DisTribute

Do Your Inventoried Items Have Birthdays?

by Mark Tomalonis
President, WarehouseTWO

Do you have anything in stock that has been there for more than a year? Two years? Do your inventoried items have Birthdays??? Before an inventoried item has its first Birthday, consider these strategies to get rid of it and recover your investment:

1. Identify Unwanted Inventory Every Month
   The longer an unwanted item sits in stock, the harder it is to get rid of it. Have a process or discipline that identifies unwanted inventory every month. Doing so will make it much easier to take the suggested actions below. Identifying unwanted inventory every month should be someone’s assigned responsibility.
2. Sell It Locally
   Who used to buy this item? Try to sell it to them. Reduce the price if you have to. Sell it at a loss, if just to recover most of your investment.
3. Sell It via WarehouseTWO
   Expand the available marketplace for your unwanted inventory, by making it available to peer distributors. The item may have no demand in your local territory. But it might, somewhere else in the world. Formalized inventory-sharing at WarehouseTWO can expose your inventory to thousands of end-customers, through dozens of peer distributors. Attend our training webinar titled “How to Upload Inventory Data” to learn how to grow the demand for your items at WarehouseTWO. Click here to register for this webinar, or for any of our free training webinars.
4. Return It
   Take advantage of every annual/periodic inventory exchange offered by your manufacturers. Returning an item for credit (or in exchange for a like-value purchase of other items) is an easy way to get rid of unwanted inventory. Make sure that you have a formal process and schedule to take advantage of such policies. Managing periodic returns should be someone’s assigned responsibility. Be aware of any limitations to what can be returned/exchanged, such as items whose warranties have expired.
5. Substitute It
   If your unwanted item can be used in place of an active item, create a process or discipline whereby your customer service representatives offer up, at an attractive price, an unwanted item whenever a customer asks about a similar, active item. WarehouseTWO’s Related Items functionality lets your unwanted items appear in SEARCH results when another distributor searches for a similar, more popular item at WarehouseTWO. Click here to learn more about this powerful feature.
6. Convert It
   Disassemble, reassemble or modify an unwanted item to convert it into a more active item. For many industrial products, options can be removed or replaced, and components (such as trim or seals) can be changed.
7. Sell It to a Surplus Dealer
   If you can gain a greater financial benefit than from simply writing it off, consider selling your unwanted items to a surplus dealer who caters to your industry.
8. Donate It
   Donating inventory might have the same financial effect as writing it off and disposing of it, but a donation benefits a non-profit organization. One of our favorite organizations is FIRST, the robotics competition organization for primary and secondary school students. This organization is known to accept fluid power and industrial automation products, to be used in their competitions.
9. Write It Off
   The only guaranteed way to turn excess inventory into cash is to throw it away and write it off. For those of you in the U. S., it’s tax season. How much inventory did you write off for 2011? Did you take all of the above actions prior to writing it off? What will you do differently in 2012?

Tribute, Inc. has partnered with WarehouseTWO to offer customers a streamlined inventory sharing process. WarehouseTWO is also an inventory sharing network for the Eaton Hydraulics team and Parker Fluid Connector, Hydraulic & Instrumentation Groups. If you’re going to the NAHAD Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, you can find Tribute at Booth #27 and WarehouseTWO at Booth #85.

Spiceworks: A Social Network for IT

Does your company have a small IT staff? Don’t let them feel alone – harness the power of Spiceworks™, an online IT community with a multitude of free resources, support, and tools.

Founded in 2006, Spiceworks is the world’s largest and fastest growing social business network for IT. By combining free IT management software with a Facebook-like community, Spiceworks helps over 1.8 million IT professionals to discover, buy and manage $300 billion worth of technology products and services each year.

The Spiceworks community is a force to be reckoned with! They call themselves SpiceHeads…wear Spiceworks gear proudly, and hail a fierce yet friendly orange T-Rex (affectionately named “SpiceRex”) as their mascot.

You can interact with other Spiceworks users and communicate with other IT pros to share tips, product & vendor recommendations. Spiceworks provides whitepapers, webinars, and free trials along with readily accessible help, training and support resources that allow you to get the most out of IT!

Spiceworks also allows you to keep track of the latest news, stats, data and trends in IT and bundles network monitoring, helpdesk, UPS power management, RFQ, PC inventory tools, mobile apps, a blog and an online community, all for free.

This article on Disaster Recovery, Ensure your DR Plan is ready for a Zombie Apocalypse, by Justin Davison, is just one example of the wealth of information you’ll find on this site.

Spiceworks has teamed up with Eaton Corporation to offer the industry’s first free power management software features that allows its small-to-medium business users to remotely monitor and manage uninterruptible power systems (UPSs) for free through Spiceworks.

Eaton's Power 101: The Importance of Power Backup

The number of freak storms around the US in the past year has emphasized the need for a backup power system to protect your high tech equipment and be able to do business in the event of a power outage.

Downtime is costly. Some industry estimates believe the U.S. economy loses between $200 billion and $570 billion a year as a result of outages and other disturbances.

Eaton Corporation, industry experts in reliable and efficient backup power, airflow management and power distribution, provides a great site called Power 101 that covers the basics of power protection:

• Why the need for power protection?
• What does a UPS do?
• How do I choose the right UPS?
• What is the difference between a decentralized configuration and a centralized configuration?

The site has a Blackout Tracker where you can explore the causes of power outage and impacts for your state or region. You may be surprised at how vulnerable the U.S. power grid is to power outages!

Eaton also has a mobile app, UPS Tool, that helps you find the best UPS solution for your application and power needs - without being tied to your desk.

