It?s understandable that some technology is absolutely required for organizations to function, but there are always those who look to technology to solve every single issue facing them. This is a dangerous practice. Technology might be great for sharing data, increasing collaboration, and ensuring that your business can meet its designated requirements, but too much technology can make it more difficult for organizations to get their jobs done. Let?s take a look at some situations when technology doesn?t help a business, but hinders it. Unnecessary Technology It?s not necessary for your organization to implement every single new solution that is released. It?s often the case that more technology creates more stress for the average worker–particularly if that employee doesn?t need to use the technology in order to go about their day-to-day responsibilities. For example, a CRM solution might be able to help your organization manage customer and interdepartmental communications, but if you only have a small number of employees as is, is it really worth it? There isn?t as big of a need to track how long everything takes, or how your few customers connect with your company, simply because you only have a small number of employees or clients in the first place. It will become apparent if somebody isn?t doing an adequate job, or if one of your clients isn?t happy with how they are being treated. This isn?t to say that your organization can?t benefit from a CRM solution–rather, it?s about weighing the costs versus the benefits that your organization receives from a CRM solution. Basically, if a centralized software solution is what you need to keep your employees busy, it?s probably more than just a technology issue that needs to be addressed. Of course, this is only one example. Technology that?s not needed ultimately wastes both time and resources that could be better spent elsewhere. Therefore, you need to be careful about how your organization implements new solutions, as well as how you determine whether or not a solution is worth investing in. To do this, start by analyzing how much value your business gets from implementing it. To use the CRM as an example, consider how much time is actually spent using a CRM when you have only five employees. Now compare this to the time spent using a CRM when you have 40 employees. Compared to the smaller workforce, you?ll practically have to use a CRM in order to ensure that you can properly manage all of the relationships and communication within your organization. Old Technology In contrast, you might consider implementing new technology if your business has been around the block a time or two. If your business has existed for several years, has a dedicated consumer base, and is still growing despite the fact that it?s using outdated technology, it can be a detriment to your organization to resist implementing new technology. Simply put, old technology is more prone to failure, leading to more revenue spent on maintenance and management, as well as opening up the door for security threats. Some businesses wait so long to replace or upgrade their technology that they face major legacy technology issues down the line. Others simply don?t have the resources available to upgrade as every new version is released, compounding the problem and making it […]

Devices The modern worker is often asked to be productive when they travel. Traditionally that means lugging around expensive hardware and trying to find access points to use along the way. Airports, train terminals, and bus terminals have a lot in common. They are filled to the brim with both people on the go, and people who are looking to take advantage of unsuspecting travelers who take their eyes of their bags for just a second. Having too much to carry around can result in your computer, and thus your work data, being stolen. A nightmare scenario to be sure. To avoid this, business professionals traveling for work should consider scaling down on their technology to maximize space. Tablets and smaller laptops can provide benefit as they can easily fit in any-sized bag and likely won?t take up enough room to facilitate a bag of their own. The idea is to get the most powerful, yet smallest machines on board with you so that you can still get work done, but not risk losing the bag or having it get stolen. Any machine that comfortably fits into a carry-on should be perfect for the average traveler. Today?s Netbooks, smaller Chromebooks, and the Macbook Air offer the kind of portability and powerful computing features needed to reduce the risk of having your technology stolen. Additionally, today?s smartphones are extraordinarily useful as not only are they great for communication and recreation, they can be used for productivity with very little modification. People will say that phones aren?t big enough to be productive on, but today?s phones can do a lot more than ones that are only a few years old…and the peripherals are much better. Today there are Bluetooth keyboards that allow users to connect to their phones and give them the opportunity to get more done on a small device. Remember, the average smartphone released in 2018 has as much computing power as many new laptops, so finding a way to use the devices for productivity works in the traveler?s (and the user?s) advantage. For the newest Samsung smartphones, the Korean tech giant has developed Samsung Dex. It is a dock that provides a PC-like performance when hooked up to a monitor–using Bluetooth to connect the keyboard and mouse. It?s a good plan, in theory. Microsoft tried something similar to try and save their smartphone division (it wasn?t enough). The truth is that these devices are simply too powerful to be used to take selfies and pictures of food exclusively. Connectivity When some of your staff travels for work, ensuring they have the technology that can be of the most use to them is important. With Wi-Fi hotspots replacing the Internet cafes, connectivity isn?t a problem (at first). You will be able to get onto the web pretty much anywhere you go, but the networks you utilize are probably not as secure as the one in your office. This presents major problems with sending and receiving data. To mitigate the risk of data theft while on the road, companies should consider a virtual private network (VPN) as a way to avoid data loss. A VPN provides a secure encrypted tunnel in which to send and receive data, keeping your data safe, and your business out of harm’s way. Some organizations will […]

