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Greetings!
Stuff happens. Ok, last month we were focusing on pirates and swine flu. Now, pirates are at best a baseball team in Pittsburgh, and swine flu is a side note. I fully expect a band coming out soon called "Swine Flu Pirates." I eagerly await their VH-1 "Where are they now?" segment in the future.
Now we're equally traumatized and hopeful. Right now GM is toying with bankruptcy (other way around?) and yet several economic indicators suggest that at least some economic trends might start heading back up in the near future.
As Churchill said "It's not the end. It is not the beginning of the end. But, perhaps, it is the end of the beginning."
Thanks, Winston.
And yet, none of us are sitting back, taking it easy. About 30 people attended our lunchinar on LinkedIn (thanks to Hattie's Cafe for hosting it...our worldwide International Headquarters can only handle 10).
Here at Simplex-IT, we're just starting our largest marketing campaign yet, involving letters, postcards, monkeys, mailing lists...
Yup, monkeys.
And we've got specials. Lots of 'em. Phone systems. Microsoft software.
And we're excited with some of the changes that are coming from Cisco these days. Cisco has been criticized for ignoring the SMB (Small to Medium Business) market.
Well, they've been listening. Over the next couple of months we'll be talking in more detail about some of their new products and directions. As a Cisco Partner, we're looking forward to the new stuff.
Yup, monkeys.
We're involved in other projects as well. I'll be talking at the upcoming GCPCUG meeting about IT careers. We're also a sponsor of the TECHnic coming up this month.
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| Joe SixPack (Phone Special) |
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 Imagine getting a fully functional phone system, capable of handling up to 8 incoming phone lines, with 6 phones to start with. Easy to install, configure and use. Fully featured, and expandable up to 50 IP phones, with no additional cost other than the phones! Go here for more info.
Special Deal until June 30th.
Place your order between now and June 30th and save a bundle! Our price is essentially the same as you can get online, but we're throwing in installation and 3 hours of end user training at no extra charge!
P406: This package can handle 4 incoming lines, and includes 6 phones.
Simplex-IT special: $2,500 (standard installation, 3 hours training)
P806: Same as above, but can handle 8 incoming lines.
Simplex-IT special: $2,850 (standard installation, 3 hour training)
For more information, contact Julie. But remember, your order has to be placed by June 30th to qualify! |
| Free Lunch is good. Backups are Better. Both are best. |
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| Part 1 of 2 on Business Continuity,
Simplex-IT's Monthly Lunchinar Series Continues...
Thank you to all who have joined us for our Lunchinars. It has been great getting to know you and your businesses! Having 30 people attend May's lunchinar was fantastic!
June's topic is another one that we're hearing a lot of interest in. Join us on Wednesday, June 17th at 11:30am. Enjoy lunch with us, on us!
This month Bob will drone on endlessly on:
Backups: Good idea...but How?
We're all supposed to:
- Go to the dentist regularly;
- Return Library books on time;
- Wash our hands frequently;
- Not ruin the ending of movies (the Titanic sank???);
- Wear clean underwear;
- Back up our files, folders, servers and arguments.
The last one seems the trickiest. Whether we're talking that Word document we spent 20 minutes modifying to the database that gets 30,000 transactions an hour, backing up data and documents is something you should think about before you accidentally get deleted or corrupted.
Fortunately, the options for backups are great, whether we're talking corporate or personal. Cloud-based (off-site) backup solutions aren't as expensive as they used to be. Object-based backup software allows for corporate level organizations to create virtual-based BC (Business Continuity) plans as well.
We'll overview the options, starting at how reliable that USB thumb drive is up to storing hundreds of gigs of data in the cloud.
Cloud-based storage might be infinite, but our office sure isn't. Space is limited (10) so be sure to RSVP by contacting Julie at 234-380-1277.
We hope to see you there! Oh, and bring a business card to put into our door prize drawing! |
| Career Eye for the IT Guy - June 13th Event |
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So, you wanna be a geek?
Bob here...Under the best of circumstances, a career in IT (Information Technology) isn't for the faint of heart. In times like these, it's even more so. It sounds like nothing but gloom and doom out there. However there are many things we can do about it. And surprisingly, many of these options can be had at little or no cost. How do we keep up with our technical skills, when companies are slashing their internal training budgets? What are the latest "hot technologies?" Is certification valuable? What are "soft skills," and why are they so hard (yup, it's a pun) to find?
This event will include an overview of the challenges facing us. Then we'll enjoy a deep dive into some of the online training resources available (with focus on the free/low cost ones). Then we'll wrap up with a panel discussion featuring some lively discussion of IT careers in NorthEast Ohio.