Have a question about power backup, distribution or management? You can ask their team of experts or read through questions other IT pros have asked.

Tribute partners with Eaton to streamline their distributor's business processes. Click here to see what benefits Tribute offers distributors of Eaton products.

The BYOD Movement and IT Consumerization

In the last year or two, there has been a rapid shift in the way employees are using personal technology in the workplace. Employees are using their personal laptops, smartphones, and tablets for business purposes. Companies that embrace this "bring your own device" (BYOD) trend expect that their business will be more productive and employees more satisfied. A related phenomenon is the "consumerization of IT", where consumer-grade technology is equally (or more) capable and less expensive than the tools available at their workplace. Employees are using "consumer" mobile, cloud, social, and software tools at work and expect the IT staff to support them.

If your workplace is ready to address the BYOD phenomenon, here are some guidelines from an article for Forbes by Dan Woods:

• Don’t just say no: End users are more productive when they have a vote on the tools they use and how they are supported. Instead of dragging your feet and watching staff use personal devices whether you like it or not, show some leadership and help figure out how to get it right so that the company is protected and the users are happy.
• Listen to the end users: Create an internal customer advisory group to allow end users to explain what they want and what they don’t. Craft a set of policies and guidelines based on this input.
• Research and test your approach: Consider a pilot program before full rollout. Discover the range and types of preferred devices as well as the corporate systems, networks, and applications users will need access to. Then modify your plan as needed.
• Develop a clear set of policies for end users: Everyone should know what the company policies are for personal devices and where to find them. Review your policies periodically as new devices arrive and raise new issues.
• Plan for a more complex support burden: There will be more questions on setup, remote access, and use of corporate applications, as well as problems unique to the different devices. There will be more complex support scenarios, for example, how to use Microsoft Office applications on non-PC devices. Be sure you have a support plan and trained people in place.
• Don’t rely on device manufacturers for support: Manufacturers can handle break/fix and warranty support on products, but they won’t know your corporate policies, processes, nor the core office applications your users work with every day.
• Prepare your IT staff for the task: The IT staff in a consumerized IT environment is a different type of organization, one that must be able to respond to the unexpected. Mixed device environments require specialization and expertise, as well as ongoing training and skill building. Your existing staff may need to be retrained, expanded, or supplemented.

Whether you embrace BYOD or aren't quite ready for it yet, a smart mobile strategy is a must to prepare your business for the future. This article on mobile device management (MDM) by Victor R. Garza for PCWorld offers the following recommendations:

Determine Your Needs: If your business requires nothing more than email, calendaring, and shared contacts, then using Microsoft's Exchange ActiveSync makes sense. EAS doesn’t have much overhead, and it works with a mix of devices and platforms. It’s also straightforward to install and requires minimal setup on the mobile device. If you want to manage your devices with greater control or more features, you should consult your cellular carrier, which will have partnered with a mobile device management service to simplify the integration of multiple mobile device platforms even across different carrier networks. These services typically provide a single console that covers billing, inventory management, security, and compliance, and they may even have an integrated app store that permits users to download only approved apps to their mobile devices.

Keeping Tabs on Costs: Before you can manage a collection of cellular devices, you have to know how many devices are involved, and who has what. If you have an inventory control system for laptops, your next step should be to add cellular devices to that system. If you don’t have such a system in place, it’s time to get one. Your cellular carrier can supply basic cost information for each device. To reduce costs, consider setting up a cellular usage plan that multiple cellular devices and departments share. And make sure that whoever is dedicated to purchasing and managing your company's phone bills and rate plans works closely with your in-house technical person to understand your company's needs, usage, and growth pattern.

Policies Are the Best Policy: Successful mobile management starts with establishing reasonable policies. Be sure to consider the following:

• Have a way to provide new and existing over-the-air cellular device activations or "self-activation." This allows your employees to get back to business quickly when a phone is lost or needs to be upgraded.
• Devise a policy that covers tablets’ and smartphones’ end of life. When the device goes out of service, its owner needs to dispose of it appropriately, including sanitizing any data that remains on it.
• Establish a clear policy for apps. Consider specifying the types of work apps can be used on mobile devices and test all new mobile apps before deploying them.
• Compile a list of all devices that have remote network access to company data, and inventory the approved apps on each device. Don't neglect to stipulate that employees who bring a personal device to connect to the business network must first accept any security restrictions you've established.
• Publicize your policies. Provide appropriate training, make sure that everyone who has a company mobile device receives a copy of the guidelines, and explicitly state those policies the first time an employee gets a device that you’ll be supporting.

Getting a Handle on Security: Implement a security policy that includes shutting off and remotely wiping all data and applications on a lost or stolen mobile device, data encryption, antivirus protection, and virtual private network (VPN) support, among others. If you allow personal phones and tablets on your network, you should require that certain approved software be loaded on those devices before they can connect, such as a data-wipe app, an app that monitors what other apps may be doing, antivirus software, and a properly configured VPN.

Coming Soon: Management in the Cloud: Eventually, many companies will manage their tablets and phones in the cloud. Though a few cloud solutions are available now, more are on the way. The biggest advantage of cloud-based mobile-management services is that you can get started with them right away. You don’t worry about buying or setting up new IT and mobile device infrastructure, maintaining that infrastructure, or even committing long-term to a specific vendor. Plus, you’ll be able to monitor and manage your mobile infrastructure from anywhere.

