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Life in a Day

Rick — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 20:51:00 GMT

One World. 24 Hours. 6 Billion Perspectives

Life in A Day is historic global experiment to create a user-generated feature film, shot in a single day, by us! On July 24, TODAY, we have 24 hours to capture a glimpse of our lives on camera. The most compelling and distinctive footage will be edited into an experimental documentary firm, produced by Ridely Scott and directed by Kevin Macdonald.

The film will premiere at the Sundance FIlm Festival in January 2011 and will be available on YouTube. If your footage makes it to the finished fim, you'll be credited as a co-director and you could be one of 20 contributors brought to Sundance to celebrate with Kevin Macdonald.

I wish I would have found this sooner, at the time of this entry, only about 10 hours remain!

Life In A Day is one really interesting idea! I can't wait to see how this develops from one day around the globe. This experiment is unrestricted and their are no limitations. This will be an snap shot that anyone in the future could return to and see what it was like to live on this day, July 24th 2010.

For more information, visit: www.youtube.com/lifeinaday

First the primitive Razor, then the Segway, now the Yikebike?

Rick — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:34:00 GMT

Urban Freedom

What do you do when being conventional doesn't make sense? You invent an alternative, and thats exactly what Grant Ryan decided to do. The Yikebike is what I will call an urban environment fast transportation device. Although it travels about the same speed as a golf cart here in the Sates, the average speed for a car in London is about 10 miles an hour.. So technically the Yikebike is faster than a Ferrari.

The Yikebike, truly brakes the mold of the standard riding position for a bike. As Ryan sees it, there really is no reason for a person on a bike to ride leaning so far forward. The Yikebike has a very upright riding position which provides better visibility for the rider and for other traffic. A cross between a bike and a scooter really, this bike has an electric motor and fully equipped with headlights and turn signals to help navigate the streets. Surprisingly it's extremely stable and can conquer turns at very step banks. I can see it now, Yikebike freestyle riding in the X-games!

Watch this video the Discovery Channel produced: www.yikebike.com/design/video-gallery/yikebike-discovery-channel

Although the Yikebike is not yet available in theUS, specifications should be:

· Speed: 15.5miles per hour (25 km/hour)

· Range: 6.2miles (10 km)

· Weight: 22lb (10 kg)

· RiderWeight: 220 lb maximum (100 kg)

· RiderHeight: 5'4" minimum to 6'4" maximum (163 to 193 cm)

· Price:approx. USD $3,425 excl. shipping, taxes and duty

· Frame:Carbon Fiber composite

· Drive:Electric chainless

· Brakes:Electric anti-skid, regen

· Battery:Lithium Ion LiFePO4 - 40 minutes charge

· Fold size:Super compact 1.5 cubic feet (43 litres)

· Front Wheel:20” hubless

· Lights:Built in LEDs

For more information and the ability to place a deposit to owen a Yikebike: www.yikebike.com/

Enough Already!!

Rick — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:19:00 GMT

I found this article and decided to share it since it quickly addresses a number of beliefs I have regarding complaining and toleration of things outside of your own control. It's a quick read and I hope you enjoy!

Posted by: Darren Hardy in: SUCCESS

No more whining, bitching, moaning, griping and complaining.

At a social function recently, 90 percent of the chitchat I heard were whimpers about the economy, how bad Obama is doing and how much the health care plan sucks, ad nauseam.

Finally, I had heard enough and I blurted out, “In the ‘80’s when the economy was booming, did you get rich?”

“Uh, well, no” answered the small crowd’s speaker.

“But Reagan was president and still you didn’t? What about when Clinton was President? He created a big national surplus, certainly you got rich then?”

“If you were standing in the healthcare haven of France right now, as you describe, would you be any healthier than you are now?”

Silence was his answer.

“Look”, I said, “stop worrying about the national economy and focus on your own economy. Don’t worry about who’s running the White House and concern yourself with running your house better. The only health care plan that matters is your health care plan… for you.”

In my observation, it is just as easy to fail in a good economy as it is in a bad one. And it is just as easy to get rich in a bad economy as it is in a good one. Why? Because the economy has nothing to do with it.

I know many good, capable, smart and hardworking people who have been whacked by unexpected consequences of the economic winter we are in. It happens to the best of people even in the best of times.

Instead, start focusing on what you can control, what you can do, what’s possible and what’s great. Note the abundance and opportunity all around you… no matter the national economic report. Just focus on your report… and your life.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, depressed, stressed, defeated or even just uninspired, try this exercise:

1. Make a three-column list.

2. Write down things that are affecting our world, our nation, your state or your business. (Ex.: war in Afghanistan, Toyota and GM recalls, car bombings in Iraq, healthcare reform, etc.)

3. Write down all the news that you or your friends have discussed this week. (Ex.: unemployment figures, who won an Oscar, who shouldn’t have gotten booted off American Idol, 911 terrorist trial location, etc.)

4. Write down all the things you are worried about in your life. (Ex.: finding a job, survivability of your business, kids having difficulty in school, arguing with spouse, health condition of family member, your own health condition, etc.)

5. Next, write down if you have any control affecting the outcome of that situation.

a. If you don’t, stop worrying (and paying attention!) because you can’t do anything about it. It has no immediate impact on your life, so wipe it from your mental plate.

b. If you do, write down what you can do to take control, improve the situation, and most important, what is the next step to take.

6. Lastly, write down your top three goals for the year and write down the next single step you can take to move closer.

Remember, stop giving attention to the things you can’t control and have no bearing on your personal life. If you can do something about it, decide what part of it you can control and affect. Then take positive action.

Don’t get stuck standing still. Contemplating and, certainly, complaining about things you don’t have control over is simply lunacy.

Only you are responsible for your success or failure, happiness or sadness, stress or vitality, scarcity or abundance, appreciation or depression. You choose what you experience. And you choose by what you give attention to, what you think about, what you talk about and what you do or don’t do about it.

Remember, this is the greatest time of opportunity and unlimited possibility ever available in all human history! To understand or remind yourself of why, review these articles:

Opportunities of This Economy
Recession Gives Rise to New Wealthy
Video: Now More Than Ever

What are you doing to weed out the negative and keep yourself focused on abundance, opportunity and positive thinking? Share your ideas, tips and strategies in the comments below.
http://darrenhardy.success.com/2010/03/enough-already/

What's Wrong with a DVR for my Car?

Rick — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:19:00 GMT

With all the fancy radio controls on my steering wheel I’m beginning to wish one was a record button.

I drive 32,000 miles a year in the Saint Louis area, which typically means that I’m listening to a whole lot of AM talk radio. I’ve grown accustomed to using my Digital Video Recorder (DVR) to catch up on television shows that I miss and watch them on my own time, when can I start doing the same thing in my car.

