Featured Posts
Tuesday, 15 May 2012
10 Things You Should Know About the Smartphone and Internet Security
1. Spyware: As the name implies, are scripts that are created specifically to spy on you. They collect information about search queries, logins, passwords, credit card data, address books, etc.
2. Viruses: These are script or program codes that are capable of self-replication, and unauthorized transfer from one computer to another.
3. Malware: This is the common name for a variety of computer programs designed specifically to harm your computer, server or network. One of the dangers of malicious programs lies in the fact that they are able to penetrate deep into the files, appearing again, even after their removal.
4. Trojans: Trojans enter your computer disguised as useful or important updates of the program. They are created specifically to cause damage to computers, destroying or altering information on your hard disk.
5. Adware: These programs are created to ensure that no consent to display advertisements on the screen of a smartphone or computer. It can be pop-up windows, automatically downloads sites, etc.
6. Malicious toolbars: They replicate the functionality of known panels (such as Yahoo or Google), but that analyze information stored in the memory of a computer or smartphone.
7. Theft browser: These scripts change the start page of the web browser without any user consent.
8. Cookie: This is a legitimate files that store information about your visits to Web sites and designed to make using them easier and more convenient. However, if a hacker gets access to the cookies, he learns about you very much.
9. Worms: This kind of virus that is able to copy the information for themselves from the PC or smart phone.
10. Common sense: It is the best protection against various kinds of malicious programs. Just avoid questionable sites, do not insert your flash drive in a public computer, do not open email from strangers, etc.
As for smartphones, these relatively new devices are not so heavily exposed to a virus attack. But over time, will appear more and more programs designed to steal information from your iPhone (iPhone), Android (Android) or Blackberry (Blackberry). Therefore, use your common sense and it will save you and your information. Follow above listed 10 things and their prevention method for securing your vital information.
Microsoft Lync Secret - 1 - There Is an iPhone App
Microsoft Lync launched in 2010 and has made working and collaborating with a computer to a higher level. Allowing individuals from anywhere in the world to communicate with each other in real time, by typing a note, talking into a microphone, or sharing their desktop. Lync is available in two different flavors, hosted on a server that is owned by the organization or by subscribing to Microsoft Lync Online, which is part of the Office 365 suite of products.
One of the secrets that I have uncovered about Microsoft Lync will make staying in touch much easier. It will allow you to go about your day an still be able to respond to messages that come in. And that secret is that Microsoft has a Lync App in the iPhone App store that is free to use. The process is very simple to get connected.
Make sure you have Lync working on your computer. This will ensure that you can login in with your App. Also make sure that you have an iPhone of some sort. Then go to the iPhone app store and search for Microsoft Lync. Once you find the App, you will know as the logo is the same as the one on the computer. Click to install and wait for the application to install on the phone. Once that is complete, set up the app by entering in the login and password that is used on your computer, and then presto, you have Microsoft Lync on your iPhone and can stay in touch where ever you go.
With this added freedom, you will be able to stay in touch with your customers, business associates, and friends while you are on the go. There are some extra features of Microsoft Lync have than other messaging apps do not have. You can set your status from your phone and you can see other contacts status. If you are connected with Exchange, you can se your meetings that are coming up as well.
As a busy consultant, I find it extremely valuable to have this little app on my iPhone that will allow me to be available to my customers and to my business contact. One time I was in line at lunch and one of my most important clients pinged me with Lync. I was able to respond immediately to his problem and fixed before I had to order; the power of being available on Lync. Allowing them to see my status and the ability to change my status on the fly makes this app that need to be downloaded.
There are two ways to get Microsoft Lync, Individuals can get a subscription to Microsoft Office 365 which comes with Microsoft Lync Online. If you work at a place that has Microsoft Lync as their Office Communicator, then you can use your login from your business to use the Lync App. Of course you should make sure that you are able to access the Lync Host before relying on it as a business tool. Get with your IT administrator to make sure that it is available.
Brad R. Holt has greater than a decade of combined experience in Project Management, Business Operations, Customer Deployment Services, and Microsoft SharePoint Excellence PMO Consulting. He earned is MBA in eBusiness from the University of Phoenix. Since then he has been developing and refining a engagement and consulting process that help organizations increase their Project Management knowledge.