Here are some additional articles on BYOD and the consumerization of IT:

How employers can keep their IT systems safe in this BYOD era

Managing Mobile Devices: 10 Lessons Learned, via Forrester

Top 7 truths about consumerization of IT

BYOD: You ain't seen nothing yet

BYOD movement is forcing IT to adapt

Cloud Computing and ERP Implications

These days, everyone in business and technology is talking about "the cloud". Cloud computing is a rapidly changing topic that encompasses many different variations.

Cloud computing in the broadest sense is the shift from traditional software models to the Internet. But a more specific definition can vary depending on which vendor, consultant, or analyst you are talking to. Some define cloud computing as narrowly as virtual servers available over the Internet. Others argue that anything you consume outside your company's firewall is "in the cloud".

Generally, cloud computing models can be categorized as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS). A reference article from Dummies.com describes these categories as follows:

• Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): The IaaS layer offers storage and compute resources that developers and IT organizations can use to deliver business solutions.
• Platform as a Service (PaaS): The PaaS layer offers black-box services with which developers can build applications on top of the compute infrastructure. This might include developer tools that are offered as a service to build services, or data access and database services, or billing services.
• Software as a Service (SaaS): In the SaaS layer, the service provider hosts the software so you don’t need to install it, manage it, or buy hardware for it. All you have to do is connect and use it. SaaS examples include customer relationship management as a service.

This article by Eric Knorr for InfoWorld breaks down cloud computing into several common components:

• SaaS: A single application is delivered through the browser to thousands of customers using a "multitenant" architecture. Familiar examples include Google Apps and Salesforce.com.
• Utility computing: Storage and virtual servers that IT can access on demand.
• Web services in the cloud: Closely related to SaaS, Web service providers offer APIs that enable developers to exploit functionality over the Internet, rather than delivering full-blown applications.
• Platform as a service: Another SaaS variation, this form of cloud computing delivers development environments as a service. You build your own applications that run on the provider's infrastructure and are delivered to your users via the Internet from the provider's servers.
• MSP (managed service providers): A managed service is basically an application exposed to IT rather than to end-users, such as a virus scanning service for e-mail or an application monitoring service.
• Service commerce platforms: A hybrid of SaaS and MSP, this cloud computing service offers a service hub that users interact with.
• Internet integration: The integration of cloud-based services is still in its early days. These offerings connect SaaS providers and provide integrated solutions to customers.

You will often hear the terms "single-tenant" and "multi-tenant" when cloud computing is discussed. As you can probably guess, single-tenant systems store the data for one company only; multi-tenant systems store the data for multiple businesses on one server. This white paper from Sapien analyzes the the differences between single-tenancy and multi-tenancy in three areas:

1. Technology: Multi-tenant systems place the data from multiple companies on the same server, generally separating them from each other via a simple partition that prevents the data from migrating from one company to another. All companies are running the same basic application, with the same basic functionality and with the same limited configuration capabilities. Single-tenant systems give a user its own database and its own instance of the software application. Users of single-tenant systems enjoy the benefits of significant configurability of software, robust functionality, and enhanced security.
2. Functionality: Software functionality is significantly greater for single-tenant systems than for multi-tenant systems. In the multi-tenant option, modifications to the software are limited because multiple customers are running the same instance of the software and because their data is being housed in a pre-configured database format. However, multi-tenant SaaS providers generally do a very good job of anticipating customer needs and the standardized functionality is often all that is needed. By comparison, single-tenant systems use the provider's software as the base of the final application, and perform extra configuration to meet the specific needs of the user.
3. Security: A single-tenant system will have a higher degree of inherent security than a multi-tenant system, as the potential for data migration from one company to another is eliminated. However, multi-tenant systems are still secure, and the level of security offered by these systems may be adequate for a particular company’s needs.

Cloud computing happens on a public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud. Again citing the Dummies.com article:

• Public clouds are virtualized data centers outside of your company’s firewall. Generally, a service provider makes resources available to companies, on demand, over the public Internet.
• Private clouds are virtualized cloud data centers inside your company’s firewall. It may also be a private space dedicated to your company within a cloud provider’s data center.
• Hybrid clouds combine aspects of both public and private clouds.

What type of cloud computing makes the most sense? Tim Reynolds, owner of enterprise-wide distribution management software company Tribute, Inc., believes a single-tenant solution is preferable. Software customization and versioning are usually important for ERP customers, along with easy data access and third party integration. However, a hybrid solution may also be possible, where the application is multi-tenant but the database is single-tenant (a completely separate database for each company). Such a solution would offer flexibility and data access with some economies of scale for cost savings. However, customization may be difficult with a hybrid solution.

Before you take the leap to the cloud, be sure to consider:

• Performance: Not just your data center, but also your network, PCs, ISP and bandwidth.
• Security: Can you access the application from any device? What security measures are in place? Data center attacks are rare, but not unheard of.
• Customization: Can you use the cloud application "out of the box", or do you need customizations?
• Integration(s): How easy is it to integrate with third-party prividers?
• Privacy: Who owns and controls your data? Who can access your data and metadata?
• Reliability: How reliable is the technology? What kind of disaster recovery plan is in place?

Tips for Microsoft Word

Many of us are longtime users of Microsoft Word. Each new version of Word introduces new features, especially in Office 2007, where the traditional menus and toolbars were replaced with a new "ribbon" interface. Word 2010 included even more enhancements.

Have you been keeping up-to-date with the new options availabe in each new version of Word, or just sticking to the tasks you know? You may be barely scratching the surface of its potential.