Often I’m drawn in by a particular segment or sometimes simply an interaction between the show’s host and a caller. I haven’t kept a log, but I’m sure that I could save a lot of gas money if I could record a segment and continue on when I get back into my car instead of sitting in my running vehicle while I wait for my interest to conclude.

Another frustration which is done intentionally by my favorite stations to keep me listening are the use of ticklers.. Sometimes I am extremely intrigued by an interview coming up and I’d much rather listen to and fast forward through it on my old time! If I had a similar button on my steering wheel as my remote at home, I could automatically go back some segment of time in case I missed something, like the portion of the traffic report that I might actually need.

I know there are so many distractions in our vehicles already. Doesn’t it make sense to give us the technology that would allow concentration to stay on obeying traffic laws rather than trying to quickly memorize, or even worse attempt to write down, a phone number. While listening I could have been distracted by my cell phone or what if I had someone in my car that decided to be obnoxiously loud just as the most important point was made. Rewind sounds like a dream to me!

There just has to be something out there I can use, I’d assume it’s not called a DVR but what about a DRR, Digital Radio Recorder? I know that XM and Sirius have some of the features I require, but I’m talking about local real time talk radio. Well, after a little research, I’ve found that I’m not alone and GM has already put the idea into action and has begun including the Pause and Play features in some of their vehicles.

I don’t believe it’s quite there yet, but it is certainly a start with the Chevrolet Equinox, Buick LaCrosse, GMC Terrain and Cadillac SRX as well as the Cadillac CTS Jukebox and Navigation radio. “Basically, the feature allows you to hear something on your radio, mash pause when you get to your destination, and hop back in to hear the rest. This is also handy if you receive a call right in the middle of a heated debate on your favorite talk radio show. You know if we're talking about you.”

Currently, the feature only has enough memory to store up to 20 minutes of audio for play back at a later time. It's also scheduled to come to the new Buick Regal and Chevrolet Cruze in due time, but there's no mention of a longer buffer time in the future. Now, if only there were an easy way to transport missed clips from the radio to your iPod as you step out of the car for work, we could really see this taking off.

Sorry, All I Have Is Plastic

Rick — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:29:00 GMT

I remember when Nextel came out with an attachment for a cell phone that had magnetic card reader on its side to accept transactions for mobile business sites. I thought that was pretty cutting edge. Jack Dorsey, native St. Louisian and co-founder or Twitter, found a smilar frustration that I have often had around a pool table. How do you accept a payment from someone when they happen to have a greenback deficiency? You find an easy way to accept plastic, and Jack's solution to the dilemma and his newest company is called Square.

With the availability of Square’s device, just about anyone can be a merchant, that is, anyone with an iPhone or iPod Touch, at least for now. The store owner simply plugs it into the audio input jack of his mobile phone, and he can now start accepting credit card payments. Buyers, on the other hand, can then swipe their credit or debit cards through the ‘Square’ device, which will transfer the payment information into an application on the iPhone. Square uses a magnetic-strip reader that plugs into the iPhone’s headphone port. All users of the app need to do is swipe the card, punch in the amount and have the customer sign right on the phone. After the transaction is complete a receipt is sent via email.

“…We wanted to allow people to very easily and quickly, within 10 seconds, be able to accept these plastic devices as payment,” said Dorsey.

If this device goes into mainstream, it will do away with the prohibitive costs businesses find with credit card processing. For instance, the credit card payment terminal alone can easily cost about $1,000, compared to Square, which runs on a $299 mobile gadget.

In the past there have been several offerings for those who want to use their iPhone to charge one of their customers credit card but they require you to punch in the card’s entire number.

I want one just so I can avoid friends saying, "I don't have any cash, I'll get you next time." Rob Dyrdek went so far as to install an ATM in his basment next to his pool table at his home in Hollywood. I think I would rather invest in one of these little Square devices so I could take it with me.

The new companies website is https://squareup.com/

Background - In February 2009, Jim McKelvey wasn’t able to sell a piece of his glass art because he couldn’t accept a credit card as payment. Even though a majority of payments has moved to plastic cards, accepting payments from cards is still difficult, requiring long applications, expensive hardware, and an overly complex experience. Square was born a few days later right next to the old San Francisco US Mint.

Today the Square team is focused on bringing immediacy, transparency, and approachability to the world of payments: an inherently social interaction each of us participates in daily. We’re starting with a limited beta and rolling out to everyone in early 2010.

Marketing Tips for your Small Business

Rick — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:14:00 GMT

How do you differentiate your business?

and get more touches on your prospects..

Small business owners know that running a business is more than a full time job, it takes a lot of time and effort for each segment of one small company to run smoothly. When it comes to small business marketing, many make a mistake thinking it is not of great importance to have an annual marketing plan and work on developing it throughout the year. Well organized marketing activities are the only ones that actually bring results, and consistency is a crucial thing here. Here are some useful tips for your small company’s marketing.

For small business marketing to be successful, you need to make sure that your marketing efforts are not tied to one day a week, but to engage in at least one marketing activity every day. Determine your annual marketing budget and then decide on the type of marketing that can be actively employed all year round without negatively affecting your financials. The best thing to do is to have specific annual marketing goals and try to achieve them, reviewing the plan once every three months for possible adjustments. Ideas are key for marketing success, so do not let any good idea go to waste; gather ideas and keep them safely filed so you can use them later on. As a business owner, you represent your business 24/7. Your acquaintances are your potential customers or business partners; always carry business cards that you can give out to the people you meet.

No matter what kind of a business you own, knowing your market will have a huge positive impact on your success. Stay in tune with the trends that might impact your target market, product, or promotion strategy. Make sure that you know your competition, gather their ads and literature and learn about their strategy, products, benefits and so forth. You can never go wrong with asking feedback from your customers, it is them who keep your business alive. Ask for their opinion on how you can improve your service in the future. If you can afford it, use giveaways and freebies as your marketing tool as nothing is more compelling than that.

It is important for a business owner to be well informed; reading market research studies about your profession, industry, target market groups, is a good way to keep track of what’s new and make educated decisions about your marketing strategy. Search online for information about marketing seminars in your area that you can attend to and get some useful knowledge. You can also subscribe to a marketing newsletter or some other type of publication. Your clients and your staff can play a big role in your company’s marketing. Word of mouth referrals give great results, so make sure to train your staff and your clients to promote referrals.

Publishing a newsletter for customers and prospects is another affordable way to get the word out about your business. You can also develop a brochure of services, print business cards and pass them out to your prospects. Print a slogan of your business on letterhead, fax cover sheets, and invoices. Today it is almost unimaginable to run a business and do not have an online presence. Developing a website doesn’t have to be expensive and it can mean a lot for your business. You should go online for either promotional purpose or selling your products or services. Setting up a website will reach more customers from a growing number of online buyers. Create a signature file to be used for all your e-mail messages. It should contain contact details, including your Web site address and important information about your company that will attract readers to your business.