Consider for a minute the world of science fiction. The whole genre is less about fantastic images of a future world than it is about commentary about how humanity functions when faced with drastic change. Many of the 20th century?s best science fiction authors legitimately thought that by the turn of the millennium we?d have flying cars, have visited the surfaces of other planets, and have developed sentient computer men that would usher in utopia. Of course, that time is long gone and, now, almost one-fifth into the new century, we have barely mastered self-driving cars, haven?t really explored the solar system, and have developed some machine learning capabilities that we bill as ?artificial intelligence? when it is really just advanced data analysis. That?s not to say we haven?t come a long, long way in a short period of time, and that the pace in which change is happening isn?t accelerating; but, ultimately, we tend to let our imaginations run away with us too often. This month we will attempt to look into the future to see how the technology we?re developing today will change the world, and how that technology will affect humanity. Where are we now? As we stated before, the best way to gauge what will come is to look at where we are. Some of the technologies written in fiction have come to fruition. Smartphones and tablets, nanotechnology, even A.I. (as it is today) are all right out of a science fiction novel from the 1960s. Today?s business is operating on two fronts. On one hand they have their operations, and on the other they have their online presence. In fact, many times, the difference between two similar businesses is how they?ve been able to use the Internet to their advantage. As the transcendent technology in a time where there are several society-changing technology innovations, the Internet is now available on almost any device you can imagine, and for the business that hasn?t yet embraced the technology, it can be intimidating to consider how to begin. Some of the technology offered on the Internet, like cloud computing and social media are both relatively new and extraordinarily useful. Many small businesses have started moving parts (or all) of their computing infrastructure to the cloud, using virtual environments to cut infrastructure costs and provide superior accessibility. Social media has also been extremely useful for the average small business by giving them access to a whole cache of potential customers, and a platform in which to engage with them. With the development of these advanced, Internet-based technologies, the modern small business is able to compete with larger organizations better than any other time in modern commercial history. Management software that can manage supply chains, human resources, and all the bookkeeping an organization does, have allowed some businesses to remain lean, spending capital on production workers rather than support staff. What?s Next? Some technologies are in their infancy and being billed as complete game-changers. We?ve already mentioned artificial intelligence, but there are other technologies that are new over the past decade that people are trying to build use out of. Blockchain is one. Distributed networks are traditionally more secure, but had lost their function in the enterprise space (due to the demands of data storage and dissemination) up until the […]

Where the Technology Stands Now Wireless charging capabilities are fairly common at this point in time. Many mobile devices now have the built-in capability to be charged wirelessly, as long as they are positioned properly on a special charging pad. However, a company called Ossia has been formed to develop wireless charging that can take place at a distance via trickle charging capabilities. This method of delivering power leverages radio frequencies to send both data and power to the connected device. Taking advantage of this newly developed potential, Ossia has worked to develop new conduits to deliver this power, leaving the charging pads typical of wireless charging in favor of a wider variety of devices under its Cota line. Instead of requiring the device to be physically touching the power source in order to charge, signals are bounced around objects in the environment to deliver both power and Wi-Fi connectivity. Ossia?s new charging system includes components like AA batteries that can be charged wirelessly, as well as drop ceiling tiles that send the signals out to the devices. Is This Necessarily a Good Thing? Of course, there is no questioning the convenience that this kind of technology could provide (especially if it was standardized), but there is the question of the affect it could have on the device. Take smartphones, for instance: what does constantly keeping a device?s battery fully charged ultimately do to the device in question? Unfortunately, nothing good. While ?overcharging? is no longer a concern, the makeup of modern batteries means that they can still suffer some damage. The explanation lies in its chemistry. Lithium-ion batteries have three essential components to their proper operation: a positive and negative electrode (made of a lithium-based compound and carbon graphite, respectively) and some kind of electrolyte. As the battery charges, lithium ions move from the positive electrode to the negative electrode via the electrolyte to be stored as energy. When this power is used, the ions move back to the positive electrode. Over time, this process wears away the electrolyte that allows the ions to move back and forth, ultimately preventing them from doing so efficiently (or even successfully). Without the ions being able to move, the battery isn?t going to work as well. As a result of this phenomenon, every battery only has a certain number of charge cycles in it before it is rendered ineffective. The argument is that, by constantly charging the battery, wireless charging eats away at the battery?s lifespan. Others argue that keeping the battery topped off actually allows the battery to remain effective for longer. Some take the argument one step further to say that the convenience of a fully-charged device is worth the cost of a replacement battery if need be. What do you think? Will wireless charging take off, despite these concerns about battery life and longevity? Let us know in the comments section, and make sure you take a moment and subscribe to our blog!

Network Profile? Each time a Windows 10 device connects to a new network, it will ask the user if it should be able to be discovered by other devices on that network. Selecting ?Yes? will set your network profile to Private, and selecting ?No? will set it to Public. The Private and Public settings are referring to the kind of network your device is connecting to, and what level of security your individual device is responsible for. If you are connected to your company?s network, with all its protections and other users with whom you need to collaborate, the ?Private? network setting is the one you want to use. However, if you?re using your device in a public setting, on a network that is ?Public?-ally accessible, you don?t want any Tom, Dick, or Harry Hacker to be able to connect to you. Switching the Network Profile Windows 10 offers a few different methods of switching the network profile that a device uses. One way is to use the built-in Settings application. From the Start menu, access the Settings application. Go to Network and Internet, and then select the kind of connection you have established from the left panel menu. If you?re physically connected to the network, select Ethernet, and if you?re using a wireless connection, select WiFi. Then, click on Network in the right panel. You can then switch between a Public network profile and a Private network profile. Domain Networks Alternatively, enterprise workplaces often leverage a third network profile – a domain network. Unlike the Private or Public profiles, only a network administrator can set its use, and it can only be applied while the device is in the workplace. Want to know more about your network, or need more help managing it? Reach out to White Mountain IT Services at (603) 889-0800.