This article by Barry Moltz for The OPEN Forum lists 13 useful features for both beginners and more advanced users of Microsoft Word, including:

• Use the Quick Part Gallery to store content that will be reused repeatedly, such as text snippets, logos and other graphics.
• Save typing. Use this feature for keystroke shortcuts. For example, if your  company name is The Penney Wig Corporation, then you can use a keystroke short cut like "TPWC" and Word will type “The Penney Wig Corporation” every time.
• Convert a document from Word format to PDF to make it more professional and prevent anyone from changing it. No additional software is required.
• If you use an electronic postage program like Stamps.com, Word allows you to print envelopes and shipping labels with USPS-approved postage directly from Word without opening the other program.
• Collaborate on documents using Word's change tracking and commenting features.
• Beef up your spellcheck by using an exclusion dictionary. This causes words like "manger" (instead of "manager") to be flagged as misspelled words.
• Use the built-in Flesch-Kincaid grade level test to keep your correspondence and marketing content simple and readable.
• Use the Forms features to create standardized checklists and store them electronically.
• Use Styles to set up fonts, headings and and colors that stay consistent and give your documents an extra level of professionalism.
• Highlight a word or paragraph and use Ctlr+Shift+ > to make the font larger, or Ctrl+Shift+< to make the font smaller.

Click here to read the entire article.

There are lots of resources for Microsoft Word tips. PC Magazine lists 15 Word 2010 tips for beginners here and 10 tips for advanced users here. Or go straight to Microsoft, who provides many Word 2010 videos here. and free online training courses here.

Ten Tips for Better Internet Searches

Searching within Google (or Bing, Yahoo or your favorite search engine) is simple: type your search term into the box and click Search. Many times, you will find exactly what you're looking for. But you can become more efficient at searching if you learn a few tricks.

This article by Alexandra Samuel lists ten tips for using search more effectively, including:

• Learn advanced syntax. Have you ever used a minus sign or an OR in a Google search? Learn about these powerful features and more on Google's Operators and More page. Or, use the Google Advanced Search form if you don't want to memorize all the options yourself.
• Go Boolean on your Inbox. Once you learn the advanced syntax for Google, you can use it to manage your Gmail inbox too. Click here to learn more.
• Add additional search engines to your browser. If you find yourself regularly searching a single site like Wikipedia or the New York Times, you can add it to your browser as a search plugin and choose it from the dropdown menu in your search bar. Use this site to find search plugins for popular web pages.
• Google your error messages. One of the quickest ways to find answers to any tech problem is to Google the specific error message you are seeing. This will almost always lead to a blog post or discussion thread with possible solutions to your problem.

For the complete article, click here.

Google Search has many useful and interesting features you may not be aware of. Did you know you can use it to quickly find the local time in any big city, convert currency, track the arrival and departure of a flight, and more? Find out about all these and more in this article by Gina Trapani for Lifehacker.

Take Advantage of the Section 179 Savings Before They Expire!

Did you know that there are only 39 days left to take advantage of the IRS’s Section 179 Tax Savings Benefit?

It’s never too early to start thinking about investing in new technology and taking advantage of the Section 179 of the IRS tax code tax deduction that allows businesses to deduct the full purchase price of qualifying equipment from your gross income for this tax year.

For 2011, the deduction limit is $500,000, for new and used equipment, including new software purchased or financed during the tax year—that’s up from $250,000 last time! The incentive was created by the U.S. Government to encourage businesses to buy software and equipment. Think of it as a boost for your business to become more successful. Don’t let the time fly by because to take advantage of this deduction, the equipment needs to be in service by December 31, 2011. Check out the Section 179.org website for more details.

If you’ve considered upgrading your server, this is an excellent time to do it. Many ask: How long should my server last and at what point should I seriously consider replacing it? The traditional rule of thumb is to expect 5-7 years for the life of the server hardware.

But the age of the equipment is not the only factor to consider:

• If using the server is core to your business, are you losing efficiency because of the slowness of older equipment? Today’s servers today are light years better than those sold just 5 years ago. They come with Quad Core Xeon processors that have much faster processing capabilities. With a redundant power supply and expanded memory, investing in a new server is an investment in speed, efficiency and security for your company.
• How well has the server been maintained? Has someone, at least once a month, taken care of issues as they arise, even ones that may not be visible to users but that are logging errors in the event logs?
• How stable is the power to the building? Are you using a voltage regulator? Does your UPS kick in more than once per year?
• How confident are you in your backup? Do you know where all of your CD’s, license keys and account passwords are?

In a single server environment, you have to get serious about considering replacing the server before it breaks. In other words, waiting until the server has problems to begin thinking about replacing it is not a wise strategy (some would argue it isn’t really a strategy at all). While laptops can be replaced by walking into a number of stores, that is not true for servers. If it crashes and the only option is ordering a new one, you are, at best, going to be down for a week.

With the tax incentives, now’s a great time to invest in a new server and redeploy the old server to add value in non-business-critical areas.

Protecting Your Company from a Data Breach

Last month was National Cyber Security Awareness Month and 2011 looks to be the “Year of the Data Breach”. It is more important than ever to be ever vigilant about the security of your data.

A study conducted by the Verizon RISK Team with cooperation from the U.S. Secret Service and the Dutch High Tech Crime Unit gives us some significant statistics on data breaches:

• 92% stemmed from external agents
• 50% utilized some form of hacking and 49% incorporated malware
• 83% of victims were targets of opportunity
• 92% of attacks were not highly difficult
• 76% of all data was compromised from servers
• 86% were discovered by a third party
• 96% of breaches were avoidable through simple or intermediate controls
• 89% of victims subject to PCI-DSS had not achieved compliance

In light of these statistics, our previous articles on Beefing Up Your Passwords, PCI Compliance, and the Top 10 Best Practices for Fighting Credit Card Theft Fraud by our partner, 3DSI, are worth a revisit.

