

April 4, 2005

Business Continuity Planning
Your Business' Life Could Depend On It

Harvey Betan, Contributing Writer, Smallbiztechnology.com This is the first in a series discussing Business Continuity Management ("BCM"). When people hear...

April 4, 2005

Turning Your Web Site Into A Community With Forums

Eileen P. Parzek, SOHO It Goes! Contributing Writer, Smallbiztechnology.com Typically, people visit a web site because they are looking...

April 3, 2005

Selling "Alternative" Brands

INTEL, Symantec, HP & Dell, Veritas, Cisco and others are market leaders of their respective categories. However, there's several reasons...

April 2, 2005

RFID: It's A Must For Many SMBs - Consultants Offer Solutions

Thanks to larger retailers, like Wal-Mart, demanding that their suppliers (many smaller businesses) implement Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) solutions, SMBs...

April 2, 2005

Harnessing The Data of Giants
eBay, Amazon, Google

Google, eBay and Amazon.com have a dizzying amount of data they make freely available to developers and others who can...

April 2, 2005

Windows 2003 Service Pack 1 Update
Not for Small Business Server

Microsoft has released the first service pack update for Windows 2003. You can read CRN's review of it. However, Harry...

April 2, 2005

Cold Calling Customers Is For Idiots!
Use Technology To SMARTLY Communicate With Customers

Since I'm not in sales, I'm sure some of my sales friends will blast me. However, I don't understand why...

April 2, 2005

Microsoft, Intel and HP Help European SMBs

In Europe, I have heard that small businesses do not have nearly the SMB resources we have in the United...

April 2, 2005

Email Support:: Mange It Fast, Low Cost and Easy

Receiving customer emails is great, but the problem is that as the email load grows it becomes very difficult to...

April 2, 2005

Yet Another Web Development Tool

The days of your web developer holding you hostage and forcing you to go through him to update your...

April 1, 2005

Blast Away Your PC Annoyances With "PC Annoyances, Second Edition"

"I've spent nearly 20 years in front of a computer, and I still fume at some of the really...

April 1, 2005

Spy On Your Network and Protect Data

Ziff Davis Internet announced today the release of a new premium utility, PortSnoop. The new, downloadable application, available exclusively...

April 1, 2005

For the Digital "Librarian" In You - Organize Web Information

If you are one of those (like me) who are increasingly clipping things from the web and are looking...

April 1, 2005

What the Big Corps Can Learn From The Little Corps

Cnet's Small Business Editor Rafe Needleman wriies In fact, I think these giant firms, with their one-letter stock ticker symbols,...

April 1, 2005

Xerox's New WorkCentre: Simple & Feature Rich

Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) has launched the industry's first office color multifunction system with patented solid ink technology and...

April 1, 2005

Review of Blogging Tools: TypePad and Blogger.com

See my reviews, published on Cnet, of blogging tools TypePad and Blogger. There are two reviews, so click on the...

April 1, 2005

Video: What You Should Know about CRM

Cnet has put together an excellent video giving you an overview of things you need to know BEFORE you...

April 1, 2005

Boost Your WiFI Speed and Reach

Mimo (pronounced My-moh) which stands for multiple input, multiple output is an emerging wireless technology that boosts the speed...

April 1, 2005

Free Software: Boon for Developing Countries

There's so much press about the growth of free software in the United States but free / open source software...

April 1, 2005

New Notebooks from Gateway and Dell - How Should You Decide?

When looking for a notebook, if you move around a lot you want nothing more than 5lbs in total -...