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In This Issue
Office 2016 webinar
Project Online Webinar
Our 1st Field Trip!
New Project Management Tools!
Book Review...Smashing Physics
Senior Network Admin/Consultant Position open
"Office 365 Gotchas" now online
Windows 10: Is updating the smart thing to do?
Tip of the Week: 6 Chief Cortana Commands For You to Master.
Clever Kids and Employees Know How to Bypass Content Filters..
Blogs, Blogs, Blogs...
Plain Funny
Issue: #90October/2015
 
Ok, this is probably the latest newsletter of all.  As you can see by the picture, I've got...well, from a business perspective, absolutely zero excuse.
 
The rest of this month isn't going to be any easier.  I'll be heading off to Miami for the AVG Partner Summit.  This year it's for the top 100 Partners.  I'm also part of AVG's Partner Council (about 15 of us).  Plus I was asked to speak at an MSPMentor event while I'm down there.
 
I've also been asked to stay away from the pool area.  Hmph.
 
No sooner am I back from that and I'll be speaking at the COSE Small Business Convention on the 21st.  Click here for more information about that.

Notice our first field trip?  That should be interesting.

We do have an opening for a Senior Technician.  Steve had a great opportunity and we wish him well (he's actually still with us on a part time basis).
 
Looking into Office 365?  Check out our "Office 365 Gotchas" webinar now online (link is below).
 
Looks like a lot of stuff in this issue?  We actually left several articles back on the blog only.  Go check it out here.
 
More to come (always, it seems)!

Bob 
  
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Office Webinar: "What's new in Office 2016?"
Microsoft Office products got a makeover recently.
 
Here are some of our favorite new features:
 
Collaboration: Assuming you're using O365, you'll be able to work on Word and PowerPoint files with your colleagues, in real time. See what they are typing and make changes yourself.  Similar to screen sharing, but there are no additional tools needed and all parties can contribute. So what happens when there are conflicting changes? Word and PowerPoint will show you a comparison of those changes for you to approve.
 
Version History: This is one of my personal favorites, it's the little things in life, right? With the improvement to the version history, you can see what changes were made over time in Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
 
Tell me: Word, Excel and PowerPoint got a helpful new feature located in the ribbon at the top, it's called Tell Me. You simple type in what you want to do and it returns a list of viable commands. More helpful that searching for help in help, because you can click on the function you want right from the Tell Me returns.

New Charts: Excel and PowerPoint got some new charts...

Join us for a free webinar Thursday October 8th from 11am-noon.


Project Webinar:  "Project Online"
Hi everyone, Patti here. I'm heading up Simplex-PM, our Project Management service for the small to medium sized businesses. We've traditionally seen Project Management tools and methodologies in place at the large corporate level, but we'd like to bring it to everyone else. And Microsoft now has some affordable tools to help with that.
 
Project Online is the Cloud based version of Microsoft Project Server (and part of the Microsoft Office 365 product mix). Prior to Project Online, an organization had to make a significant investment in Project Server, and often times SharePoint, to have these same capabilities. Now it's available as a service, without requiring the hardware and infrastructure Project Server did. It's a great tool for managing projects, programs, and portfolios of projects, as well as resources, costs, risks etc.
 
Project Online has many additional features and functionality over Microsoft Project. For example, you can see the health and status of all your projects in one view.

Project Schedules can be created and shared with the team:
er.

Join us for our free webinar on Thursday, October 15th from 2-2:30pm (eastern).
  
Read more (including examples and how to RSVP) by clicking here.
Field Trip: "The Microsoft Experience"
Our First Field Trip!
Microsoft has been busy of late.  Within the past month, they've:
  • Released their new desktop operating System, Windows 10.
  • Released Office 2016
  • Announced their first cloud-based telephony integration with Office 365 (the E5 plan)
  • Getting ready to release Windows Phone 10
  • Ceased support for Windows Server 2003
  • Released MS Project 2016
  • Announced Office 365 Planner (a simpler Project Management app)
  • Released Exchange 2016
  • A slew of upgrade/changes to Azure
But throughout it all, there's something Microsoft's done a lousy job with.  Communicating to us common folk how all this stuff is supposed to work together.
So we're going to do something about that.  And we're going to do it on the road.
  
Read more here.
New Project Management tools announced by MS
A few months ago Microsoft purchased Wunderlist, and recently revealed a new tool, Office 365 Planner. They've announced new apps from Sensei and add-ins for Project Online as well.
 
Sounds like Microsoft is listening the to our needs for something not quite as robust as MS Project, but a little more than Outlook, Excel, or Post-It notes. Office 365 Planner is Microsoft's solution for folks who need to organize and plan projects, but don't need to full capabilities of Project or Project Online. It fills a huge gap and we are looking forward to working with it.
 