It’s also a good idea to check if your email address or username and associated information may have been compromised. Brian Krebs offers a good article on his blog, Krebs on Security, on new website called Pwnedlist.com that can check to see if your account information has been published.

Tips and Tricks for Microsoft Excel

Many of us use Microsoft Excel in our jobs, but never progress past the basic functions and the handful of features we are familiar with. Learning just a few additional tips can make you more productive and allow you to access your information in a more streamlined way.

This article by Barry Moltz for the OPEN Forum lists 10 productivity tips for Excel, including:

• Use the Audit toolbar to graphically trace the cells that are included in a mathematical formula for a given cell
• Use Auto Fill to reduce the amount of time and error when typing days, months or any series.
• Use Sparklines to illustrate trends in a series of values, such as seasonal increases or decreases, economic cycles, or to highlight maximum and minimum values.
• Don't forget you can change the name of the "Sheet" page. Just right click on Sheet 1, and rename it.

For even more tips, check out this article by Seamus Bellamy, Paul Lili, and David Murphy for Maximum PC which includes tricks like these:

• If you have a spreadsheet full of formulas and you want to see exactly how you have arrived at the values, use CTRL + ~ to transform your spreadsheet from values to the formulas that constructed them.
• Need to add a line break in a cell to split up your text? Use Alt + Enter.
• Check out the RDBMail plugin if you want to quickly email portions of a worksheet to an Outlook recipient.

And here is a list of tips and tricks from Microsoft itself, such as:

• Freezing panes and splitting panes into multiple worksheets can be useful when you want to work in one pane while information displayed within the other remains static.
• PivotTable and PivotChart reports can help you quickly summarize large amounts of data in a variety of formats.
• Set up conditional formatting to quickly identify important data points such as top-performing salespeople or high-volume customers.

Here's a handy list of shortcuts for Excel 2007 and another for Excel 2010.

The first version of Excel was released in 1985. Here is a timeline depicting the history of Excel. Naturally, the timeline itself was made using a bar chart in Excel with some special formatting. It's a good example of the flexibility possible within this tool.

3DSI Observes National Cyber Security Awareness Month

Tribute partner, 3Delta Systems, Inc. (3DSI), a leader in online credit card processing solutions and a pioneer in safeguarding confidential payment data through tokenization, is observing National Cyber Security Awareness Month by issuing a set of business best practices for protecting customer credit card account information and minimizing corporate exposure to online payment scams.

Entitled "10 Business Best Practices for Fighting Credit Card Theft and Fraud," 3DSI's tips consists of tried-and-true tools and techniques for companies to use in detecting and deterring online thieves from stealing sensitive payment data from their computer systems. The best practices are available for Download here.

"Given the ingenuity of cyber criminals and the sheer volume of electronic business-to-business (B2B) payment transactions, someone - somewhere - will inevitably break through your company's front-end access control and authentication safeguards," said Aaron Bills, founder and chief operating officer of 3Delta Systems.

"A sound business payment security system shouldn't merely detect intrusions," Bills explained. "It should also plan for 'graceful failure' - a strategy that assumes, if one safeguard fails and a perpetrator gains access to one part of your computer network, other countermeasures will be in place to contain the attack, render it less harmful or lock down confidential data so it's worthless to hackers."

Study after study shows that failure to protect sensitive payment data from a breach leads to massive financial costs, customer defections, lawsuits and loss of reputation. According to the Ponemon Institute's latest U.S. Cost of a Data Breach Study, data heists during 2010 cost companies an average of $7.2 million, up 7 percent from 2009.

To help businesses stay secure, 3DSI launched Payment WorkSuite®, an easy-to-use platform built from the ground up to save enterprises money on payment processing costs, improve their productivity and protect sensitive information from prying eyes.

The company also pioneered credit card tokenization technology in 2003 called CardVault® that enables merchants to exchange their customers' confidential card data for randomly generated payment "tokens," a process that safely replaces real card numbers with a string of characters which then become useless to would-be hackers. Merchants use only the token key reference for each customer transaction while the real card data remains offsite at 3DSI's secure processing centers.

Tribute, Inc. and 3Delta Systems have partnered to give Tribute customers the ability to manage, tokenize, store, authorize and settle payment transactions in real-time via the Tribute Software System and TrulinX Software. For more information regarding cyber security visit the National Cyber Security Alliance's website StaySafeOnline.org.

Handy Application for UPS Shipping by OzLINK

TrulinX software comes with complete integration of UPS and FedEx, but some customers wanted a way to quickly estimate UPS freight charges without the trouble of going to the UPS website.

During a meeting with his UPS rep, Tribute customer Kevin Hogarth of Neff Power mentioned that it would be nice if he had a way to estimate UPS freight without taking the time to do the research on the UPS website. The rep suggested he look at OzLINK for UPS OnLine® Tools.

Hogarth loves the application and what he likes about it is that he can see the standard freight charges AND negotiated freight charges just by having the ship-from zip code, ship-to zip code, and package weight. It also has tracking tools and the ability to price out international shipments.

OzLINK is a free application available to any company who ships packages with UPS and can be installed on as many PCs as necessary. The OzLINK “PLUS” package comes with additional features for $15.95 per month.

Here’s what OzLINK says about their services:

With OzLINK, you can quickly and easily track packages, check rates and validate addresses all from within one application. Easy to use, install and maintain, OzLINK Standard is the perfect tool for sales and customer service representatives.