It's no secret, I am a bit old school...

Rick — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 23:18:00 GMT

In today's businesses we use a vast variety of technologies to make us more productive, more efficient, and hopefully keep us more secure. We all use technology such as Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software to remember conversations and to help us keep in touch with our clients. We use the Contact features in our Outlook to sync with our cell phones so we never have to risk loosing a phone number. Many of us have our Smart Phones configured so the information is constantly updates with Exchange at the office or beamed wirelessly to our service providers. I can't be the only one that misses the feel of a rotary handset wedged between my shoulder and my ear while I create an new document with my rollarball ink pen.

At last, I found the product for those of us that remain! This little dandy plugs into our tiny little computers we call cell phones and gives us the feel of picking up a real rotary handset! It even comes in nine different colors and provides additional features such as reduced background noise and greatly reduces radiation. How can we lose!

https://www.yubz.com/eng/prod_mobile.php

Specializing in Microsoft products, at my office we love to showcase productivity software including Unified Communications. I have to admit I really enjoy being able to use OCS to see if someone is available to talk or receive an instant message. I think it's very useful to be able to quickly call someone by clicking on their name to begin a conference call. I really do like that my voice mail and my email arrive in the same inbox giving me total hands free use of my Outlook mail box while driving to my next meeting. But I also like having a handset on my desk!

Thank you YUBZ!!

The Art of Creating Strong Passwords

Rick — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:21:00 GMT

There was a great article posted that reinforces what my team has been preaching about password protection. I would like to continue with how important it is to create a password policy that is strong enough but also simple enough so that the password can be remembered. You may have the greatest policy ever but if an employee needs to write it down, I bet i can find it under a keyboard, or taped to the side of a monitor. Quite often I can log into machines because the passwords are either the default (usually for admin applications, and very scary) or they are located nearby! The article here by Michael Scalisi mentions a number of simple ways to create password policies and all i'd like to add is that words found in the dictionary and/or are under eight characters can be cracked by automated programs in under a second!

Please read the article below for specific examples:

The Art of Creating Strong Passwords

By Michael Scalisi, PC World

When it comes to password strength, educating users is just as important as enforcing policies.

While security has never been more important than it is today, the fastest way for an IT professional to become the most despised person in the company is to start enforcing a strong password policy. A policy perceived as overbearing may cause people to write down their passwords on a sticky note near their computers, circumventing its very purpose. Your policy will be ineffective if your users don't know how to create strong passwords that are easy to remember.

Left to their own devices, people will choose passwords that are simple for them to remember. They'll use their spouse's name, their dog's name, their favorite sports team or a recent vacation spot.

Sometimes while working on a user's computer, I'll need to log on as that person after a reboot. Unfortunately, he's wandered off, not wanting to hover over the IT guy. I generally prefer not to know other people's passwords, so I usually don't ask. In this situation, I sometimes take a guess. I've been right a surprising number of times, and sometimes with people who are very powerful. It's easy. I simply glance around their offices and note what their obsessions are.

Clearly, password policies are needed.

By using the following tips, people will be able to create easy-to-remember passwords that follow these typical requirements: at least eight characters long and with at least three of the following character types: uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers and special characters.

Substitute numbers for letters and vice versa. (o instead of 0, 4 instead of A, 1 instead of L, E instead of 3)
Substitute words for numbers (one, two, three ... )
Combine both of the above (0ne, thr33, f1ve)
Use capitalization in random places (bLue, happY)
Use special characters ( !@#$%^&*(){}[] ) to punctuate and separate words
Create passwords out of words, numbers or phrases you'll remember
Misspell words

Using these tips, you can create memorable passwords that will be nearly impossible to guess. Here are some examples of converting memorable information into a complex password

We'll start with some easy ones:

Friday becomes frYday!
Robert becomes #robERt#
867-5309 becomes 8siX753o9

More complex passwords:

19 Peach Place becomes: 0ne9peacHpl!
I love Jill becomes: eYelov3Jill
My dog Fritz becomes MeyedogfrltZ

While some of these examples look nearly indecipherable, you can see how they're not difficult to memorize -- as long as you know the originating word, number or phrase and the basic methodology used to create it. By educating users on how to create strong passwords, you strengthen the security of your company, and your users will benefit additionally by have safer personal experiences with online banking and social networking.

Michael Scalisi is an IT manager based in Alameda, Calif.

An Amazing Laptop Recovery Story

Rick — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 04:02:00 GMT

Using remote access software, a Miami man helps cops track down and recover his two stolen laptops.

Todd R. Weiss, PC World

Wednesday, September 16, 2009 09:00 PM PDT

This is a true story about sex, computers, the Internet, spying, theft, intrigue, and the police--and it all began this past February when David Krop made the mistake of leaving his two laptop computers inside a locked SUV in a parking garage.

While Krop, 41, attended a brief business meeting in downtown Miami Beach, Florida, a smash-and-grab thief stole the two laptops, a Toshiba and an Apple Macbook. When he returned to his SUV, Krop saw the shattered passenger window and realized that his computers were gone.

"It's just a terrible feeling in the pit of your stomach," Krop, a vice president of marketing at Nationwide Diabetic says. He reported the theft to the police, who were not optimistic the laptops would be recovered. Then he drove home, thinking about the personal data stored on his laptops. He had never planned for a catastrophic event like this--in fact, he hadn't even bothered to set up a user password to shield the laptops' contents.

When he got home, though, Krop remembered that he had installed a trial version of remote access software called LogMeIn on his Toshiba laptop. LogMeIn is designed to allow a user to access the desktop of a remote PC; it doesn't have laptop recovery features of the type you'd find on, say, Absolute Software's LoJack for Laptops. Connecting to his stolen laptop might be a long shot, but it was the only shot he had.

First, though, Krop had to recall his LogMeIn username and password, and this hurdle took hours, he recalls. But at last he connected, and to his immense relief he could view the desktop of his stolen Toshiba laptop. Its new owner was surfing porn sites.

Seconds after Krop linked to his desktop remotely, a small red box from the LogMeIn connection appeared on the laptop's screen at the remote user's end. The person at the other end quickly clicked it off, thereby disconnecting Krop. Krop waited for a few minutes and then reconnected, and this time the user ignored the red box.

Let the Spying and Intrigue Begin

Krop captured this image and the others shown below with his video camera.

Unaware that Krop was spying on his activities, the user of the Toshiba laptop visited porn site after porn site, taking breaks to check e-mail, chat with people via instant messaging software, update his Facebook and MySpace accounts, and place ads to Craigslist.com for what Krop said appeared to be some kind of female modeling business.

"My eyes just lit up," Krop says. "Just the fact he was online at that moment was amazing."

Krop decided to continue his surveillance, collect as much information as he could, and then contact the police to see if they could then get his laptops back.

