Wired or wireless or both: What is best for small businesses?

Whether you are updating your office’s networking component needs or starting from scratch, there are many things to think about when you are considering wired vs wireless. For starters, ask yourself:

  • How many people are on your network? How about in 2 years?
  • How long will this system be in place? (any moves planned within 2 years?)
  • How fast does the network/internet access need to be right now? How about in 2 years?
  • What kind of files have to be moved across your network right now? How about in 2 years?
  • How fast does this need to be done?
  • Is this a temporary or permanent solution?
  • What is your budget?

Wiring a space can be cost prohibitive – especially if this space is temporary, but if the budget is unlimited, then hard wiring could be the way to go for speed and security. Very often a combination of both wired and wireless are the best solution.

 

Go Invisible: How to protect your privacy on Facebook

There have been a lot of news reports and discussions surrounding Facebook’s privacy policies. Of course, if you are worried about web privacy, canceling your Facebook account is an option, but since many other sites have joined the Facebook Connect network and are utilizing the site’s tools, you will need a Facebook account to be able to use these sites in the future. Plus, not everyone wants to give up their ability to connect with long lost high school buddies or share their latest baby pics with family and friends.

So what to do?

Fortunately, those that have pushed back at Facebook in the past on privacy issues have forced Facebook to provide tools to make you as stealthy as you’d like to be on the site without being completely invisible to those on your ‘friends’ list.

Here’s a guide for making yourself very close to invisible:

While logged into Facebook:

  1. Select the ‘Account’ tab at the top right corner of the screen
  2. Select ‘Privacy Settings’
  3. In the ‘Connecting on Facebook’ section, select ‘View Settings’ – amend these settings to whatever your comfort level is. If you are not interested in letting new people find you on Facebook, then you should change all these settings to ‘Friends Only’. Know that you will not show up in Facebook searches and no one new can add you as a friend.
  4. Be sure that you have chosen the ‘Friends Only’ settings in the ‘Sharing on Facebook’ section – click ‘Apply’
  5. Select ‘Customize Settings’
  6. Be sure that all the drop-downs are ‘Friends Only’
  7. Disable the option for ‘Include me in “People Here Now” after I check in
    8. Select ‘Edit album privacy’ and change all the settings to your meet your comfort level. You can customize them to even be invisible or visible to certain people by selecting the ‘customize’ option
  8. Back on the main privacy settings page, ‘Choose Your Privacy Settings’, select ‘edit your settings’ in the ‘Apps and Websites’ section in the bottom left corner of the screen
  9. Edit the settings for each of the options (on the ‘Instant Personalization’ page, disable the option to see information)

Many of the options listed above are explained in detail by Facebook. However, their goal is to make their site very accessible for both their users and the advertisers that pay to get your information through applications and widgets so they encourage you to share all information by making the defaults very liberal. By limiting the information that Facebook is eager to provide to other users, the search engines and advertisers, you are gaining greater control over who sees your private data. For a regular everyday user that just wants to connect with family and friends, taking these steps returns Facebook much closer to its original purpose.

IKEA completes solar installation in Tempe; 8 more planned

Yesterday, IKEA announced it had flipped the switch on newly installed dual rooftop solar units at its Tempe, Arizona store. The new system is one of the largest solar systems in the Phoenix area and the third such solar energy system for the Swedish home furnishings retailer; they have similar units already in place in Brooklyn, NY and Pittsburgh, PA.

The 300 kW solar energy system will generate 960,000 kWh of electricity annually from 2600 solar panels. It is the equivalent of reducing at least 760 tons of (C02) – which equals the emissions of 133 cars or powering 84 homes annually.

IKEA has other renewable energy initiatives in place. Already operating is solar water heating in stores in Charlotte, N.C.; Draper, Utah; Orlando, Florida; and Tampa, Florida. In addition, a geothermal system is being installed in a store under construction in Centennial, Colorado.

It was also announced that eight California locations are on deck for solar systems. In all, IKEA will be installing nearly 20,000 solar panels at eight of its California locations. IKEA expects the panels to generate 6.65 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually which is enough to power 580 homes for a year. Pending governmental approval, it will begin installing the renewable energy systems later this fall at existing stores in East Palo Alto, Emeryville, West Sacramento, Burbank, Costa Mesa, Covina and San Diego along with its large distribution center in Tejon.

Survey finds that web users are sloppy with passwords

A new survey commissioned by Webroot confirms that web users are still putting their identities at risk by not employing some simple strategies for password safety and protection.

So what did the survey reveal about web users and why are these findings an issue?

40% have shared passwords with at least one person in the past year

Sharing passwords with a trusted friend or family member may seem like a non-issue because you trust the person you’re sharing it with, but they may leave it lying around where someone not so trustworthy may pick it up.