Brad, has specialized with Microsoft SharePoint and Project Server and is able to customize these products to fit a variety of needs including Project Demand Management and Document Management. He has also trained many power users to be Subject Matter Experts of SharePoint. http://www.bradrholt.com/
Brad Holt is a Microsoft Office 365 Specialist focusing on Small to medium sized Businesses. Contact me if you have any Offie 365 questions.
Understanding The Importance Of Collecting And Analyzing Business Data
Are you taking advantage of the key data available and using it to benefit your company? The market offers you information on your competition, potential and current customers, trends and much more. By finding this information by analyzing business data and taking advantage of it, you'll find it helps in many ways:
• Retain your customers
• Boost sales across the board
• Generate more business
• Successfully target your potential clientele
You've already got a lot of information about your customers already so why not take advantage of it by using data analysis software?
What Consumer Data Analysis Software Can Do for Your Business-
1. Help Retain Current Customers.
By interacting with your customers on a proactive basis, you'll be able to give them information they see as valuable. Those queues may be that the latest version of a product could solve one of their problems. When sales reps suggest improvements that will help your customer solve problems, they won't see it as selling but as a great boost of customer service.
2. Improve Your Sales.
Your sales representatives are in the perfect position to obtain pertinent information about your current clientele. They are interacting with your clients already and on a regular basis. If you've got all the information entered into your ERP (enterprise resource planning) and CRM (customer relationship management) packages, you'll be able to leverage the information so you'll be able to develop products and services your clients need.
3. More Effective Target Promotions.
Being able to target potential clients that fit your business and products is key. The right consumers are necessary if you want your latest promotion to be successful. You'll be able to track sales and performance because of the data you've already managed to collect already.
This business data reporting includes the length of time it takes to complete a sale on an identified lead. If you target the wrong consumer segment with the correct solution, your sales cycle could be lengthened and significantly decrease your profitability. When you identify the consumer sector that will provide you with revenue faster, you will be able to increase your profitability substantially. Taking advantage of proper analysis of client data, you'll be able to identify which parts of your marketing and sales resources are most effective.
4. Identify Strengths & Weaknesses Even when you have the right tools for capturing your consumer data and then conducting customer data analysis, your sales department may still fall short. They may not be identifying valuable opportunities from the business data reporting you have available. ERP and CRM software has the customer data analysis tools you need to measure each of your sales person's productivity. This can help you identify areas where your sales department may be having problems. You will then be able to 'fine-tune' your process to improve the results of every team member.
With the right tools for analyzing business data and taking advantage of the information it contains, your customer data analysis can be a huge benefit.
When it comes to collecting and analyzing business data, Marlon Escalat knows you have to have good business reporting software. To make the best decisions, businesses turn to the data solutions offered by Windward.
How to Start a Website for Your Painting Business
After running a very successful direct mail campaign I started my own website. What started out slow in the way of response grew over a period of 2 years, to the point where I can envision not doing direct mail in a few years.
First I am not telling you to create the site yourself. But you need to think about what to say. Starting a website for your painting business begins with your web design. What I mean is that you need to think about what it takes to reach the people in your area. You will want to advertise by mentioning the areas local to you that you want to service. After all it won't do you any good getting calls from across the country, so you will want to confine your region. Of course having photos is very good. Then telling what you do in your business is necessary.
After you have started to firm up your thoughts go to the keyword link and research the most popular keywords that are stimulating click through to the keywords in your niche, and use these keywords in your content. You will want a page that you can ask questions, like what their name, address, email is and what is the age of the house? (I want to know if there is know if there is lead paint in the house). I like to ask if the customer ever had experience with a contractor and what kind of experience did they have. What did they want out of the paint job? This page can be set up with an automatic email back to you.
Once you begin to firm up in your mind what you want in your web site then contact http://www.freelancer.com, this is a site where people contact where people can outsource their web design work to a professional web site designer for a fraction of the cost because these designers bid on your site work. https://adwords.google.com: keyword tool
Next, you are probably thinking that this will cost a fortune; fear not, I paid under $100 for a website builder to create my site. And I am currently paying $3.95 per month for a hosting plan. Be prepared for some new experiences, and if you do a good job picking good keywords and content, you will have a good response rate. Once the site is up and running you will see how little effort it takes to have customers call you or email you.
