Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Who's Your WebMaster?

  • What's a WebMaster?


  • Who maintains ownership/control of yourcompany.com ?


  • Who manages your Web and Email security / records / traffic?


  • Has your website/Domain become compromised? or even hijacked?  


  • Are you sure?


  • How do you know?

If you manage a business and have any kind of digital presence (email, website, social networking), then knowing the answers to these questions can have drastic impact to employee work flow and your Public Presence.


 



Happy Clicking!

Nathan DeSutter
IT Consultant


Contact me:
559-674-1301

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Mistakes are Good?


I think about this every day. True we are imperfect and we all make mistakes. As such we can either see it as a fault or an opportunity to improve ourselves. I vote for the latter.  

As an IT provider this really goes to a whole new level. Making mistakes in IT can have drastic consequences to a companys' operations, profitability and livelihood. For example, it's estimated that 80% of businesses that suffer some sort of data disaster resulting in major data loss, will close their doors within 6 months.

Can you imagine, tonight a major server failure happens, some natural disaster, office fire or theft happens and you LOSE YOUR DATA!

Think about it, where would your business be if you lost all accounting records, all customer info, all order info, inventory, accounts payable, accounts receivable, all emails, all documents, spreadsheets....shall I go on?

What will you do?Is YOUR data backed up?

Are you sure? Are you REALL sure? 
Who is watching the backup?   Who last verified restores are successful? When?Where is this data?

How long will it take you to recover? How long will it take to be back in operation?


Is there a disaster recovery plan in place?


 
If you have a doubt on any of these thoughts, you need to contact me. I take great pride with my company; in that the CEO, CFO and Managers of our clients have a softer pillow knowing how we take care of their data.

WHY?
We meet with IT Administrators, CTOs and IT Managers all across the nation and some even around the world. We share our strengths and weaknesses, our success and our failures. We thus "learn from other's mistakes".

We take this back and methodically cross-analyze our clients. We spend countless hours and days running through the 'what if' scenarios for our clients. Then as we see areas for improvement for data protection and maximizing uptime, we plan, confirm, and act.

Try this, go to your IT guy and ask him to show you (NOT TELL YOU), but SHOW you how he/she accomplishes downtime prevention and disaster recovery planning.


Tell me you read this blog and I will give your business a Free Backup Evaluation. Yup free.


Yup, mistakes are good, when others make them and we improve your business because of them.


Happy Clicking!

Nathan DeSutter
IT Consultant


Contact me:
559-674-1301

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

What's the difference between Business and Personal Computers?

Simple Answer:
1.   Reliability
2.   Feature set.


For home, I may care more about:
1.   Home photos / videos
2.   General email and document use
3.   Internet Surfing / Social networking, etc.
4.   More Recreation and Family use.

For Business, although the above may still apply, what trumps
those wants are:
1.   Reliability
2.   Quality
3.   Performance
4.   Uptime
5.   Repair time 


Ideally you want both. But often vendors will cut corners with hardware, production and warranty by selling a lower end, cheaper consumer version (Personal Computer) Usually a Business Computer cost more and has most underling features that a home / consumer computer would have. So by buying a business computer you typically get the best of both.


Q.  What makes Business Computers more reliable?

A.  Hardware and config.

Better quality hardware. Better construction of parts and assembly. Usually business computers will have better warranties. 

The Typical Consumer computer will have a 1 year very limited warranty.  This will entail out of country support and require you to ship off your machine for 1-3 weeks of repair.
The Dell Business Machines (we configure) include a 3 Year Next Business Day Parts Replacement Warranty. If any part fails Dell will overnight us the part. They give that kind of product backing because they have made a better product and do not expect failure. This means less risk for the user and less risk for your company.
In the consumer world, being without your personal computer is more of an inconvenience. In the Business World, being without your computer can mean serious loss of revenue.

Business Computers costs more but are more reliable. Any prudent Business Exec would agree the extra few $$$, is well worth the reduced risk.


Common Questions:
When Should I Replace My Computer?

What Computer Should I Buy? 



Happy Clicking!

Nathan DeSutter
IT Consultant


Contact me:
559-674-1301

Friday, October 7, 2011

What Computer Should I Buy?