"It was strange, but it was also an incredible feeling," he says. "It's like, here's someone who breaks into my car and stole my computers and I'm breaking back into my computer."

Krop began capturing screenshots as the person using his laptop perused hundreds of e-mail messages in a Hotmail.com account. Eventually, Krop decided to switch to using his video camera to record what was going on.

"It was unbelievable," Krop recalls. "I was watching this guy for three hours. At this point, this guy's got his Hotmail open, a chat box open, Craigslist open, and he's downloading photos and videos [of nude women] as well."

And just when Krop thought the accumulating mound of evidence couldn't get any more incriminating, it did: The laptop's user initiated a video chat with someone else, and Krop could see the suspect's face.

In less than three hours, Krop knew the individual's name, e-mail addresses, and cell phone number and had a recording of him on video tape. Then Krop paid $10 to an online service that sold him the address linked to the man's cell phone number. "All this information told me [the man] was living on Miami Beach not far from the scene of the crime."

The Police Reenter the Picture

Early the next morning, a Saturday, Krop revisited the Miami Beach police, bringing along a DVD containing the incriminating video he had captured as well as a notepad detailing what he had learned. A police clerk phoned two detectives at home and told them that Krop "had a lot of evidence they needed to see," Krop remembers. The detectives--Sergeant A.J. Prieto and Detective Matt Ambre--came in even though both were scheduled to have the day off.

Prieto and Ambre sat and watched the video with Krop. "I think we'll get those laptops back for you now," Prieto told him. With the information from Krop's DVD, Prieto and Ambre quickly found the address in Miami for the man who had Krop's laptop.

Prieto says that when he and Ambre arrived at the suspect's door, the man was actually using the laptop in question.

"He gave up the computer quickly," Prieto says. "I think he was aware that something was not right." The man denied having stolen the laptop, however, telling Prieto that he had bought it for $300 while getting a haircut in a barbershop. The owner of the barbershop, he said, had purchased the stolen Macbook.

The barber subsequently confirmed the Toshiba user's story, Prieto says, clearing the latter of responsibility for the theft.

"The greatest thing is that in a relatively short amount of time we were able to get the computers back for the victim," Prieto said.

Krop says that nearly a month later a staff attorney in the Florida State Attorney General's office contacted him to report that police had arrested the man that they believed had stolen his laptops but that they had to release him because of insufficient evidence.

A Barbershop Visit Turned His Weekend Upside Down

The man who bought the stolen Toshiba laptop says that he was just minding his own business when another man walked into the barbershop and offered him a nice deal on a notebook PC. "This guy comes in and he said, 'Hey, what's up? I've got two laptop computers to sell.'"

The buyer already had a PC; but it was infected with viruses, and fixing it would have cost $150. "So instead of paying $150 to get my viruses fixed, I thought I'd buy this one for $300."

Later that weekend, the police arrived at the buyer's home, looking for two stolen laptops. "Two days later, I'm sitting in my crib and the police bang on the door," he says. "They sat me down and said 'We need the laptops.'"

Did the buyer know that the Toshiba laptop was stolen when he bought it? "I didn't care whether it was stolen," he says. "I buy stolen stuff all the time. I don't care... If I can save $600, I'll do it." But now knowing that a laptop can be tracked online, he says he won't be buying any more computers off the streets.

Krop has learned his lesson, too. "I've learned to always, always, always take my laptops with me and to never leave them in the car, even if it's for just a few minutes," he says. "And generally I don't take two laptops with me anymore. I take just one. And I also learned to use log-in passwords on computers"--to protect his data--and to equip his laptops with remote tracking software.

Six Basics to Protect the Data on your PC

Rick — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 19:48:00 GMT

Maybe you’re not storing state secrets, but you’ve probably got at least a few files and photos on your PC that are near and dear to you just the same. So suddenly losing them – or having the wrong people peek at them – is grief you’d rather avoid.

There are numerous ways to protect the files and folders on your PC, and in this instance, more really is better. So let’s get started!

1. Protect against viruses and spyware. Computer viruses and spyware are transmitted via e-mail or your Web browser. They can cause all sorts of grief, from changing or deleting files to allowing outsiders to access what’s on your PC. Antivirus and anti-spyware programs are widely available and essential to install.

2. Set up a firewall. If you have an always-on broadband connection, a firewall can help prevent intruders from gaining access to your computer. A software firewall is included and turned on by default in most Windows operating systems, but there are other harware firewalls to consider as well.

3. Keep your software up to date. When security problems are discovered after a software product has shipped, companies typically issue updates that users can download to fix the problem. It’s always a good idea to install recommended security updates as soon as possible. If you run Windows or Microsoft Office, you can have them automatically sent to your PC through Microsoft Update. You'd be surprised how many computers my team comes across that don't even have the correct version of the update software installed.

4. Back up your computer. Bad things happen no matter how hard you try to prevent them, so getting in the habit of copying important files to another location is just plain smart. There are various ways to do it, from copying files to a CD or USB flash drive, using an online storage service or buying an external hard drive.

5. Use passwords. If you have files and folders that you don’t want prying eyes to see, then make sure you’ve got your PC protected with a strong password and get in the habit of logging off your computer when you’re not sitting in front of it.

6. Protect individual files or folders. With Microsoft Office, you can limit access to files on your PC in a few simple clicks. For instance, with Microsoft Office 2007, you can encrypt files so people have to know the password to view them. You can also encrypt e-mail messages. Or, with a Word 2003 document open, click Tools and then Protect Document. You can choose what you want to allow others to do with the file, from restricting formatting changes to making the file read-only. You can also encrypt files and folders using the Encrypting File System in Windows.

Liz Enbysk, State Street Writing

Small-Business Networking Basics

Rick — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 20:32:00 GMT

Today more than ever, good network security is vital to businesses of all sizes. Cybercriminals, equipped with sophisticated software that automates the task of seeking out vulnerabilities, aren't focusing on large enterprises alone; any easy target will do. Fortunately, however, good security isn't as expensive or as complicated to implement as it used to be.

Technology for protecting valuable data from prying eyes, warding off malware, managing spam or empowering employees to work remotely and securely is now bundled in routers at prices that most organizations should be able to afford. Though consumer routers offer some of these protections, you don't have to spend a lot more for business-class alternatives that provide more robust defenses and, typically, features that consumer products simply don't offer.

Small businesses must cope with the same Internet security threats as larger companies do, but usually without the same budget and manpower. And in recent years, the threats have diversified and become more subtle: Whereas several years ago, you worried that a hacker or virus would crash your computers, now you may never even realize that your network has been compromised until real economic damage has been done. For example, your data may be lost or held hostage; you, your colleagues and/or your customers may fall victim to identity theft; or your computers may be used to distribute spam or malware.