The Importance of a Computerized Business Management System
According to a recent industry survey, nearly 50 percent of outdoor power equipment dealers do not utilize a computerized business management system (BMS). That is not to say that these businesses do not have a computer system of some type, as many have them for Internet access, parts look-up or email. The survey also indicated that the most successful dealers (by dollars and size) all had an "industry-specific" BMS in place at their dealerships.
So does this mean you must have an industry-specific BMS to be successful in the outdoor power equipment industry? Certainly not, but it does seem to indicate a BMS could factor into your success.
If you are one of those dealers in the 50 percent that lack a BMS, here are some reasons why you should consider adding one to your business and some implementation concerns you should be aware of.
The main purpose of a BMS is to improve productivity at all levels of an organization. Each department within your dealership will gain capabilities from computer technology that will allow them to function more effectively and efficiently. A BMS will streamline business operations, employee workflow and dealership processes. Ultimately, this will provide better management control and positively impact the dealership's bottom line.
BMS help management and employees more easily communicate and collaborate. Users of these systems find they have much easier access to needed information in order to complete work-related tasks. Even technology like email, instant messaging and social networking has enhanced the communication process to provide rapid communication between the dealership, customers and vendors. This business communication technology allows management and employees to develop closer relationships to customers, which results in improved sales.
A BMS facilitates real-time tracking of business transactions. This speeds the process of typically laborious transactions like invoicing, purchasing and inventory control. Essentially, all business activities will see great improvements in time spent and a dramatic decrease in errors. Management is able to get a better handle on business operations, improve employee productivity and define future company strategies.
Now are there any downsides to adding a BMS to your business? In reality, very few considering the gains you will achieve. There are some pitfalls an astute business owner or manager must be aware of. Otherwise, implementing a BMS could prove to be very, very costly.
The purchase price of a BMS has seen a considerable decrease in the last two decades, but you should be aware that the initial price of the BMS is a mere portion of the total overall money a business will invest when they computerize their operations. It is imperative that the business owner and management foresee these costs and plan accordingly.
Installing a BMS puts tremendous demand on the ability of a company to manage its personnel. It tests the capacity of managers and employees to train and accept training. A company should expect to invest considerable time and money into training each person that will be involved in the operation. Without the proper managed training, operation of the BMS might cause work disruptions and could become quite detrimental to productivity and profitability.
As a final note, using a BMS will become a determining factor in your business operations, workplace practices and overall business strategies. Once you automate your dealership's business processes, the business will gain additional reporting, management tools and operational procedures that will help achieve your business goals. The importance of a BMS cannot be overstated and is now well acknowledged as a business necessity.
Importance of a Computerized Business Management System
c-Systems Software, Inc.
10 Internet Meme Themes and the Meme Revolution
From parents to kids, businesses to non-profit organizations, everybody and anybody has joined the meme revolution.
What's a Meme?
An Internet meme, pronounced like "seem," is a shared image that spreads virally across the Internet via social networking sites, blogs, emails, and more. Memes illustrate anything from impressive triumphs to epic failures or they can be parodies that imitate behavior.
A good meme goes viral - your audience (friends, family, peers, colleagues, organizations, and more) broadcasts your work for you by sharing your meme with their friends, family, and so on.
All you have to do is create a memorable meme!
Popular Memes You Can Create Too!
Caption This: One of the most popular memes, these are images captioned by your friends, family, or your audience. Whether it's a dramatic image from a popular movie or an image that sparks your imagination, captions are a fantastic way to increase engagement and have a good laugh!Imitation-Speak: If you see an image and imagine the person (or animal's) response, what would it say? Would he, she, or it have a particular accent?
Entertainment: Television, movies, sports, arts, and more - entertainment is a shared experience and is easily recognized. If you have an experience that conjures a scene or moment, you can create an entertainment themed-meme by taking a scene from a movie and add your own text!
Meme Movements: These types of memes have social zeal that you contribute to with your own personal twist. For example, doing something in an area that isn't traditionally done, taking a picture of it, and sharing it. The "planking" phenomenon is an example of this.
Formatted Memes: Format a meme that can be easily replicated. An example of this is the 6 photo montage featuring photos from "What my friends think I do" to "What I really do..."