Although not exclusively, we'll be focusing on materials from Microsoft, including their Thrive site. This free site includes resources for developing/improving both your technical as well as your soft skills. There will be several raffle prizes as well (yeah, greed works, I know<g>).
This will be similar to the event we sponsored last month in Hudson (about 30 people attended!). But it will be the monthly meeting of the GCPCUG (go here for directions).
When: Saturday June 13th, from 9:30am - noon
Where: Cleveland State University
Cost: Free
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| Business Needs Meet Technology Functionality |
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Monitoring vs. Full Network Management 101
We can all sympathize with the feeling of losing a file - completing that taxing spreadsheet only to lose power and lose the sheet - and to have to start all over. Your heart falls to the floor, your stomach aches and you have to roll up your sleeves and start over. Imagine this feeling applied to an entire IT network. In years past, it was up to the company itself to employ an IT guru - or staff of gurus to be sure that all issues were handled and that the company was running status quo. Inevitably, there were and still are companies that cannot afford the cost of this very important piece of support as it involves hourly salaries, medical benefits and miscellaneous overhead that can be pricey and better left to more corporate-minded environments. What we're seeing now is that many companies need the 'eyes and ears' of Monitoring but not necessarily the constant hands-on support from Fully Managed solutions. Companies are looking for someone to be knowledgeable about their network...the servers, applications, security issues, backup structures, anti-virus solutions, anti-spam...the list seems endless.
Simplex-IT Managed Services (SiMS) provides companies with choices as to the level of support. Both our Monitoring and Fully Managed solutions accommodate the small to medium business. On the Monitoring side, we proactively watch the network 24x7, inform and guide if things don't look right. We take advantage of our numerous vendor relationships (Microsoft and Cisco to name a couple) and provide industry information for immediate deals or future growth. On the Fully Managed side, we can monitor and maintain the network so that problems never hit the surface and issues are handled before they become a hindrance. The processes that Simplex-IT puts into place are all things that once implemented, relieve in-house employees of the hassle of having to detect and dissipate the problem. Monitoring and Fully Managed solutions work FOR the company by making sure everything is protected, recoverable and fully functional.
With highly certified technicians, intricate monitoring software and strong vendor relationships within the industry, we truly can provide support while going above and beyond the physical IT infrastructure. We also get involved proactively with your business plan, your ideas and your goals for the future.
One of the main responsibilities of Simplex-IT, as an IT services provider, is to take care of the somewhat 'intangible' entity of computer systems and networks and keep your company in motion each and every day. On the more tangible side, we also serve as a help desk guru, idea stream initiator and well-versed liaison. Most importantly, we want to be more than an IT solution, we want to be your business partner.
Call or email me for more information! Julie |
| Mark your Calendar! |
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Simplex-IT's Annual BBQ!
Please join us on Wednesday, August 19th for our second annual BBQ! We'll have the usual fare - burgers, brats, potato salad and desserts, along with great networking and the opportunity to meet the Simplex-IT gang.
The BBQ will start at 4pm so come on over to our World Headquarters and see what we're all about! Meet others in the 'neighborhood', have some dinner and enjoy a summer evening in Hudson.
More details to follow but if you are interested in joining us, call or email Julie. We hope so see you there! |
| Anti-Social Engineering |
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Bob here...
Can we talk? Can we Tweet? Can we Link? Can we email? Can we text? Can we chat? Can we IM?
Tell you what. I'll blog, you RSS. Then I'll read your web page. Then we'll connect on LiveMeeting. Or we can start a Webex session. The file is on my SharePoint site. Or is it on my Wiki? Anyway, there's a training video on YouTube. We could always set up a GoToMeeting. Then we'll Groove.
Did you get my eNewsletter? It talks about the Webinar going on later. Remember, you can always watch it on your iPhone. Or your Android? I can't remember. Your Blackberry has the details, which I sent you from my Windows Mobile Phone.
Confusing? Yup. Are you expecting me to now say "it doesn't have to be," or "let me explain it all to you" or some other comforting piece of nice-nice talk?
Sorry, not today.
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| Defragment your Drives! |
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Every week I see PC's that are slow. There could be many reasons for this, but one of the most overlooked is the need to defragment the hard drive.
If you use Microsoft Windows for an operating system (XP, Vista, even Windows 98) then you need to periodically defragment your hard drive. And you don't need to be a rocket scientist or a computer guru to do it!! But, before I show HOW to defragment your hard drive, let me explain WHY your hard drive needs to be defragmented.
When Windows saves a file, it looks for the first available disk space and writes to it. If, over time, you delete a bunch of files, windows writes new files in the empty spaces left behind by the deleted ones. The problem with this is the file will not be contiguous (a fancy word meaning all in one piece). In other words, the file will not be in one spot on the hard drive, but in several spots. Before you can open that file, windows needs to locate all the parts of that file causing the time to open the file to increase.