Of course, once your business grows to a certain size -- 100 to 200 staffers or more -- you're best off putting security in the hands of a pro, typically an independent contractor or a reseller. But if you're handling security for a work group or a smaller business and money is tight, you can develop and implement your own security policy. This doesn't cost a dime and it can be very effective if you put in the required effort -- but make no mistake, effort is involved. Nobody likes to change passwords every month, perform regular backups and check for software updates, but tending to these chores can help minimize your risk.

Running out of .COM's?!

Rick — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 15:53:00 GMT

Would $200,000 be worth my investment to offer the use of ".demko" instead of the common ".com"?

Probably not but for companies like Disney, maybe..

Have you tried to secure an address on the Internet lately? Not only are all the good names taken, but likely more likely than not, your name is already spoken for, either by a doppelganger (look it up if you don't know German) or some poacher who grabbed it in hopes that you'll pay for it. Are you looking for a catchy title, or even a vaguely descriptive one, for yourself or your enterprising operation? Good luck! While you were still trying to figure out what "www" meant or what sounds catchy, a flock of techno-savvy early birds have probly already grabbed every obvious product name--and just about every English-language word in the common dictionary! I know quite a number of people in my field that make it a practice to think of domain names they'd like to purchase and just hold on to until an appropriate cash offering is made.

I remember when I first thought about creating my own website. I thought for the Demko family a hub for pictures, schedules, news and interaction would have been great! I think I began to flirt with the idea in '99 only to find that Demko.com was already taken. I know Demko isn't a real distinct name but I'm sorry but my name isn't exactly Smith. Granted in my case, the apparent self proclaimed Dr. Death, simply beat me to the punch and I had to settle for rickdemko.com.

Think about the politicians, sports figures, or other celebrities that want to use the web to further promote themselves.. good luck finding a domain and if you do be ready to get out your wallet to purchase every spoofed site on the web. On a side note: I will not pay for rick-demko.com or any other deviation of my name, so don't even try. I'm just not that important

I happen to know an individual that makes a very good amount of money in royalties due to miss guided hits to their website, because the address is so similar to an intended website. The paid advertising and links that are on the page of the closely named '.com' site are Very impressive! Case in point, try miss typing google a few ways, I tried ggoole.com and goggle.com and found different sites.

How wonderful would it be to have a www.rick.demko site though! Is it worth the $200,000 to register.. nope! Could it be for www.walt.disney, I would think so. Instead of web surfers stumbling into misguided sites or just blatant scam sites the investment maybe on the horizon.

Windows 7 not intended as a service pack

Rick — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:34:00 GMT

Posted by Ina Fried

Microsoft is attempting a challenging task with its positioning of Windows 7. The company is trying to make the case that the product won't break things that work with Vista, but at the same time trying to convince users its a worthy upgrade.

Bill Veghte, the senior vice president of the Windows business put it this way in a speech to investors on Wednesday:

Bill Veghte, Microsoft's senior vice president for the Windows Business

(Credit: Microsoft)

"It's a minor release when it comes to incompatibilities," he said, adding that most applications and hardware that worked with Vista should work just fine in Windows 7. At the same time, Veghte tried to make the case that Windows 7 will nonetheless be a significant step forward.

"There are plenty of great things in there that make it much more significant than a service pack," Veghte said. In addition to improving some of the annoyances of past releases, such as slow boot time, Veghte pointed to new features that make it easier to connect to both home and business networks.

"In Windows 7 there's a capability called Direct Access," Veghte said, that allows users to more easily connect to their corporate network. "You no longer have to VPN in," he said.

Windows 7 also adds an improved taskbar for managing multiple windows as well as support for multitouch--assuming one buys a touch-screen computer. But it is clear that one of Microsoft's biggest challenges with Windows 7 will be to convince users that it is an important upgrade.

With Windows 7, Microsoft is adding support for multitouch, demonstrated last month at the WinHEC conference.

(Credit: Ina Fried/CNET News)

One indication of just how neatly Microsoft is trying to thread this needle is the fact that the server unit is saying its version of Windows 7 will be a minor release. The product that had been code-named "Windows 7 Server" is getting the designation Windows Server 2008 R2. The "R2" designation has in the past been used for very minor updates to Microsoft products.

Veghte was asked about things like how many versions of Windows 7 there will be and about pricing, but offered no new detail there. The company released a pre-beta version of Windows 7 for developers at two conferences earlier this year, with a broader beta scheduled for early next year, followed by a release candidate. There are some indications that January may be the timing for the beta.

As for the final release, Microsoft's internal goal has been to get it out next year, although its public target has been for release within three years of Vista's January 2007 mainstream launch. Veghte appeared to give even more wiggle room on Wednesday, though, saying its goal was a release to manufacturing (as opposed to a formal launch) by January 2010.

Note: The dates in the last paragraph were off by a year when I first posted but have since been corrected.

Get your head in the Cloud

Rick — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:56:00 GMT

As businesses grow in terms of human resources and inventories, spatial constraint is becoming a critical issue. Most importantly, as companies expand their client base, the more critical issues of providing reliable online data storage and other services demand a fail-safe resolution. Could cloud computing save the day?

How cloud computing works

Cloud computing has recently become one of the buzz words in the IT industry in the midst of all the issues relating to the advancement of document portability. So how does cloud computing actually work?

Companies offering online services such as shopping sites, mobile application developers and gaming companies require huge server spaces to accommodate the huge amounts of traffic to their servers. To solve this, cloud computing service providers create a viable solution to ease small businesses’ capacity issues. Service providers rent out a portion of their server space according to the clients’ requirements. Companies are now liberated from having to acquire new hardware for data storage.
As an added benefit, with cloud computing, data can be accessed by predefined users anytime, anywhere, eliminating the need to be physically in the same location as the data source.

Cloud computing service providers

Internet giant Google is known for its various innovative services, which include cloud computing. Google Apps includes quite an impressive line-up of Web-based applications such as Gmail for email, Docs for file sharing, Calendar and Sites. With these applications, the line that sets Web-based applications apart from pc-based applications is gradually blurring.
Other companies offer software-as-a-service, a subset of cloud computing, as part of their small business solutions products. One such example is a Web-based leave-management form that conveniently allows employees to request for leaves online wherever and whenever. Similar software also features access to leave balance and automation of work schedules.

Benefits of cloud computing

There are great benefits to be had in cloud computing. While some business owners are skeptical regarding the security aspect of cloud computing, at the back of their minds, the call to explore this technology is constantly nagging.

Let’s take a look at some of the major benefits of cloud computing:

• Cloud computing effectively addresses the capacity issues of small businesses.

• The need to acquire your own servers and pay for a qualified IT specialist to run them is eliminated.

• Fees paid to cloud computing providers are based on the capacity you need at a given time. This is advantageous as opposed to investing in your own servers, where you pay a fixed price regardless of whether those servers are busy or not. The cost of implementing cloud computing for small businesses depends on the number of users and the amount of storage required. It can be anywhere from free to $50 per user per year and beyond.