Shockingly Bad: Made with the best intentions, from horrendous music videos to family photos, some memes are created and shared because they're "too bad to be true." These are often subjected to all sorts of quips and jabs.
Photoshop: Part of an image is superimposed into a well-known image or the image is altered, like the Mona Lisa as the joker or the Mona Lisa holding a cat.
Motivational: Provide a moving or inspiration picture with your own motivational text. Common motivational themes are goal-oriented and provide an action phrase.
Video Meme: These usually provide a bit more production, but video memes in the form of parody commercials or music videos and fun film shorts are great viral machines! Create a character or a spoof on a product or service.
Mores Memes: This type of meme points out social mores (a society or culture's norms, values, or traditions) and sheds a new light on the mores (either to generate discussion or to educate). It also can become a shared symbolic gesture to a community to show pride or humor.
Once you've made a meme, share it with friends, family, colleagues and more. Increase your memes viral-power by ensuring they are:
Relatable: Understandable and create the desired response.Sharable: Available on social networking sites like Facebook and Pinterest.Build a Response: Liked, shared, and discussed.Creating a meme is as easy as taking a picture and sharing, so why not join in on the meme revolution by creating your own memes? Let your imagination run wild!
Create your own memes to share with friends and family with Meme Something. Download Meme Something from iTunes at http://memesomething.com/, pick an existing photo from your library or take a new one, add text, and then share it with your friends. It's THAT easy!
Romania Offshore Development - Six Reasons Why Romania Is a Special Offshoring Zone
Offshore software development has become a global affair currently. It is about outsourcing a project of any size to a software contractor that is based in a distant country. Romania offshore development is awesome and ideal for any global client. Located in the heart of Eastern Europe, Romania is renowned for her fastest growing Information Technology Industry. It competes with other Eastern Europe countries such as Hungary, Czech Republic, Ukraine and Serbia among others. Being a member of European Union since 2007, Romania's offshore software development industry attracts high-profile clients from Western Europe.
The word about Romania's pro developers has spread everywhere in the world explaining the reason why its offshore market is doing great. While India has attracted numerous global organizations in the past, most of them are currently shifting their focus on Eastern Europe. Needless to mention, Romania's industry is attention grabbing for the reason that its government has already started to show support. Having mentioned above that competition is intense among nations in the Eastern Europe, one may want to know what makes Romania offshore development special. Six reasons are discussed below.
a) Multi-lingual labourforce - Romanian developers speak native English, a language that is universally accepted and used in countless ways. Their competitive edge is their ability to speak other major languages that can be a part of any software program. Their alternative languages include French, Spanish, Swedish, German, Greek, Finnish and Danish among others.
b) Easy cultural assimilation - The fact that Romanians are good English speakers means that they can understand any organization's culture. Romania offshore development is doing great in Europe because the business culture all over Europe is virtually indistinguishable.
c) Many developers - According to statistics released prior to the year 2007, Romania had approximately 45,000 software developers. Furthermore, it had eight thousand graduates choosing to pursue Information Technology studies every year. Also, the country is recognized for its advanced education system that has helped it produce the most talented and intelligent software programmers worldwide.
d) Compatible time zones - Romania offshore development projects work out smoothly because of her flexible time zones. The country's time zone is compatible with several countries' time zones in Europe. The developers are able to work with U.S clients during the day. Some African cities share a similar time zone with Bucharest, the capital city, and others are one to two hours behind. Australia and Asian countries are a few hours ahead. In short, a Romanian offshore programmer can enter into a suitable deal with any worldwide client.
e) Geographical Location - As a result of economic crisis, offshoring trend has been mounting among countries in Eastern Europe. Entrepreneurs in these countries effortlessly choose Romania developers because of their geographical location. Surrounded by fellow European Union countries, Romania's peaceful co-existence with its neighbors is one of the things that attract many clients.
f) High quality results offered economically - Romania is not among the rich countries in Europe. As a result, outsourcing rates are much lower and fairer here than in the UK, U.S and other developed nations.
Nearshore and the Romania offshore development industry is far-fetched with its high-speed broadband internet ranking 4th worldwide. This is where organizations could outsource programming tasks inexpensively in exchange for high quality results. Romanians are highly competent and experienced with various software applications such as Agile, and Silverlight. They can be hired on the internet.