Disk Defragmenter will make all of your files contiguous so that windows will not have to search for all the pieces of the file. So, if you are always adding and deleting files, you will have more files that are fragmented, and the need to run the Disk Defragmenter increases.
Now that you understand that your hard disk needs to be defragmented, let me explain HOW to defragment your hard drive. There are programs that you can buy like Diskeeper that has real time disk defragmentation and prevents your hard disk from getting fragmented in the first place. It's a great program, but, why pay for what Microsoft is willing to give you for free?
To access the Windows Disk Defragmenter, simply click on the START button, then PROGRAMS (or ALL PROGRAMS depending on the windows version), ACCESSORIES, SYSTEM TOOLS, and choose DISK DEFRAGMENTER.
This will open up a window like this:  From From this screen you can schedule a time for Disk Defragmenter to run, or actually defragment the files right now. Simply click the "Defragment Now" button and the program will do the rest. If this is the first time that you've ever run Disk Defragmenter it might take several hours to complete (depending upon the size of your hard disk and number of files that are fragmented). I always suggest starting this before you go to bed at night so that the program can run over night and not interrupt you while you are trying to work on your PC.
You can work on your PC at the same time that Disk Defragmenter is running, but your computer may be sluggish, which is why I recommend running disk defragmenter at a time when you do not need to be using your PC.
As always, if you have any questions regarding this article or any other computer issue, feel free to email me. Cary
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| Simplex-IT proud(ish) sponsor of TECHnic! |
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A picnic for the geeks
Gary Baney and the gang (and it is a gang, make no mistake<g>) of Boundless Flight is putting together a picnic for the various IT user groups in the area, which they're callng "TECHnic."
Simplex-IT, along with several IT organizations in the NorthEast Ohio area are supporting this fine event.
When: Saturday, June 20th from 10am - 8pm
Cost: Free!
RSVP's are requested, please contact Heidi over at Boundless Flight. And feel free to bring family, friends or folks who you think might come along if you ask them! |
| Want to find out about this stuff quicker? |
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| Blog updates from Simplex-IT over the past month
Remember to check out our blogs:
Free Terminal Services 2008 eBook
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| Big Easy...Third time's a charm! |
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 Buy Microsoft software through us, get a check!
Microsoft has brought the Big Easy back. Simply put, if you buy your Microsoft Software through a Microsoft Partner (think...well, think about Simplex-IT!), not only will you get a good price, but in addition you'll get a check from Microsoft made out to us. You can use that check to pay for additional services! Check here for more about this program and others that Microsoft has. |
Simplex-IT Customer Spotlight 
Christian Healthcare Ministries |
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Christian Healthcare Ministries (CHM) is an affordable, faith-based health cost solution through which Christians share in meeting each other's medical bills. Based on the New Testament's Book of Acts, CHM operates in all 50 states and has thousands of members who voluntarily help each other as they help themselves. This ministry has two components, one that helps with medical bills up to $125,000 per incident, another that provides support for bills totaling up to $1 million. In the past 15 years alone, members of this ministry have shared more than $450 million in healthcare costs.
As an organization daily serving members across the country, CHM cannot be without smoothly functioning and reliable electronic systems. Simplex-IT is ensuring that CHM's computers, electronic networking, servers, software and other components operate dependably and efficiently. The result is effective systems meeting the needs of CHM's members and employees. Howard Russell, CHM's CEO explains, "In today's business environment, good management demands computer technology and systems that are cutting edge. Our organization was behind and did not have the resources to become what we needed to be. We turned to Bob Coppedge. He brought us to exactly where we need to be. Our hardware and software are now state of the art. Our capability has advanced far beyond our current needs, this means we are prepared for the future. Bob's personality and skills combined to make this experience extremely enjoyable. Difficult decisions have been made with confidence. Unlike many changes that can bring uncomfortable transitions, this one was not just rewarding but a pleasure to undertake. Bob Coppedge knows what he is doing." Click here to visit CHM's website |
| Plain Funny #7 |
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| Are you mentally beyond "Rock, Paper, Scissors?"
Bob here. As you can imagine, running a state of the art, full blown IT organization such as Simplex-IT is challenging. One of the biggest challenges is the decision making process. And let's face it, "Rock, Paper, Scissors?" As if!
Thankfully, the geeks over at "The Big Bang Theory" have an alternative. Thanks to them, whenever we have differing opinions, we have a method to reasonably, rationally resolve them.
At least we will once somebody picks something other than Spock. | |
We'd love to hear feedback about this! Send comments to Bob@Simplex-IT.com, or call us at 234.380.1277!
Sincerely,
Bob Coppedge
Simplex-IT LLC |
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