About 40% of people use the same password to log into multiple sites

Using a password on multiple sites can create a problem because if your password is compromised on one site, the potential exists that multiple accounts could be in jeopardy.

Nearly 50% never use special characters (e.g. ! ? & #) in their passwords

Adding a special character is a simple step that can be used to make it that much harder for someone to guess your password. Another easy to use technique is to substitute numbers or characters to spell out words.

redridinghood becomes  r3dr!d!ngh00d

For example changing the ‘e’ ‘i’ and ‘o’ in “red riding hood” to numbers and characters makes it virtually impossible for someone to guess at it even if they know the name of your favorite childhood book.

20% have used a significant date, such as a birth date, or a pet’s name as a password

In the past, that may have made it easy for only people that knew you to use that information but today that information is often publicly visible on social networks where it can be accessed by almost anyone.

Besides the above tips, it is recommended that you change your passwords periodically and don’t allow your browsers to store passwords for you.

Following these recommendations can save you time and save you money should someone try to hack your accounts.

Combining online and offline: the future of cash registers

Hate going shopping in person but don’t want to buy everything online? Consider the future of shopping where cash registers will not just be able to ring up your purchases, but be able to tell you what other items would match the sweater you’re buying that day….including a review of your past purchases.

Love the idea or hate it, that is the future of brick and mortar checkout. Combining the online catalog with a streamlined checkout process, the goal is to help you shop smarter, better and of course, more often.

Intel has a future generation register in development right now that does all of this, plus more. In fact, it is predicted that in the future you won’t even need to bring your credit card – your cell phone will be the method of payment and receipts will be sent right to your phone. Added bonus – no more lost receipts for returns and exchanges.

Take a look at this video that shows what Intel is working on right now:

http://www.smartplanet.com/business/video/the-future-of-cash-registers/462022/

The New York Jets are green on and off the field

With the installation of an array of 3000 solar panels, the New York Jets have really set themselves apart from other professional sports teams. Their team headquarters and 120,000 square foot training facility will be powered by the solar panels that will generate an estimated 750,000 kilo-watt hours of electricity.

Other sports teams have installed alternative energy systems at their training camps and stadiums, but the system at the Jets facility is the largest to date.

The New York Jets can wear their long-time green jerseys proudly – their commitment to providing a source of green energy at their training camp is an inspiration for the rest of the league.

The future of solar power: Flexible solar panels

As the popularity of solar energy grows, so does the selection of solar equipment that is made available. The big trend in solar energy right now is flexible panels.

Flexible solar panels have many advantages over traditional framed solar panels. The flexible solar panels are lightweight so there is less worry in the installation process and during use. They can also be installed on a semi-permanent basis because they are very easy to remove and install elsewhere.

Probably the biggest advantage is that they can be manufactured in any size or shape so they can be used in unconventional places.

In the past, the biggest disadvantage of the flexible solar panels is that they could only power low-wattage devices however that has changed significantly in the past year as new solar technology has been introduced. The newest flexible panels that are available for commercial applications have the ability to collect more energy than earlier versions.

In the future, we will be seeing even more advances in solar energy products based on this emerging technology.

When Does A Small Business Need A Server?

If your small business uses more than one computer to manage its business, you may be ready to upgrade to a small server to efficiently run your business.

Keep in mind that adding a server to your business is not a huge expense – in fact you can get started by putting an unused desktop computer to work, but the rewards go beyond the financial concerns.

Here’s how to recognize the signs that it’s time for you to invest in a server for your small business.

– Has your business grown beyond a few desktop computers, laptops and other data collectors including PDA’s?
– Is the thought of losing the company data that is stored on different computers making you uneasy? In fact, have you experienced a loss of data or incurred costs associated with the recovery of lost data?
– Do multiple employees need to access the same programs and documents?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, chances are your business is ready for a server.

Some of the benefits are that your business can use the server as a security gateway to regulate the different levels of access to your data, particularly for your employees. It is also possible to host your website on your company’s server but if your site has a reasonable amount of traffic, you might want to leave that alone.

What is a MOS-FET?

Mos-FETMOS-FET, which is an abbreviation of Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor, is a very important kind of transistor. Many IC’s are constructed of arrays of MOS-FETS on a tiny sliver of silicon.

They are very small, easy to manufacture and many MOS-FETS consume a small amount of power making them an excellent choice for many applications.

It is the most common type of transistor available for either digital or analog circuits, replacing the bipolar transistor which was much more common in the past.

The word ‘metal’ in the name is actually now a misnomer because what was originally the gate material (often Aluminum) is now more often a layer of polysilicon (aka polycrystalline silicon).