Since your business depends greatly on your computers, your choice of computer / brand / model becomes a key to your company profit.  Beyond choice of computer, the method of setup used to configure the machine for your network and user needs also has huge impact on the reliability of the computer.  One survey says "Improper Configuration leads to 1/3 of computer issues."


We have been using the Dell Business line of Computers / Servers for several years now, and we're very happy with the results. Few things I like best:

-          Business Class = Reliability
o   As you know, having a machine down is money lost. So we start out with the Business Class Machines, which have more reliable hardware to start with. 

-          3 Year Next Business Day Warranty
o   If something fails, Dell will overnight the replacement parts. In the many years we have been a Dell Gold Certified Partner, Dell has done a great job getting us parts as needed.

-          Standardization
o   Because we use the same class / model computers with all our clients, we have hundreds of the exact same computers we work with every day. So as technicians our ability to work with, diagnose and repair is increased exponentially = better IT Support for your business.

-          Docking Station Port
o   This is really nice because external USB docks are notorious for problems.


To have success you need the right start.
1.    Choose the right Computer
2.    Choose the right Tech to install







Why not just buy direct for yourself?
Answer is point #2. You see to have the right install performed; you have to have the right computer configuration. Many times I see people just use the online configurator or speak with a sales person and decide what they think they need. So many times the wrong configuration is chosen. By using Compnology to carefully plan and select the exact configuration for your Computers, Laptops and Servers you will have greater reliability for the next 3-6 years of your happy computer life!


Common Questions:When Should I Replace My Computer?

What's the Difference between Business and Personal Computers?








Happy Clicking!

Nathan DeSutter
IT Consultant


Contact me:
559-674-1301

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Database Trick = Faster Servers

Database design / admin has major implications to your business NET Profit. Watch my video and learn how.




Happy Clicking!

Nathan DeSutter
IT Consultant


Contact me:
559-674-1301

Can LCD's be Fixed?

LCD's do have many replaceable parts and have higher probably of repair than the old CRT box monitors. In Most cases a failed or broken Laptop Screen is worth the repair.


4 Common Issues:

1. AC Adapter
2. Power Inverter
3. Backlight
4. Bad Panel


1. AC Adapter
The AC Adapter can be easily tested with a multi-meter. This test is usually 90% conclusive if the AC adapter is good or bad.  Also if the LCD has absolutely no power, no power light, no faint display, no reaction at all, the AC Adapter is a likely culprit.   We can do a multi-meter test for free if you bring to our service center.

Est. Repair Costs: apx $20 - $50

2. Power Inverter
This is an internal part that inverts power to the needed amount for the backlight and panel. Inverters fail, and can be easily replaced.  Failing inverter symptoms:
• No Picture     (or very faint picture)
• Screen flashes
• Power light and sound still DO work

Est. Repair Costs: $75

3. Backlight
The backlight is simply a miniature compact Florescent light bulb. Just like what's in office ceilings but very thin and small.  This can fail like any light bulb and can be easily replaced. Failing Backlight symptoms:
• No Picture   (or very faint picture)
• Power light and sound still DO work

Est. Repair Costs: $75

4. Bad Panel
The panel itself can fail.  The panel contains thousands of tiny pixels all connected by a mesh of thin signal cables. When a panel discolors or fails, the entire panel needs to be removed and replaced. This is less common, and is only sometimes worth the repair.  Failing Panel Symptoms:
• Faded Screen or partly faded           
• Discolored areas of the screen.
• Dots of color. Usually Black or White, but could be any color. This is a bad pixel and is the start of a failing screen.

NOTE:  (if it’s very faint, only visible on certain angles, it’s likely the inverter or backlight mentioned above.)

Est. Repair Costs: $50 - $250



What if I break my panel?This is rather common on a laptop. Almost always its worth fixing. Usually we purchase a new panel or pull from a parted out laptop.
On a desktop LCD, I usually suggest to replace the entire screen. Some manufactures make replacement panels, but often times do not.

Est. Repair Costs: $50 - $250



Other Failures. This can be anything from bad controller board or bad internal cable. These items should be diagnosed by a professional.  A simple cable issue can be $5 part. Bad board might be a time to buy a new screen.



In all cases, it might be worthwhile to fix your LCD, especially on a laptop.  Although with a few year old desktop LCD, you may consider a replacement, especially if you’re thinking of an upgrade.


Happy Clicking!

Nathan DeSutter
IT Consultant


Contact me:
559-674-1301