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Greetings!
 July brings a no-holds barred acceptance of summer. Period. No more "when will summer arrive" whining. Vacations pop up. Fireworks. The obligatory news reports showing crash test dummies (haven't they suffered enough?!) being blown up. LeBron's free agency (free? Really?). The Indians...well, enough about that. Oh, and oil for everybody!! Or was that on everybody?? Sigh...hopefully the good outweighs the bad. On our side, we're crazy busy, following up the wildly successful Lunchinar from May (almost 50 people partook in the event) with a June followup. Makes sense for us to follow up on that topic, with John Harrow running the show this time. Our new web site has drawn some additional traffic our way as well, and with Cyndee Duhon leading the way, we're starting to pay more attention to the wonderful world of SEO (Search Engine Optimization). But it's not all just marketing. We've also added 2 new customers for our SiMS Management program, along with 4 or 5 email migrations to Microsoft's Hosted Exchange. Kevin Dutkiewicz is quickly becoming an expert on migrating Exchange environments. Plus we've been more involved with Microsoft Licensing then ever before, working with a couple of companies on Open Value Subscription, a relatively low cost way of keeping the latest versions of Microsoft software on hand. And hardly least, but last of all, don't forget our upcoming Picnic in August on the 18th! |
| Strategically Speaking 2: Blogging for the SMB | | |
The June Simplex-IT Lunchinar on Social Media was so successful (we were at the legal capacity of our meeting room) and we received so many comments requesting more info on blogging, we thought we'd do it again!
So we invited back the trio of experts who comprised last month's panel and they have graciously agreed to reprise their performance. Joining us will be:
- Norma Rist, author of Small Business Savvy and owner of Norma J. Rist CEO Consulting Inc,
- Chris Brown, publisher of Branding & Marketing and owner of full service marketing firm Marketing Resources & Results and
- Deborah Chaddock Brown, owner of AllWriteInk.com and publisher of MakeOrBreakMoments.com
Because we will be focusing this presentation specifically on blogging...(click here for more) |
| Data versus Dracula | |
Bob here. Apparently there's a big issue involving the preference of Vampires versus Werewolves in movies (and the minds of teenagers) these days. This feud is nothing new. I'm familiar with similar trends from yesteryear (Star Trek versus Star Wars, Hot dogs versus Hamburgers, McDonalds versus Burger King, Dungeons & Dragons versus...well, everybody).
But there's a one that's been going on lot longer than all of these.
Data versus Information. We often confuse one for the other (werewolves and vampires both have fangs, do wacky stuff in the night, and have *tons* of angst!). Click here to read more... |
| New guy in Town! | |
 Hello! My name is Kevin Dutkiewicz, I am "the new guy" here at Simplex-IT. I come from a strong background in IT, from basic desktop support up to enterprise level hardware setup and administration.
My education includes a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Engineering Technology from the University of Toledo and continuous self-education on new hardware, software and practices. My past experience includes almost eight years at a medium-sized Cleveland based manufacturing company, three years of helpdesk support for the University of Toledo Arts and Science college computing and several summer IT internships at a large programming company. I also worked part-time at a small local computer store from when I was fourteen until I graduated high school. Outside of work, I love to experience life as much as I can. I run and exercise often and participate in quite a few races over the course of the summer. I also enjoy taking a nice cruise on my motorcycle every chance I get. I look forward to meeting and working with everyone and if you have any questions feel free to give me a shout. |
| At Hattie's Café, it was Social Media Mania! | |
Dateline June 16, 2010 - It was the monthly Simplex-IT Lunchinar and the turnout was our best ever! In fact, it was so good we were afraid we were going to exceed the room's maximum allowable limit as set by the local Fire Department! Lucky for us there were a few no shows.
The strong turnout was no doubt highly influenced by both our topic and method of presentation. Social Media for the Small-Medium Business was moderated by our own Bob Coppedge and discussed by an esteemed panel of local experts:
Chris Brown - ( www.resources-results.com) publisher of Branding & Marketing and owner of full service marketing firm Marketing Resources & Results.
