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Fiber optic cabling can help everyone to do so. A type of network cable, fiber optic cables contain tiny strands of glass fibers, each wrapped in an insulated casing. These fibers, not much thicker than a human hair, transmit data by providing a pathway for it to travel through. These signals are maintained by the light being reflected by the cladding – a layer of glass that surrounds the core to insulate it. As you may imagine, this is a very efficient way to transmit data – light is famous for being fast, after all. Furthermore, fiber optic cables can support a higher bandwidth as well as keep transmitted data more stable over longer distances. Now, a lot of the infrastructure that we use every day is supported by fiber optic cabling – including a lot of the Internet, telephone systems, and cable television. The benefits of using fiber optic cabling include: Higher Data Capacities – A fiber optic cable is capable of carrying far more data than copper cables could. Fiber cables can transmit 10 Gbps, 40 Gbps, and 100 Gbps. Longer Distance – Light can go much further without losing its strength, eliminating the need for as many signal boosters. Less Interference – By its nature, copper cabling is susceptible to external electromagnetic interference, and the shielding that is implemented to prevent this interference isn?t always effective. Fiber optic cable isn?t susceptible, and so interference of this kind isn?t a problem. This makes fiber-optic cabling the preferred choice for long-distance connections, but some Internet providers use it for direct access for customers. Here are the ways these cables are deployed: Fiber to the Premises (FTTP) – Fiber used to deliver media services to residential buildings. Fiber to the Building/Block/Premises (FTTB) – This is fiber optic cables used to support commercial buildings. Fiber to the Curb of a Node (FTTC/N) – This cable is connected to a node, which then uses copper cables to connect to customers. Direct fiber – The is fiber optic cable that runs directly from the central hub to the customer, which costs a pretty penny. Shared fiber – Essentially the same as direct fiber, but split to serve multiple customers. While it is possible to get a fiber optic connection to your business, it is extremely expensive to do – prohibitively expensive, in fact. With the costs that it comes with, it may only become an option if your provider is actively rolling out a new infrastructure. To learn more about the technology that powers today?s businesses, and how you can put it to use for you, keep reading our blog!
Benefit #1: Technology Can Help Your Business Operate More Efficiently Successful businesses know how to leverage technology so that their organization runs smoothly and efficiently. Software and other programs can help employees save time so they can be more productive. Key integrations, automated tools, and other technological tools can help everyone complete their work faster with less effort. Benefit #2: The Right Technology Can Elevate Your Brand Image Technology can also help elevate your company’s brand image or give it a certain cache. If your business uses the latest software and equipment, you will be considered an early adopter – especially if your industry is not that tech-savvy. Chatbot marketing, a polished Customer Relationship Management system and responsive web design will give your customers the impression that your business is up-to-date and very tech-savvy. Benefit #3: Certain Types of Technology Can Reduce Overall Liability Every business owner must carefully manage risk for their company to survive. One of the great things about technology is that it can reduce overall liability. IT technicians can download backup copies of important files, web developers can put up firewalls to protect the company’s website and other IT staff can encrypt sensitive information so that it would be less susceptible to malicious cybercriminals. Benefit #4: Technology Can Help You Take Advantage of Other Business Opportunities There are certain opportunities that your company as a whole may not be able to enjoy if it doesn’t have the right technology. For example, your business won’t be able to leap into the smart home device space and set up Google Home or Amazon Alexa skills if your business is not prepared or doesn’t have the right technological tools. You also won’t be able to take advantage of several opportunities that are available online if your business does not have a website or social media presence. Benefit #5: Technology Can Help Your Business Save Money Technology can also make it easy for companies to scale faster and more efficiently, which can help them save money overall. An example of this is when a software system can do the job of three people and you can lower your payroll expenses since you won’t have to hire more employees. Now that we have discussed several ways your business can benefit from using technology, here are several reasons why you should consider working with a managed IT service provider: Managed IT Service Providers Can Help You Strategize Additional Ways to Save Money If you (or anyone else on your staff) are not subject matter experts when it comes to technology, you should seriously partner with an outside IT provider. Their team can help you make informed decisions and guide you towards technological strategies that can usher in additional cost savings. They can also assist you and other leaders in making educated budgets and provide other guidance. Managed IT Service Providers Have a Team of Experienced Professionals Another advantage of working with an outside Managed IT Service Provider is that you will never again have to worry about finding and hiring qualified staff for an in-house IT department. The Managed IT Service Provider you select will have already vetted their workers and assembled a large team of experienced professionals who can handle your company’s concerns. They can also provide very fast technical support at all […]
If You Can, Shop on Sites You Trust I, for one, don?t love creating new accounts across the Internet. If I can find a product on an online store I trust and already use, I?m comfortable paying a little more for the peace of mind. For example, Amazon isn?t always the cheapest option, but they?ve had a good track record for getting me what I order on time. Look for the Lock When you are doing any kind of shopping online, you need to check to see if your connection to the website is secure. Most modern browsers will show a padlock in front of the page address if you are browsing securely. This lock means you are surfing a site that is using an SSL certificate. This basically means your connection to the website is encrypted. It doesn?t mean that the whole website is 100 percent safe, but at least the initial connection is secure. Use PayPal, Apple, or Amazon Pay if Possible Sometimes, when making purchases online, the website will give you the ability to use a third-party payment system to make the transaction. For example, a site might let you choose to pay via PayPal or to type in your credit card information. The nice thing about using PayPal (or one of the other highly trusted payment systems) is that you aren?t plugging your financial information into a website you don?t trust. The transaction goes directly through PayPal and you are then redirected back to the online store. Be Aware of Phishing and Scams The holiday season can be hectic, to the point where many people might let their guard down. Cybercriminals know this, and will try to game the system to steal your information. Be skeptical of emails that seem fishy or look too good to be true. If you receive an unexpected email from an online store about your account, don?t click any links in it. Instead, log back into the store and navigate to your account area. Most ecommerce sites use email to relay information about your purchase, but they expect users to interact with them on the website itself. The Internet can make holiday shopping much easier, but with its conveniences, you still need to be safe. Although we can?t really help you pick out the perfect gift for your in-laws, we can help protect your business from online threats. Give us a call at (603) 889-0800 to learn more!
