Small Biz Technology Advisor Blog

by Christopher G. Erckert
Small Business Technology Advisor

Evo Networks’ past client Stefano from Auto Designs has been featured in Apple’s National iPhone TV Ad Campaign. His Ad can be seen on Apple’s Website here.

by Christopher G. Erckert
Small Business Technology Advisor

If we haven’t done it ourselves, we know someone who has. I’m talking about your cell phone going in the drink. If you’re lucky it’s in a pool where there’s a chance of recovering the lost souls that make up your phone book.

We just recently had a client that left their phone in their pocket while cleaning their boat. Long story short, the cell got hosed. The phone dried out but the SIM card that held all their contacts was still out of commission. Even trying to insert the SIM card into an new Motorola Razr didn’t remedy the issue.

But things took a turn for the better when our client visited American Pager & Cellular Repair located in North Babylon, NY. They specialize in Phone book transfers and Water Damaged Motorola, Nokia, L.G. and Sony Erricsson phones. They preformed their magic while the client waited and $25 later, all was right in the world again.

If you’re a small business owner and your contact list (clients, vendors, etc) can only be found in your phone make sure sure you have a backup in some form. The benefit of Windows Mobile and Palm OS based phones is that they come with software that allows users to backup their address book to their PC. For Motorola folk there is SyncCell and for everyone else there is DataPilot. For mac users, you may be able to get away with the built in iSync application, but handset compatibility is limited.

We only mention American Pager & Cellular Repair due to the accolades our client had for them.

American Pager & Cellular Repair
(Located in Parkway Car Stereo)
1285 Deer Park Ave
North Babylon, NY 11703
631.254.4722

by Christopher G. Erckert
Small Business Technology Advisor

We have been advising our clients for years on the quality of NETGEAR’s business grade networking components and even packaged them with our Data Center Express solutions. We always fancied the metal enclosures and boring box design because you could actually stack something on top of them. In my office I have a picture frame on top of my NETGEAR Wireless Access Point to hide the rabbit ears.

Today we got a bulletin from NETGEAR that their business grade (known as Pro Safe) switches, routers and other networking equipment will be covered under a lifetime warranty.

To find out which specific products are covered and the devilish details, drop us a line.

by Christopher G. Erckert
Small Business Technology Advisor

So it’s pretty fair to say that if you’ve bought a laptop within the last few years you can tap into WiFi Hot Spots everywhere, if you can find them.

I found this out first hand on a recent trip to Florida. Armed with my WiFi laptop and needing to keep in touch with clients and friends back home I had to find the closest Hot Spot when I was out and about. Fortunately, I was armed with Google Mobile Maps for my mobile phone. It’s a simplified version of Google Maps which most of you may already use today. The neat trick was that I was able to type in WiFi + the city I was in, and it listed all the nearby Hot Spots, everything from McDonald’s, Panera Bread, Starbucks, to a nearby UPS Store.

Google Maps is available for both Windows Mobile, Palm and many other phones. You’ll also need a data plan in addition to your regular calling plan so that the map program can access the internet over mobile network.

by Christopher G. Erckert
Small Business Technology Advisor

Daylight Saving Time (DST) begins March 11, 2007 — three weeks earlier than last year. DST will also last one week longer in the fall as well, changing back to standard time on November 11, 2007.

While some in the tech industry are calling this the next Y2K bug to widely affect computer systems. There is a simple way to pro actively keep the new DST from disrupting your day to day business activities.

The Big Fish

Most computer applications run off of your operating systems clock. Follow these tips and you’ll take care of most issues.

• Windows Desktops/Notebooks: Run Windows Update on all your desktops and notebooks
• Windows Servers: Have your IT guy apply the Windows Updates (it can get tricky especially if you’re running exchange)
• Apple Desktops/Notebooks/Servers: Run Software Update

Minnows

Some phones are smarter then others. Ironically most pure mobile phones will automatically be updated by the carrier (e.g. Verizon, T-mobile, etc) over the network with no need for user intervention. However, most so called smart phones need a bit more user intervention.

• Palm Devices (Windows and Palm OS): Download and install the right update here.
• Other Windows mobile Devices: Update via active sync if you’ve already run windows update as noted above.

Personal note: Over here at Evo Networks we had to update both Mac/Windows computers, a Mac Server and Palm Smart Phones, and we found a few duplicate dates in our calendar apps but otherwise, it was a fairly smooth process and definitely not a Y2K ordeal.

by Christopher Erckert
Small Business Technology Advisor

I found this wonderful and timely article on a timeless debate: Is a mac right for my biz? This non techie article explains the benefits and potential hiccups you might run into. Read the full story at The Register here.

by Christopher Erckert
Small Business Technology Advisor

While attending this month’s local Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce membership breakfast I met one of our new members Matthew Maroney from Intelligent Office. Essentially, Intelligent Office offers two main services:

• Remote Receptionist: With The Remote Receptionist, your calls are answered in the name of your company or any other greeting you’d like. They screen each call according to your exact instructions. They then dial your extension (or any other number you’ve left with us), and announce the call to you.

• Virtual Office: Whether you’re just getting started or expanding your reach, you need an office solution that expands with your business. Tailored to meet variable needs, the Executive Office is also suited to offsite project teams, mobile consultants and those who need a professional and flexible business environment on a short or long-term basis.

Their closest office to Huntington, NY is their Melville location at: 445 Broad Hollow Rd. Ste.25, but the cool thing is, once you sign up as a client you can use any one of their 41+ locations in North America.

After the Huntington Chamber event I decided to investigate just how Intelligent Office could solved many small business’ growing pains. Here are my thoughts…

Everyone who has a home based business knows that as your business grows you begin to feel the pressure of not having a professional setting for meeting clients and conducting business. Sure, you can pay for remote reception services, have a well designed website with a bunch of corporate images on it, have meetings at Starbucks, or simply meet clients at their location, but there will always, always be a time when it would be so much easier to have a professional office where you controlled the setting.

When I say control, I mean control over distractions for both you and the client. Now there are many cases when you want to be in the client’s environment for a sale, but I look back at times in my career when if only that phone didn’t ring off the hook, or one of the clients employees didn’t interrupt us, the sales pitch could have gone so much smoother.

I’ve also personally found that bringing the client out of their environment and into a neutral setting simply allows them to have more perspective on their business. This really helps when you’re doing consultative selling and you need the client to be very introspective about their business and how it operates. Finally, lets not forget the dreaded PowerPoint presentation at a client site. With the wrong projector cables, general incompatibilities, no space to put stuff down, etc. it can be a real nightmare and it seems with Intelligent Office you literally neutralize the sales distractions.

I would also say another not so obvious plus, is having a place to get work done that is not Starbucks and not home. It’s the equivalent of the library except you can make phone calls, you get free WiFi Access, and the chairs are much more comfortable. There are numerous other benefits so I suggest you head over to their website @ www.iomelville.com

One shortcoming to a shared office suite environment is not being able to access all your stuff that you leave back at home. This includes both digital and paper files, business materials, and anything else you need to get the job done. The best way to solve this, is to digitize as much as you can and setup remote access to your home office. It’s not a costly endeavor and Evo Networks can help outfit you with everything you need to make it work, and to ensure a smooth transition to IO or any other shared suite service.

By Elinor Mills
Story last modified Thu Nov 16 07:27:42 PST 2006