UPS Rating
Rating packages or shipments has never been more efficient! OzLINK displays all services, rates and delivery commitment times with a single click of a button. For even greater flexibility, OzLINK enables you to see either your UPS negotiated rates or the UPS standard rates.

Package Tracking
Track packages faster than ever! OzLINK allows you to track with standard UPS tracking numbers or by package reference number.

Address Validation
Quickly validate a customer's city, state and postal code to prevent delivery delays and improve customer satisfaction. OzLINK provides you with a confirmation of a good address or a list of suggestions for a valid destination.

Clipboard Integration
Moving data in and out of OzLINK is also simple. All three functions within OzLINK come with their own Data In and Data Out buttons. These buttons are best described as "intelligent cut & paste" as they move data in and out of the Windows clipboard but are aware of what has been selected on the screen.
For example, when on the address validation screen, Data In will parse an address in the clipboard and place city, state and zip in the appropriate fields. When on the rating screen, the Data Out will move one rate or all rates into the clipboard depending on what is highlighted in the output rate box.

Free Website Tools for Valve Distributors

Today’s savvy manufacturers have added a bevy of useful tools and information to their websites and social media outlets. They know that in this competitive market they have to provide more than product specifications. Most manufacturers can now be found on Facebook and Twitter, with information, handy tutorials and video clips designed to help out valve buyers.

Valve Magazine asked VMA members to share some of what they offer. They found an array of diagnostic and other software, helpful tools such as calculators, and a wealth of informational papers and articles. Valve Magazine took that information and put together a great article with useful information on Sizing Software, Video Libraries and Tutorials, Diagnostic solutions and more.

For example:

• Flowserve has a number of useful tools, including a diagnostic solution for control valves that can be integrated seamlessly into a host control and/or plant asset management system and a tool for selecting steam traps and an accompanying guide.


• Rotork has a sizing guide which allows the correct electric actuator to be selected for all valve types and sizes, taking into account power supply, enclosure types and mechanical interfaces.


• Emerson’s ASCO Valve business has a set of interactive valve sizing programs for liquids, gases and steam, plus a unit conversion calculator and Emerson’s Fisher unit has a series of tutorials on regulators in PDF form.

Tips for Organizing Computer Files and Folders

It usually doesn't take long for our PCs to become cluttered with files and folders. To make sense of the clutter, we need to devise a system for managing the files we create and download.

This article from Microsoft lists nine ideas for managing your files and folders in Windows:

1. Use the Documents feature, which is called Documents in Windows 7 and in Windows Vista and is called My Documents in Windows XP.
2. Adopt consistent methods for file and folder naming. Develop a naming scheme for the kinds of files you create most often and then stick to it.
3. Keep names short. Even though you can use long file names in Windows, they can be harder to read.
4. Separate ongoing and completed work. To keep the Documents folder from becoming too unwieldy, use it only for files you're actively working on. Every month or so, move the files you're no longer working on to a different folder or location.
5. Store like with like. Restricting folders to a single document type (or mostly one type) makes it easier to find files.
6. Avoid large folder structures. If you need to put so many subfolders in a folder that you can't see all of them at a glance, consider creating an alphabetic menu.
7. Use shortcuts and shortcut links instead of multiple copies.  If you need to get to the same file from multiple locations, don't create copies of the file. Create shortcuts to it instead.
8. Quickly get to the items you use every day. Jump Lists, a new feature in Windows 7, are lists of recently opened items, such as files, folders, or websites that are organized by the program that you use to open them.
9. Consider storing certain documents online. This allows you to easily access them from outside the office, share them, and edit them.

Another technique for making sense of all those files is by focusig your searches. You can use advanced features in Windows Search to quickly find the file you are looking for. Here are a few highlights from this article by Varun Kashyap for www.MakeUseOf.com:

• Use the AND, OR and NOT boolean operators to fine-tune your Windows search
• Use wildcards as well ('*' and '?')
• Search by file kind using the kind: operator
• Enclose your search term in quotes for exact matches
• Use the size: operator to restrict searches by file size
• Launch files directly from the Search window
• Search by file properties

You can find guidelines for using the advanced features of Windows Search from Microsoft here.

Choices for Mobile Internet Access

In the last several years, we have grown more and more dependent on the Internet. The ideal way to access all of these tools and resources is with a broadband (high-speed) Internet connection, something we've come to expect at home and at the office.

But what about when we're on the move? There are many choices for mobile access to the Internet. This article by Tim Ferrill for Maximum PC gives a thorough review of the pros and cons of each method:

• Free Wi-Fi: This type of connection is offered at many restaurants, hotels, airports, and public places. Some may require registration, while others let you simply connect with a single click (like Starbucks). Try a website like wififreespot.com and openwifispots.com to track down free Wi-Fi hotspots near you.
• Paid Wi-Fi: A paid Wi-Fi subscription service is useful if you are traveling in an area with few free Wi-Fi hotspots, or if you need constant Internet access wherever you are. Be sure to investigate whether the provider uses a cap, coverage fees, roaming fees, or activation fees, and whether you will need to buy a network card.
• Wireless Broadband: The short-range nature of Wi-Fi technology sometimes affects coverage. For the best coverage you will want a cellular-based option using 3G or 4G technology. The hardware may be built right into a laptop or other device, or added using a plug-and-play USB modem. For ultimate flexibility, try a portable Wi-Fi hotspot that can provide a network connection to several devices at once. Again, you must figure out which service provider will give you the best service for the cost involved.