The software giant has begun to roll out warning signs in their Patch Tuesday patches, but it hasn?t been enough for people (and businesses) to upgrade away from Windows 7. Let?s take a look at more about this shift. January 14, 2020 We are now just a month away from Windows 7 End of Life event. Computers running the software after January 14th, will not be receiving technical assistance from Microsoft; and therefore will be in danger from a new wave of oncoming vulnerabilities. Why Shouldn?t You Run Unsupported Software? The way it is written, software isn?t always secure. Developers need to make consistent changes to ensure that hackers don?t have access to vulnerabilities. Since a data breach can effectively wipe out your company, you need to ensure that all of your systems are up-to-date and patched thoroughly. Not only that, a data breach can flatten any forward momentum a business has. That?s not even taking into account that the fact that today, with ransomware being a consideration, making sure all of the software you depend on is supported keeps your business secure. Besides the security issues, there are other considerations to contend with, like a loss in functionality. What are Your Options? Upgrade to Windows 10 To be honest, your options are shrinking by the day. You only have about a month before Microsoft pulls the plug on the software for good, and you need to upgrade away to keep threats from piling up. Windows 10 only requires at least a one GHz processor, 2 GB of RAM, and 20 GB available on a hard drive, which may allow your business from facing huge upfront costs if its technology already meets those standards. Extended Support With only a month left it may not give some organizations enough time to make the change. For businesses that qualify, Microsoft is offering a costly extended support package that will be available for all Windows 7 Pro and Windows 7 Enterprise customers with volume licensing through January 2023. For qualifying businesses, costs for Enterprise will be $25 per device from 2020-2021, $50 per device from 2021-2022, and $100 per device from 2022-2023. The cost of support for Pro versions will be double that. Under these platforms, you will need to upgrade away by 2023. Microsoft 365 Another option for the business that needs to move away from Windows 7 quickly is to utilize the Microsoft 365 platform. Microsoft 365 is available in enterprise, business, and education budgets, and includes Windows 10, Microsoft Office 365, and much more. Paid by the user, per month, major hardware upgrades can be tabled or done incrementally, allowing a business to pay as they go until they get to where they want to be. Call us at (603) 889-0800 if you are looking for help moving off of Windows 7.
To do so, we?ll be examining each of our contenders, Microsoft Outlook and Google?s Gmail, based on the same considerations. To start, let?s consider the actual interface that a user must navigate in each option. Interface Your preferences will come heavily into play as you weigh the two very different interfaces against each other, as each takes a very different approach. Gmail keeps it very simple, clearly and prominently labeling a user?s options to make it relatively easy to grow accustomed to. Different options will appear based on context – hidden until the user completes an action or accesses the in-message menu. Outlook, on the other hand, takes the opposite tack – giving users a plethora of options to make use of (to the point that a user could potentially review multiple email accounts simultaneously). However, as many could find all of the options Outlook offers to be intimidating, the Office 365 version of Outlook does offer a trimmed-down version of the option Ribbon that stretches across the top of the screen. All you have to do to switch between these options is to click on the downward caret in the far right of the Ribbon. Nevertheless, it offers its users so many options that Outlook presents its greatest weakness – its complexity. In addition to the Ribbon – stuffed with options as it is – there are three panes that make up the rest of the program. First, you have a comprehensive list of all email accounts you use Outlook to manage, second, a list of your messages that allows you to run inbox-specific searches and sort them based on assorted criteria, and third, a basic reading pane to view your messages, with the options to reply, reply all, or forward the message. That said, Outlook is what the majority of businesses have been using for decades, so chances are you are pretty familiar with it. Composing Messages This is a really important consideration to take into account when you are trying to determine the best email client, as you might assume. While Outlook may arguably have too many features displayed in its various menus and toolbars, this issue was not carried over into the message composer? although this is not to say that a user is exactly short on options when it comes to formatting their email message. Microsoft has also made it easy to share documents stored in OneDrive, a user?s PC, or items created in Outlook itself. The Ribbon, of course, offers a litany of other features to make creating, scheduling, and reviewing your emails much simpler. Comparatively, while Google offers a little less through Gmail, the apparent focus on simplicity gives a user a very usable solution with all the features that most will ever really need. Attaching media to an email can admittedly be a complicated process, namely due to the three separate ways to do so. There?s a button to insert files from the computer?s storage, a button for inserting photos from Google Photos, and a button to insert files from your Google Drive. Finally, as a very compelling feature, Gmail allows you to cancel a message that is being sent if you catch your mistake quickly enough. Email Management Finally, in order for you to actually be productive as you use your […]