• Cloud computing takes off the burden of having to manage all your business processes and lets you concentrate on your core business.

However, cloud computing also has its own drawbacks. The service providers’ systems may go down all of a sudden. In other words, there is no guarantee that cloud computing provides 100% up-time. Delegating your data, some of which are most likely proprietary, to service providers may also mean exposing them to possible intrusion. However, cloud computing vendors often do a better job at backing up data than most small businesses.

So, when considering implementing cloud computing to your business, examine your strategy. Which among your applications should you delegate to cloud computing? Do you need that extra, low-cost space for your email needs? Do you need to file and share your data so that any of the pre-defined users in your organization can access them anytime, anywhere?

The bottom-line is cloud computing can save small businesses huge amounts of money, either instantly or in the long run. In the face of the recession’s uncertainties, small businesses can choose to run some of their operations in the clouds, or run on constrained budgets and limited productivity due to expensive applications.

New Technologies That Will Change Everything

Rick — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:35:00 GMT

A quick thank you to my dad for pointing me to an interesting article on msn.com! Possibly a little foreshadowing of what in store for us in the near future in the ways of technology, the article picks out 15 new advancements but I decided to highlight two of the least 'geeky' below:

Google's desktop OS

In case you haven't noticed, Google now has its well-funded mitts on just about every aspect of computing. From Web browsers to cell phones, soon you'll be able to spend all day in the Googleverse and never have to leave. Will Google make the jump to building its own PC operating system next?

What is it? It's everything, or so it seems. Google Checkout provides an alternative to PayPal. Street View is well on its way to taking a picture of every house on every street in the United States. And the fun is just starting: Google's early-beta Chrome browser earned a 1 percent market share in the first 24 hours of its existence. Android, Google's cell phone operating system, is hitting handsets as you read this, becoming the first credible challenger to the iPhone among sophisticated customers.

When is it coming? Though Google seems to have covered everything, many observers believe that logically it will next attempt to attack one very big part of the software market: the operating system.

The Chrome browser is the first toe Google has dipped into these waters. While a browser is how users interact with most of Google's products, making the underlying operating system somewhat irrelevant, Chrome nevertheless needs an OS to operate.

To make Microsoft irrelevant, though, Google would have to work its way through a minefield of device drivers, and even then the result wouldn't be a good solution for people who have specialized application needs, particularly most business users. But a simple Google OS -- perhaps one that's basically a customized Linux distribution -- combined with cheap hardware could be something that changes the PC landscape in ways that smaller players who have toyed with open-source OSs so far haven't been quite able to do.

Check back in 2011, and take a look at the not-affiliated-with-Google gOS, thinkgos, in the meantime.

Gesture-based remote control

We love our mice, really we do. Sometimes, however, such as when we're sitting on the couch watching a DVD on a laptop, or when we're working across the room from an MP3-playing PC, it just isn't convenient to drag a hockey puck and click on what we want. Attempts to replace the venerable mouse -- whether with voice recognition or brain-wave scanners -- have invariably failed. But an alternative is emerging.

What is it? Compared with the intricacies of voice recognition, gesture recognition is a fairly simple idea that is only now making its way into consumer electronics. The idea is to employ a camera (such as a laptop's webcam) to watch the user and react to the person's hand signals. Holding your palm out flat would indicate "stop," for example, if you're playing a movie or a song. And waving a fist around in the air could double as a pointing system: You would just move your fist to the right to move the pointer right, and so on.

When is it coming? Gesture recognition systems are creeping onto the market now. Toshiba, a pioneer in this market, has at least one product out that supports an early version of the technology: the Qosmio G55 laptop, which can recognize gestures to control multimedia playback. The company is also experimenting with a TV version of the technology, which would watch for hand signals via a small camera atop the set. Based on my tests, though, the accuracy of these systems still needs a lot of work.

Gesture recognition is a neat way to pause the DVD on your laptop, but it probably remains a way off from being sophisticated enough for broad adoption. All the same, its successful development would excite tons of interest from the "can't find the remote" crowd. Expect to see gesture recognition technology make some great strides over the next few years, with inroads into mainstream markets by 2012.

For the full list fell free:
http://tech.msn.com/products/articlepcw.aspx?cp-documentid=12391140

Brand Loyalty

Rick — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 16:48:00 GMT

I could quote a plethora of articles that focus on what market strategists say how brand management influences consumer behavior but no one would actually read it..

Instead I thought I could focus on why people begin to build a 'brand loyalty' to certain people or even a certain sales person over another.

In reality it's very simple, we all know that people do business with those they know, like and trust. Now I need one of those red Staples buttons to say, "That was Easy!" That's brand loyalty... People simply will continue to purchase a brand, or individual, they feel safe with and are familiar with. It's technically called consumer behavior but it's not always about consumers and sales people either.

How do you get more clients.. are you a good prospector? Have you dated much? My girlfriend continues to date me because, thankfully, she knows, likes and trusts me! She's brand loyal to the Rick Demko brand! We often talk about relationships with our clients and how important it is to post sell and to massage them for leads. I know of sales people that do much more than send popcorn tins around the holidays..

Brand Loyalty is the consumer's conscious or unconscious decision, expressed through intention or behavior, to repurchase a brand continually. When we get past the 'trusted adviser' position, I often talk about, and when the chips are really down, to a brand loyal customer you can do almost no wrong. Now that doesn't mean I'm going to take my relationship with Kelly for granted and force her to search for a new brand. It just means that when you have that loyalty you can stay out a little longer than you could in the beginning.. just don't abuse the freedom and leverage the advantage to strengthen the relationship!

The image surrounding a company's brand is the principal source of its competitive advantage and is therefore a valuable strategic asset. Unfortunately, many companies and sales people, are not adept at disseminating a strong, clear message that not only distinguishes their brand from the competitors', but distinguishes it in a memorable and positive manner. Case in point, ask a sales person for their 'elevator speech' and see if you really understand what it is they actually said.

The challenge for all brands is to avoid the pitfalls of portraying a muddled or negative image, and instead, create a broad brand vision or identity that recognizes a brand as something greater than a set of attributes that can be imitated or surpassed. In fact, a company should view its brand to be not just a product or service, but as an overall brand image that defines a company’s philosophies. A brand needs more than identity; it needs a personality.

Just like a person without attention grabbing characteristics, a brand with no personality can easily be passed right over. A strong symbol or company logo can also help to generate brand loyalty by making it quickly identifiable. I even found that colors are undeniably affective.

And no that doesn't mean that having bright pink hair is an effective why to strengthen a romantic relationship!

How To Erase Your Tracks Online

Rick — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:28:00 GMT

Apple calls it "Private Browsing." Microsoft calls it "InPrivate." Google's new Chrome browser calls it "Incognito." And yes, practically everyone else calls it "Porn Mode."