Some factors to consider when making your decision:

• Wi-Fi vs. 3G/4G: Consider where you will be traveling and connecting to the Internet. Will free Wi-Fi hotspots meet your needs? Or do you truly need a constant high-speed connection?
• Phone vs. Dedicated Hardware: You may already have a smartphone for basic access to the Internet. However, consider whether you might exceed the data cap on your smartphone plan if you start sharing it among several devices, and whether your smartphone carrier supports simultaneous voice and data. These issues might be good reasons to consider a USB modem or dedicated Wi-Fi hotspot.
• Which Service or Carrier: How much are you willing to pay for your always-available connection? And what kind of coverage area do you usually find yourself in?
• Prepaid or Contract? A pay-as-you-go plan may save you money in the months when you don't need access. However, signing a two-year contract may be cheaper in the long run.

You can read the entire article from Maximum PC here.

For an in-depth article about how mobile broadband services work and their features, terms, and fees, see this article by Dave Roos for HowStuffWorks.

Try TopTenREVIEWS for reviews and side-by-side comparisons of Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and other popular service providers.

You may also try the WirelessInternetReviews website for a variety of articles, including "16 Places You Shouldn’t Use Wireless Broadband Internet Just Because You Can".

How To Dry Out a Cell Phone

If you carry a cell phone, there's a good chance that sometime it will get dropped into a swimming pool, bathtub or - ugh - the toilet. What should you do if your phone gets totaly soaked? If you act fast, there's still a chance you can save your phone.

This article from Popular Mechanics gives step-by-step instructions on how to fry out a wet cell phone. A few tips to remember:

• Immediately remove the battery. Do not power up your phone to see if it still works.
• Remove the SIM card (if your phone has one).
• If your phone fell into salt water (or the toilet), flush with clean water. Wipe the exterior with rubbing alcohol if you want to disinfect it.
• Dry the phone using a can of compressed air, an air compressor set to a low psi, or a vacuum cleaner. Do not use heat.
• Submerge the phone and battery overnight in a bowl of uncooked rice or other dessicant (like silica gel).
• Insert the battery and SIM card and see if the phone will work.

And to keep your cell phone dry, clean and functional in the future, check out these tips from PC World.

Tips to Speed Up Your Browser

An internet browser is usually speedy when you first open it, but after opening a few tabs and visiting your favorite websites over the course of a day, its performance may slow down.

If you have experienced this problem, you might try some of the suggestions from this article by Lifehacker, including:

• Uninstall unneccessary extensions and add-ons for Firefox and Chrome. Firefox has even created a special web page listing its slowest add-ons.
• Uninstall and re-install Flash and Java. Many websites are designing Flash-free versions of their sites, so you may be able to live without Flash. If you still want to use it, it's a good idea to stay updated to the latest version. For Java, try a tool like JavaRa to remove old and redundant versions from your computer.
• Clear your cache and browsing history. This is an old standard tip, but a necessary one for cleaning out the old data cluttering up your computer. Once it's all cleared, you might consider reducing the duration between automatic cleanings (for example, only save your history for a day instead of a week or month).
• Work with multiple browsers. Consider using Chrome for Flash-intensive sites and Firefox for other web browsing. Or try Opera or Safari and see if you have a speedier experience.

If your primary browser is Internet Explorer, first be sure you are using a newer version (either 8 or 9). Then, try this article from Microsoft for five ways to speed up IE.

Keeping Your Computer Shiny and Clean

Have you taken a close look at your computer keyboard lately? How much dust, lint, hair, grease, and food residue is lurking around those keys? And what about those smudges on your screen or the increasingly loud noise of your cooling fan? A dirty computer is not only disgusting, but could lead to overheating and higher maintenance costs. Keeping your desktop or laptop computer clean can keep it running smoothly and extend its life.

For both desktops and laptops, start with these all-purpose tips from Microsoft.

If you have a desktop PC, try these steps (with photos) from Maximum PC to clean the exterior and interior.

For laptops, you can find basic steps here, courtesy of About.com. If you are feeling brave, try this article (photos included) from TechRadar to open up your machine for a thorough cleaning inside and out.

Ever spill your coffee or tea directly on your laptop? Use these tips from PCWorld immediately (with video) to save your laptop from the effects of a spill.

Do you have greasy spots on your keyboard or your laptop trackpad? Try a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to take the grease off. This article from Lifehacker explains how.

Good Go-To Resources for Distributors

There’s a wealth of information easily available on the web to help you navigate the tricky waters of distribution, technology, and running a business. Many industry publications and consultants offer free advice in their blogs and access to good articles. Here’s a listing of just some of our favorites:

Modern Distribution Management Blogs – Covering a wide range of topics

Fluid Power Talk – Hydraulics & Pneumatics’ blog by Mary Gannon

Automation.Com’s e-newsletter archives – topical information on automation

Flow Control Network - technical articles, new products & information for the fluid handling market

Pumps & Systems - Resource for Pump Users with technical articles and chat forums

Industrial Supply’s Archives - Articles by a number of authors and featuring experts Jason Bader (The Distribution Team), Frank Hurtte (River Heights Consulting) and Howard Coleman (MCA Associates)

The Supply Chain Management Review’s Blog

Modern Materials Handling Blog

The SMB Research Blog – Ideas & Insights on IT & Technology for Small-Medium Business

The Marketing Maven Blog – The Industrial Supplier’s Guide to Online Marketing Success

Duct Tape Marketing by John Jantsch – Simple, Effective and Affordable Small Business Marketing