Norma Rist - ( www.normarist.com) author of Small Business Savvy and owner of Norma J. Rist CEO Consulting Inc.
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| Missed Strategically Speaking? Watch it now online! | |
If you missed our panel discussion on Social Media Strategy, we recorded the Live Meeting and you can see and hear it here! We are still working out the technical bugs (and Bob had a little difficulty with his "slides"), but we are getting better each time.
Let us know what you think about the Live Meeting. We're considering broadcasting all of our Lunchinars using this technology and introducing some shorter, online only gatherings. |
| Move Over, Guitar Hero. Ribbon Hero has arrived! | |
One of the most obvious changes to Microsoft Office, starting with Office 2007 and even more pervasive with the new Office 2010 release, is the Ribbon interface. With its goal of making navigation simpler, i.e. accomplishing tasks with fewer clicks, we are getting feedback that the Ribbon is, in fact, succeeding and is definitely here to stay.
But for some of us who grew up with the more familiar menus and toolbars interface we're finding learning the new system to be somewhat tedious and irritating. We need something to make the process, well, more like fun rather than work.
Introducing Ribbon Hero, the new Office Add-In that lets you show off your newly-acquired Ribbon skills!
Available as a free download for Office 2007 or 2010 - http://www.officelabs.com/ribbonhero - Ribbon Hero is a game (that's right, a game!) for Word, PowerPoint, OneNote and Excel 2007 and 2010, designed to help you boost your Office skills and knowledge.
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| Third Annual Simplex-IT BBQ! | |
Simplex-IT welcomes you to join us for our free annual barbeque. Sure we'll have burgers and bratwurst and wonderful summer atmosphere. We will also feature demos, ideas, tech talk and networking.
Last year about 70 people dropped by to enjoy the afternoon. This year? You can simply stop by to relax and grab dinner. But we'll also offer demos about things such as backing up your data, establishing business continuity, Windows 7, Office 2010, and how Simplex-IT is using tools like Constant Contact and LinkedIn to get and stay connected. You can pick the brains of IT professionals, our vendor partners and members of the community.
Whatever the case, we welcome you to our humble 'world-wide international headquarters' on August 18th from 4pm to 8pm. We are located at 5225 Darrow Road in Hudson. Please RSVP by calling John 234-380-1277 or emailing him at John@Simplex-IT.com and ask him about his Woodstock experience.
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| Save Money via Web Meetings | |
by Christopher Ellliot
Think hard now. Can you remember your first virtual meeting? For many of you, it was in the late 20th century, and you called it a "teleconference." It was an expensive proposition. Not anymore. Virtual meetings save you a boatload of money nowadays. And they are relatively simple. In this day and age, that's a good strategy for a business owner. In fact, getting up and running with Web conferencing software today is so low-cost and easy that virtually anyone with a PC and an Internet connection can do it. For example, it took me less than two minutes to sign up for Microsoft Office Live Meeting's free 14-day trial. If it's that easy, how much harder can holding a Web conference be? Careful. You can make mistakes. And blowing a Web meeting can cost your business money -- either in lost sales (if it's a sales presentation) or in lost productivity (if it's a staff meeting). So, before you jump into a Web conference, read here... |
| T3CHn!c 2010 - Simplex-IT and hot dogs! | |
T3CHn!c 2010 - Bringing the Northeast Ohio Technical Community Together
Simplex-IT is downright proud to announce that once again, we're providing the hot dogs (and buns!) for the T3CHn!c event. This event, started way back last year, "will build on the camaraderie of the boundless IT community of Northeast Ohio with the support of companies and organizations by providing a free event for attendees to simply enjoy a summer day of classic picnic fun and activities."
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| Want to find out about this stuff quicker? |
| | Blog updates from Simplex-IT over the past month
Remember to check out our blog:
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| Plain Funny #20 | |
Batman or Iron Man? Superman or Spiderman? We have Continuity! And it's a good thing, I think...
This is Marvel-ous! |
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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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