September 2012
In this issue:

We are sad to announce that we have lost one of the HTS family. Charlie Jones, a member of our NOC service team in Newton, Kansas, passed away suddenly on September 14th. Many of you may have worked with him remotely. Charlie was always reliable, friendly, and happy in the office. He loved his grandkids and liked to bike, fish, and golf. He will be greatly missed by all.

Did you miss our webinar "Security Trends & Threats: How to Prevent Your Business from Falling Victim"?

We had a great turnout and an excellent presentation by Kevin Schmutzler from Dell SonicWALL. You can view the recorded webinar at any time to learn about the most recent security trends and threats and how they are affecting real businesses.

In this second installment of our "Is Consumer Grade enough for your business?" series, we’re going to look at the Windows operating systems. This comparison really goes hand-in-hand with our post on computers, as Consumer Grade computers generally come with Windows Home versions pre-installed.

So why is using a consumer-grade computer with Windows Home Edition installed on it not good for your business? The answer is compatibility between "home" versions of operating systems and other networking solutions that businesses use. For example, most small businesses with more than a few computers have them connected to a server, creating a network. The majority of these servers run Microsoft Windows Small Business Server (SBS), which includes Windows Server and Exchange software. This allows the network to communicate with all of the components that are connected together, i.e. other computers, data files, printers, and email.

Let's look at three areas: Connection, Security, and Technical Support. Keep reading »

Extreme IT Makeover: Joplin Humane Society
by Jane Cage, COO, HTS

It makes all of us feel good when we can make a difference. A few weeks ago HTS's Joplin office wrapped up a project that left us feeling just that way.

HP, Microsoft and Intel approached us a few months ago with the offer to do an Extreme Technology Makeover for a Joplin non-profit that was affected by the tornado on May 22, 2011. We nominated the Joplin Humane Society for the incredible job they had done in caring for animals in those chaotic weeks after the storm. With very little technology to assist them, the Humane Society took in over 1,300 animals and were able to reunite over 450 of them with their owners. The remaining 750 were adopted in one incredible weekend when people from 26 states showed up to take home a new family member. Since that time, their shelter has remained full, in part due to housing difficulties since the tornado. Their work has been tremendous.

HP, Microsoft, Intel and ShelterPro software donated all the equipment and software the Humane Society could need. HTS donated all of the installation services and engineering assistance. It was an amazing experience that got recorded on video that you can see below. We continue to be grateful for the kindness and concern of people across the nation in response to the tornado. This Extreme IT Makeover is just one more example.

Please join us in welcoming John Rokes and Dustin Wright on the service team, Angela Wagner and Julie Fountain on the sales team, and our marketing/e-newsletter service intern, Jeremiah Bokay.

Read more about our new team members on our blog!

You might have had this happen to you.

Someone sends a file with data that you need. You open it up and realize the formatting is off. It’s in a table, along with columns of other data, and you need a bulleted list. You realize you’re going to have to copy and paste or retype all the information you need.

Another scenario is that you’re putting together data, but you’ve just tabbed from one "column" to another. Maybe you have a list of items separated by commas. Then you realize that what you're working on is becoming much longer than you had thought and needs to be in a table. Time to redo it all?

Hardly!

Microsoft Word lets you convert a table to text and text to a table. You select where you want the "breaks" to be (columns become separated by tabs or commas, or tabs or commas become column breaks) and voila!

So how do you do this? Keep reading and we'll show you! »

Business Continuity Tip:
National Preparedness Month

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in partnership with the Ready Campaign will kickoff National Preparedness Month (NPM) this September. The campaign encourages all Americans to take the necessary steps to ensure their homes, workplaces and communities are prepared for disasters and emergencies of all kinds.

Here are a few tools and resources worth checking out:

• Webinars – Agility will host 4 free webinars in September on different aspects of business continuity and disaster preparedness.
• Free Breakroom Poster – Help your employees and coworkers prepare with this free disaster myths poster for your breakroom.
• Share #NPM – Easily spread the word about the National Preparedness Month initiative on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

Just for Laughs

Quote of the Month

"Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them."

— James Baldwin

Want to know about all that HTS has to offer? 

Look through our updated virtual catalog.

We'd love to help you learn more about anything you see.