By Andy Greenberg

Chrome's launch earlier this month confirmed a new feature as a must-have in Web-browsing software: a cloak of invisibility that hides the user's path around the Web. Incognito browsing, like a similar setting in a new version of Internet Explorer, is designed to erase any trace of the sites you've recently visited, wiping away cached pages and browsing history from your hard drive and turning off the browser's autocomplete function, which can reveal what you've recently typed into text boxes.

That private mode can be used for hiding indiscretions in the Web's red-light district, or, as Google innocently suggests, for planning "surprises like gifts or birthdays."

But such privacy features have an increasingly more important purpose than hiding your tracks from snooping family members. Google's and Microsoft's new browsing modes don't just wipe incriminating data from a user's hard drive; they offer features that shield users from the Web's ever-more-aggressive behavioral data-gathering by advertisers.

Increased tracking of user behavior online for targeting ads -- the subject of a Senate Commerce Committee hearing last July -- is one factor driving demand for that privacy cloak, says the Center for Democracy and Technology's Ari Schwartz. And those demands may open a new front in the browser war. "Competition in this space is clearly growing," Schwartz says. "As it plays out, it's a very good thing for user privacy."

But browsers have yet to agree on just what "privacy" means. Apple Safari's "Private Browsing" -- pioneered in 2005 -- is decidedly designed for hiding your tracks from your spouse, not the Web companies collecting data on your online activities. "Private Browsing" doesn't block cookies -- unique identifier files downloaded by your browser that Web sites and advertisers use to follow you from one site visit to the next. To block or delete cookies, users have to toggle those options or manually delete them in another menu.

Google's slick new browser takes an important step beyond Safari in making stealth browsing easier: When a user opens an "Incognito" tab in Chrome, it not only stops recording history and the words entered into text fields, but also stores all newly acquired cookies in a temporary folder. As soon as that Incognito tab is closed, its cookies are deleted. That means someone using Google's stealth setting can navigate some normal sites in one tab with all of his or her identifying cookies intact, while simultaneously browsing another set of sites in stealth.

Despite the cookie-killing feature, Google offers no assurances that "Incognito" hides users from advertiser tracking, which could theoretically use tactics other than cookies. The Center for Democracy and Technology, for instance, has observed sites using IP addresses and even downloaded Adobe Flash files to track users. "Incognito is designed to hide your browsing from your computer, not hide it from the Web," says Google engineer Sundar Pichai.

Microsoft's latest version of Internet Explorer has bigger ambitions. IE8 offers both InPrivate Browsing, intended to clean up traces of a user's path from his or her own computer, and InPrivate Blocking, which boasts that it hides the user's behavior from all Web sites that track user identities.

Microsoft's General Manager of Internet Explorer Dean Hachamovitch argues that any element of a site -- be it a cookie, an ad or a video -- that doesn't come directly from a known site can be used for tracking a user's path around the Web. Once that "third party" object is downloaded to the user's browser, sites can check the user's machine for that file at other visits in his or her Web session. So InPrivate Blocking lets users block all content from third parties or even choose a list of domains whose objects they wish to block.

The result, says Marc Rotenberg, director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, is the best option for users who want anonymity from advertisers online. "Microsoft is really leading the pack on this issue," he says.

On the more basic concern of cleaning up browsing evidence on a user's own machine, however, Internet Explorer may have missed a more straightforward problem, says Christiane Pickaert, a researcher with Netherlands-based security firm Fox IT. Images and other page elements are still cached in Explorer's temporary Internet files, allowing him to reassemble a user's browsing path piece by piece. In Pickaert's tests, he says, Chrome didn't suffer from the same flaw.

But given all those complications and ambiguities in browsers' privacy settings, the best solution may be a browser with no built-in privacy functions at all: Firefox. Instead of offering its own stealth feature, Firefox allows users to add whatever privacy plug-ins have been created by its open-source developer base. An add-on called Distrust works much like Safari's Private Browsing, erasing browsing evidence from a user's computer. Another, called Adblock Plus, nixes all the ads on a page, along with any cookies they try to send. And a third, CookieSafe, allows users to block any object from specific domains, just as Microsoft's InPrivate Blocking does.

Microsoft's Hachamovitch argues that the average user won't bother with all those plug-ins. "When people get a browser, are they do-it-yourselfers or do they want it to just work?" He asks. "IE8 just works out of the box. It's real protection for real people."

Then again, installing a few plug-ins may be the price users pay for complete anonymity online. And when it comes to the secretive side of Web browsing, even so-called "real people" are known to do very strange things.

Battle of the Browsers

Rick — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 16:01:00 GMT

Whenever I have the opportunity to get a deeper understanding of any topic by sitting mesmerized in front of my television I can't help but take advantage! I recently saw two different episodes on one of those 'educating' networks (ie. The History Channel, The Learning Channel, or The Discovery Channel). Unfortunately I can't remember which it was.

I remember my own personal preferences in the mid nineties to chose technology companies that were outside of popular belief. The giants of the time consisted of companies like AOL as an ISP and Microsoft for their OS and web browsing. Actually, I had a little vendetta against AOL because of their censorship policies defined in their Terms of Service (TOS) agreement, specifically referring to the word 'breast'. Censoring that word from a support community, where women with breast cancer as well as survivors communicate, wasn't their intent but it was the reality and many accounts were canceled do to their TOS agreement. I will save my arguments about AOL for another blog entry.

In the nineties I was drawn to companies outside of the mainstream where I saw great potential and Netscape was definitely one of those companies. Not only was I drawn to Netscape because of my hatred for AOL as an ISP but I really favored their web browser over the already Microsoft giant Internet Explorer (IE).

The specials of the browser wars between Netscape Navigator and IE reminded me of the bullying and often gorilla warfare tactics of the then and now giant of Microsoft. What happened to my appeal for the underdog? It's still here but did fade when Netscape retreated under the power of Microsoft and joined forces with AOL.

The underdog browser wars are still apparent today, ie. Firefox stealing a large market share from IE in one strong month a few years back. Below is an excerpt from PC Magazine in 2006

By Davis D. Janowski

...Here's what I'm getting at. After its introduction way back in 2001, IE6 began to usurp the popularity of Netscape, and, in short order, came to dominate the browser space for the next five years. As its dominance grew, developers and Web-page designers began to architect sites, create content, and code their works in such a way that they would look ("render" in Web parlance) the way they intended in IE6. Reasonable enough, since that's what everyone was using to view the pages. That often meant deviating from standards and customizing fixes for IE6 that might mean a page just didn't look right or worse, didn't work at all on other browsers..

