VOIP is Great, But Buyer Beware!

Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) is definitely here to stay. If you haven't checked into it yet for your company, you should. It could possibly save you a ton of money. The quality is generally excellent now, and this is not your old voip in the beginning where the call quality was marginal at best. This is now a very mature product, and in fact, the long distance companies have been doing it behind the scenes for a long time. If you ever made a long distance phone call, odds are some part of the call was run over voip, with or without your knowledge. 

However, when choosing a voip provider, you need to be aware of one very important point. 911 calls are handled differently between the providers. Very differently. With some providers, it doesnt' work at all. 

Unfortunately, some VOIP services aren't tied in to the 911 system and this can quickly move them to the bottom of your list of potential companies to work with. Then again, on the opposite end of the spectrum, some VOIP carriers offer Enhanced 911 service, where 911 calls using your VOIP service automatically send your name, location and other info. These companies might quickly find themselves at the top of your list. 

The bottom line is you should investigate this exciting technology, but make sure you ask about their 911 capabilities during the discovery phase. My recommendation? NGT (New Global Telecom) at www.ngt.com I use them in my business, and they are first rate! 

To Your Success, 

 Tim

Energy Star Specification 5.0

The Energy Star specification for computers is currently under revision for version 5.0. Did you know that the new Energy Star compliant laptops and PCs actually use 15 to 25% less energy on average than the other new computers on the shelf? 

If you are in the market for a new PC this holiday season, consider an Energy Star rated product. This program inspired manufacturers to produce more efficient models and, in turn, consumers and businesses are looking to save over $1.8 billion in energy costs over the next 5 years. This savings helps us all prevent greenhouse gas emissions equal to that given off from 2.7 million automobiles. Since, “teleportation devices” have no defined release date, and we all love our cars, why not dive into the conservation efforts through purchasing Energy Star toys?

 If you are interested in reading more about this program or further conservation efforts, visit http://www.energystar.gov/

Circuit City Closing More Stores?

While I previously blogged about Circuity City filing for Chapter 11 reorganization and cloing 155 stores nationwide in the process, I mentioned that the local store here was not included in the list of closings. 

However, some pretty reliable sources are now saying that the previous number 2 big box electronic store is now planning on adding an additional 150 stores to the list. And they plan to announce it in as few as 2 weeks from now. I haven't seen the new list, but if the rumor holds true, Circuit City coud very well be leaving our area. Apparently, the black friday sales numbers are to play a big part in the final decision. 

In my mind, this just verifies that business owners really want small VAR's to help them with technology decisions. Price is apparently not always the determining factor. 

Stay tuned to see if our local store is leaving. 

 To Your Success, 

 Tim

Is Your Company Leveraging Its Email System?

Is your company still using the old email provided by your Internet Service Provider? You know who you are. Your company uses emails for its employees like , , , , or some other iteration similar to these examples. It might be time to step up to "real" email. 

While these email accounts are functional, they are not feature rich by any stretch of the imagination. Not to mention they essentially advertise your ISP's name, not yours, with every email you send. 

By using Microsoft Exchange, either inhouse or hosted, along with Microsoft Outlook, you open a world of new tools for your company. Tools like shared calendars, email archiving, a common user experience no matter what computer you use, and integration with Microsoft Office products. All of these tools can be used in your organization to improve employee productivity, eliminate employee (and owner) email frustrations, maintain compliance with the various Federal and State laws regarding corporate communications (you ARE doing this, aren't you), and free advertising. Using your company's name as the suffix to your email address (if the domain is available) is smart. 

It would be wise to hire an IT consultant familiar with these products to help you set up your company email system, as there are some best practices that will help as your company grows. Best practices such as a common strategy for assigning email addresses (first initial, last name, etc) and developing an Acceptable Use Policy for emails sent through your system.

 So quit using your aol address and start taking advantage of these tools! 

To your success, 

 Tim