Simplex-IT May Newsletter
May 2016
We're Changing

A month from now Simplex-IT will be in our new home in Stow. We call it "The Dungeon." And we'll have an Open House Party (and yup, you'll all be invited).
 
 But honestly, it'll be somewhat bittersweet. We've been at our current location since 2008. It's actually a simple house. Three bedrooms (we call them offices), entrance, open room, kitchen and basement. We've had 8 annual picnics there. We've given out a ton of bird seed, mostly to birds. The first half dozen or so Lunchinars were held there.
 
There's a hammock chair on the back porch. That'll be one of the biggest things I'll miss. And the huge backyard. They had to take some of the trees down last year (they were dying and about to fall on the house, so it had to be done). A lot of hamburgers, hot dogs...
 
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Simplex-IT presenting at Microsoft Small Business Week event

 
It's Small Business Week, and Simplex-IT is teaming up with the Microsoft store in Beachwood for an interesting event on Thursday May 5th from 9-11am.
 
 Afterwards our own Patti Smerk will discuss how to take your business to the next level with Office 365 (along with Q&A of course). In addition, there will be an opportunity to network with other local business owners and a look at the many free resources and services available to business customers.
 
Join us for a special, two-hour networking and workshop event for veteran business owners during National Small Business Week at the Microsoft Store. This free event will include a streaming event from Microsoft's New York City Flagship Store entitled "Small Business, Big Ideas; Live Expert Q&A" with...

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Free Webinar: "Be an Outlook Ninja"

 
If you're using Outlook to send and receive simple email messages, you're missing out! Join us for this month's Office Webinar where we'll demonstrate some advanced features designed to optimize your usage and keep your day organized.
Free Webinar "The Accidental Project Manager"

 
Are you an "Accidental Project Manager?" If Project Management is not in your job description, but you still end up managing and overseeing projects, this webinar is for you! We'll show you just what you need to know to successfully manage projects, without a lot of fluff. Want to learn some tips and tricks for successful project management, even when you don't have much time to devote to it? It all comes down to planning the work...

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Data storage is such an important part of today's business environment, but when was the last time you took the time to consider technologies that came before? Technology that exists today couldn't possibly have existed 50, or even 20 years ago.
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One of the best ways businesses are providing employees with the means to be more productive with their workstations is by issuing them multiple displays. There are various advantages and disadvantages to using multiple displays that you should be aware of.
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How to Tell When Your Network is Stretched Too Thin 
A network is arguably one of the most important assets that your business has. It keeps your team connected to crucial information and mission-critical applications. This is perhaps why it's so irritating when your network acts up. You should be on the lookout for even the slightest problem with your network, as even a small change could be a sign of bad things yet to come.
Know When Your Windows OS Expires and Why it Matters 
By design, Microsoft's operating systems aren't built to last forever. Due to the fact that technology is always changing, new operating systems with better security and improved capabilities are routinely needed. Microsoft gets users to transition from an older OS to a newer one by ending support for the older one. This begs the question, how long until Microsoft pulls the plug on your OS? 
Your business requires specific data to keep operations moving on a daily basis. However, for all of the data that you use, there's information that you have stored away that never sees the light of day. This "dark data," could be putting your business at risk, especially if auditing your current data storage usage isn't a top priority. If you don't keep track of your dark data, you could be facing much larger problems than unnecessary storage costs.
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Think You've Been Hacked? Here are 5 Ways to Check 
Any business that deals with online technology needs to be aware of the dangers that come with the territory. Hackers are more common nowadays than ever before, and organizations that don't take a proactive approach to keeping threats out of their systems will have to suffer the consequences. Unfortunately, some organizations won't be aware that they've been hacked until it's far too late. 
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In the Market to Upgrade? Be Sure to Go With These 3 Future-Proof Technologies!
Every time that you purchase a new piece of business technology, you're faced with a choice: go with a product that's been around for awhile, and thus, is cheaper, or pay a little extra for the latest solution. We like to encourage business owners to go with the latest tech because it saves them money in the long run - an IT concept known as "future proofing." 
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Why Does Rebooting Your PC Take Care of So Many Issues? 

When you call tech support, you're probably going to get the same response every single time: "Have you tried turning it off and on again?" There's a reason that this happens so often, and it's because restarting your computer is a great, low-tech way to resolve some basic issues with your system. However, it's still good to be cautious about more serious issues that a reboot won't fix. 
Plain Funny

If you haven't seen "The Force Awakens" yet, I'm not sure this is a spoiler.
  
Honestly, I'm not sure what it is.
Bob Coppedge | Simplex-IT | 234-380-1277 | info@simplex-it.com | www.simplex-it.com
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