If you're working on projects on the go (who isn't, right?) the Sensei apps offer something for everyone.  Team Members can use Task Master to view and update their tasks, Project Managers can use Project Dashboard to see those updates and how they affect the schedule, and those that want to see the overall big picture of all on-going projects will love the Portfolio Dashboard.
  
Read more about both products (with links to details)  here.
Book Review:  Smashing Physics
"Smashing Physics" by Jon Butterworth
 
Ok, this book reminds me that I'm nowhere near as smart as I'd like to think I am. It also reminded me how cool I think physics is.
 
The author (Jon Butterworth is one of the leading physicists at CERN, and part of the search for the illusive Higgs boson. Don't know what a Higgs boson is? Well, read this book! Ok, you probably still won't know what a Higgs boson is, but you'll get a better appreciation of the work that went into the research.
 
And that's the allure of this book, really. If you're looking for a dry explanation of the Higgs boson (which, by the way, is a particle whose existence was theorized some decades ago) and the physics behind it, this ain't your book.
  
Read more  here.
Senior Network Admin/Consultant Position open
Simplex-IT, a well-established award-winning Managed Services Provider (MSP) firm in Hudson Ohio has an immediate need for a Senior Network Admin/Consultant to join its growing team! 

The ideal candidate will have 5-10 years of overall experience with strong infrastructure experience. Must be able to tackle all PC and server related issues as they come up. 

Benefits include paid vacation/sick time, flexible hours (including work from home), employer contributed 401(k) and training.  Plus we actually try to have fun.  Salary commensurate with experience.
  
Read more here.
"Office 365 Gotchas" now online
Think Office 365 is perfect?  If so, Microsoft thanks you.  You also probably think that "Bing" is a verb.
 
The fact is it's pretty cool.  But it also has limitations.  Ones you can get around...if you know where to look.


Windows 10: Is updating the smart thing to do?
Windows 10 from Microsoft is here. It's getting a fair amount of positive buzz (add or subtract the obligatory Microsoft love/hate, of course).

Oddly enough much of the buzz has been generated by the nature of the upgrade as much as the OS itself. And that information has led to as much confusion as the product itself.

First of all, a disclaimer. We're a Microsoft Silver Partner. I have enough Microsoft Credential initials after my name to choke a horse. We first started using Windows 10 back in October '14 when it was first available as a Beta (whoops, "Preview") edition.

And it's pretty good. Gone (unless you want it) was the touch-biased menu structure, with a great compromise menu that combines both touch and mouse strengths and sensibilities.
Add Cortana, better integration with Office 365 and speed improvements, it looks even better. The new "Edge" browser? So far...meh. Some sites are great, others not so much (so I keep using IE on some sites, Chrome on others, and Edge on yet others). Some of the security improvements (like ones that will enable cute kids to log on for the rest of their lives) are forthcoming.

But there are a lot of sites that will talk about that. I want to talk about...upgrading.

Read more here.
Tip of the Week: 6 Chief Cortana Commands For You to Master
In case you haven't heard of her, Cortana is Microsoft's voice assistant for Windows Phone and devices that utilize Windows 10. Just like Siri and Google Now, Cortana can be used for a lot more than simply performing a voice search. Here are six of the great new things Cortana can help you with.

"What's the Weather Like?"
Unlike real people, who might judge you for asking about the weather and direct you to the closest window, Cortana will be slightly more helpful and provide an answer for you. In order to use this function, your location service has to be enabled. Also, you can ask Cortana about the weather anywhere else in the world, too.
"What's On My Schedule?"

If you've ever wondered what it's like to have a real-life personal assistant, Cortana is probably the next closest thing. Cortana can access your Calendar app or your Outlook calendar to inform you of scheduled events. She can even give you specific information about different dates on your calendar. For example, asking Cortana something like, "What do I have planned this weekend?" will provide you with the information you're seeking.
  
Read more here.
Clever Kids and Employees Know How to Bypass Content Filters
With so much nasty content just begging to get viewed on the Internet, it's understandable why a content filter needs to be integrated into your company's web viewing protocol. Still, it should be understood that your content filter isn't going to keep all questionable content away from prying eyes. Therefore, the only way you can really know with certainty that your Internet users aren't doing anything sketchy is to actively monitor their activity, and check for any suspicious websites.

You might think that your content filter is more than enough to ensure your business's Internet traffic stays sketch-free, but the fact of the matter is that your content filter is only good enough to keep out most of the bad stuff. Your organization needs to accept that a user who's determined to find a way around your content filter will probably do so, and you need to count on that to happen. It's the only way you can know for certain whether or not questionable content is being accessed on your network.

Read more here.
Want to find out about this stuff quicker?

Blog updates from Simplex-IT over the past month

 
Remember to check out our blog:

 

Plain Funny
Are you a Time Travel Skeptic?

Not any more. 


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