..I find it additionally ironic that the three newest, most sophisticated browsers currently on the bleeding edge, including Firefox 2.0, IE7, and Opera 9 all have either a setting or add-on application that'll make Web pages think they're IE6 so that they will, in fact, render the way designers originally intended. With that, I'll add that among these three I find that Opera 9 has the most elegant, aesthetically pleasing interface. But, unfortunately, and for reasons described above, quite a few pages break or don't render well on it. Despite how long IE7's rollout has taken, with discovery of vulnerabilities almost right out of the gate and installation issues for some, Microsoft's offering is an overall good browser with a lot of features to recommend it; but Firefox 2.0, even though it represents smaller evolutionary steps beyond its predecessor remains for now the best overall browser.

Below are links to the three top contenders for Editors' Choice for browsers on the PC. Look for a new review of Mac competitor Safari, soon.

Internet Explorer 7

Those of you who've followed our coverage of the development saga that is Internet Explorer 7 know that I and others at PC Magazine haven't been easy on the Softies for their laggardly development and the various shortcomings we've noted in beta builds. I've lived with the various preliminary versions of Internet Explorer 7.0 for almost a year now, using it on a daily basis. What I said in my beta 3 review still applies: I think it's solid overall and a big improvement over the patchwork quilt IE6 has become. At the same time, when I'm in a mood to really try new things and push the envelope, I like the Firefox and Opera more.

Firefox 2.0

If you expect every software update to bring an arsenal of shock-and-awe technologies, prepare yourself now for disappointment with version 2.0 of Firefox (as well as with IE7 and Opera 9). But if you realize what artisans and engineers have known for millennia—that improving and refining what you have beats feature bloat—this is your browser. Not that you won't find new features, with session restore and anti-phishing capability (both of which were in the betas) at the top of the list.

Opera

When you go to Opera.com to download the latest version of the browser, don't be scared off by the strange people you'll see at the top of the home page. They're a little frightening, but Opera 9 isn't. In fact, I was all set to make it my pick for Editors' Choice among the most popular general browsers, but rendering problems and some odd errors kept Opera from winning the title. Still, there's a lot to like about this plucky independent browser from Norway.

http://www.pcmag.com/print_article2/0,1217,a%3D193304,00.asp

Why the Technobabble?

Rick — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 15:38:00 GMT

I love the field I work in.

I hate the stereotype I seem to be getting because other firms cannot communicate to humans.

Computers can be frustrating enough as they are. I have talked about the need for a translator for small business owners to understand their technology. What does not help is when multiple firms try to attack each other and discredit each other in order to try and close a deal. I can not think of any business owner that would feel good about engaging an IT consulting firm because they out powered another during the sales process only to find out later that they did not possess the skill set to achieve the goals they set out to accomplish. And do not think you can tell me that does not happen, I have seen it!

Just the other week at the St. Louis Business Expo in St. Charles Missouri (anyone else think it is funny that the St. Louis Expo is actually in St. Charles?) I ran into a business owner that I had originally met a year ago and asked how their technology needs were being handled by the IT firm they decided to go with. I got a response that looked something like this: (see picture below)

They were so frustrated with the Technobabble they have had to deal with over the last six months that an effort was beginning to develop in search for a third IT firm. With out going into the specifics of the situation. ... Their current provider insisted they would provide a certain level of support, customer support being the predominate apparent focus of their proposal. When the business owner called the IT firm, disapproving of the level of service they had received, the response was an assortment of technobabble the IT firm used to defend themselves and to defend the service contract that was entered. I listened to this President, for easily half an hour, rant about the problems in communication.

All the business owner wanted was for their network to work as fluidly as promised without the technobabble, and if there were problems to explain what those problems meant. This seams very simple to me.. but what do I know?

As I am sure a number of you are familiar with my use of technical terms. ... Technobabble as defined by Wikipedia: Technobabble, a form of prose using jargon, buzzwords and highly esoteric language to give an impression of plausibility through mystification, misdirection, and obfuscation. This is not to be confused with jargon itself, but rather technobabble is a conscious attempt to deliver jargon to outsiders, without insight or comprehensive explanation, to make unsound or unprovable arguments appear to have merit.

Why don't we all make an effort within our own field to bring the People focus back to technology consulting.

What happened to the customer is always right? My focus, and I really believe all IT firms should have their focus, is on the business, the people specifically, and what their needs are instead of my own. They do not care about my knowledge, they have goals and objectives that are far greater than mine. The people, and the solutions to their goals, are the focus of my attention as a consultant. It is never the technology that is the problem. It's the technobabble and the communication of that babble. Simple solution to that problem.. Communicate like a human!

One more definition of technobabble:
The Oxford Companion to the English Language states: "An informal term for the use or overuse of technical jargon. John A. Barry in the introduction to Technobabble (MIT Press, 1991) says that 'the word connotes meaningless chatter about technology' but 'is also a form of communication among people in the rapidly advancing computer and other high-technology industries.'"

Happy Monday everyone and have a great week!

Bike looking for a good home

Rick — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:52:00 GMT

I know this is a bit off topic from my normal entries but you know what. ... that's the privilege you have when you write your own blog!

I have decided to get rid of my sport bike and have decided to get something a little more comfortable for cross country rides. Riding out to Memphis from St. Louis to see Kelly has pretty much solidified my decision. I really do love this bike and it certainly does fit me but I like to travel too much and need a cruiser.

Below is the ad I placed on Craigslist and if you have any questions please feel free to contact me. I will definitely miss this bike

2003 Suzuki Alstare GSXR Very Rare!! - $5500 (St. Louis, MO)

2003 GSX-R 600 Alstare Edition (Limited 40th Anniversary Edition)
Corona Paint Scheme. This bike has a ton of extra parts on it and just hums! I love riding her but I just don't have the time because I travel a lot now. I get an amazing amount of looks on this bike and have actually met a lot of really great people because of the bike which is one of the reasons I will really miss her. Everyone wants to know what I've done to it and even people that don't posses a vast knowledge of bikes want to ask all kinds of questions.

Oil changed every 1,500 miles and kept nice and comfy in my warm garage. Always adult owned and ridden never raced or stunted!

-16,000 miles
-New gold chain
-New Vortex Front and Rear Sprockets (one down in the front and two up in the back!)
-Alstare Tank Pad
-Alstare purple and yellow after market seat
-Alstare rear seat
-D&D exhaust
-New ASV Short Clutch Lever
-New ASV Short Break Lever
-GSXR after market grips
-Carbon Fiber flush turn signals
-Metallic purple and yellow double bubble windscreen
-Green neon accent lights
-K&N performance filters
-Two matching HJC helmets
-Clean Title
-Unlike most of the bikes.. yes I have the owners manual

She's got a lot of love in her and easily over $2000 in extra parts

ASKING $5,500 OBO

Mechanically she's absolutely flawless but Plastics have couple of scratches on both sides where a previous owner dropped it in a parking lot, I actually saw him do it.

Bike is located in St. Charles, MO (close to Ameristar Casino)

Give me call/text, 314.393.8413 or shoot me an email, info@rickdemko.com if you're interested.