Jim Pancero’s Sales Blog – You Can Always Sell More! Sales tips

BNET - an interactive business network

NSBA.biz - The latest news from the National Small Business Association

Small Business Trends

You’re the Boss – The NYTimes blog on running a small business

Smart Business Network - Success stories from folks in the trenches

Speed Up Your Computer's Boot Time

It may only take a minute or two to boot up your computer, but it can seem like ages. There are many techniques for speeding up your PC's boot time, but some of them are more controversial or risky than others. Thanks to this article from Gizmodo writer Whitson Gordon, here is a list of reliable tips to help your machine boot faster:

10. Tweak Your BIOS
9. Clean Out Programs that Launch at Startup
8. Delay Windows Services That Run at Startup
7. Change Your Boot Menu's Timeout Values
6. Disable Unused Hardware
5. Keep Your Antivirus Running and Up to Date
4. Remove Unnecessary Fonts
3. Upgrade Your RAM
2. Give Your Computer a Static IP
1. Install a Solid State Drive

Click here for the entire article with more details on each technique.

You might also find some of our older blog posts helpful for more tips on speeding up your computer:

Tips to Speed Up Your PC

Five-Minute Fixes for Windows PCs

Keyboard Shortcuts That Enhance Your PC Productivity

Constantly switching between your mouse and your computer keyboard can really slow you down. Learning to use keyboard shortcuts for common tasks can improve your productivity at your PC.

Here is a list of 15 handy keyboard shortcuts that work in Windows 7 and most web browsers, including:

• Delete an entire word: Ctrl + Backspace
• Launch the Task Manager: Ctrl + Shift + Esc
• Open a new browser tab: Ctrl + T
• Reopen a closed browser tab: Ctrl + Shift + T

(Click here to read the full article by Matt Silverman for the OPEN Forum)

For a more comprehensive list, here is a list from Microsoft of numerous keyboard shortcuts that function under Windows Vista and later versions.

Try learning one new shortcut per day or per week, and soon you'll be enjoying a few extra minutes per day to crank out more work (or to watch the latest viral video on YouTube, your choice).

Shop For A Hot New Laptop, Then Keep It Cool

In the market for a new laptop computer? Consider CNET's step-by-step Laptop Finder. Answer a few questions about the operating system, size, memory, and other features you're looking for, then receive recommendations which fit your criteria.

Once you have narrowed down your laptop choices, try Decide.com to help you decide when is the optimal time to make your purchase. This electronic shopping service tells you when to buy a product and when to wait to get the best price. You can set up "alerts" for your future electroincs purchase to be in the know about price changes, rumors and product releases. Plus, you can use their mobile site to get the right model and the right price when shopping at your local electronics store.

After you buy your laptop, you'll want to make sure it stays cool. Try one of these laptop cooling solutions starting at less than $10, courtesy of Mashable.

The Value of a Niche Software Provider

Sometimes it's easy to know when it’s time to upgrade or change your back-office systems—because your employees are telling you, loud and clear. If they're screaming for new functionality or are working around the present system, if they can't easily manipulate or combine data from existing business systems, or if they can't get the right data to use at the right time, it's time to consider a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution.

When shopping for software, there are three primary types of software that most companies will consider:

• Custom Solutions
• General ERP
• Industry/Niche Specific Solutions

Each of these options has pros and cons. However, for small to midsize companies looking to operate more efficiently and promote growth, a niche-specific software provider is the way to go. This option is generally a fraction of the cost of creating custom software, tailored more to your business than a generalized ERP provider, and a big plus for companies looking to work with a partner that knows their industry and will help them get the most value out of their investment. There are significant benefits to partnering with a niche provider like Tribute, Inc.:

Benefit from Tribute’s Experience in Your Industry

One of the key reasons to buy industry specific software is not only do you get software that fits right “out of the box” but you also gain from the niche provider’s experience in your industry. For example, Tribute’s 30+ years of experience in fluid power, fluid handling, hose, sealing, belting, automation, motion control and related marketplace. We are actively involved in your trade associations (FPDA, ISD, NAHAD, NIBA), have relationships with major manufacturers in your industry (Bosch Rexroth, Brennan Industries, Eaton Corp, Flexco, Garlock, Gates Corp., Gould, Linde Hydraulics, Parker Hannifin, Pall Corp., Sun Hydraulics, Tuthill, among others), and actively work with our Users Group to make sure our software is 100% applicable to your business.

Working with a Partner that Understands Your Needs

The advantage of working with a niche provider is that they understand your needs and requirements and are able to offer you solutions or suggestions that they’ve seen work under similar circumstances. Tribute’s support staff trains at distributorships just like yours, so they know how to help you and when you have a question, you can talk directly with one of our customer service reps. And they’ll understand what you’re talking about when you mention your complicated BOM, because they don’t have to try to service 20+ different industries.

You Don’t Have to Mold our Software to Fit Your Business

Creating special work-arounds to fit your business is a major disadvantage in buying a general ERP. Many companies will choose to purchase software from larger companies because they feel a certain comfort level with a big name, only to find out that they are forced to jump through hoops because the general ERP doesn’t provide the personalized service they require or accommodate their needs. With Tribute, we’ve already done that for you - we have a depth of functionality unseen in general ERP solutions!

And Most Importantly – A Quicker Learning Curve & Continued Support

It is said that the real cost of software lies in the “soft costs” associated with loss of productivity and morale that comes with implementing a new system. Humans are creatures of habit, and most employees grumble at the thought of learning something new. With Tribute, you will be working with a partner that understands your business, talks your language, and provides an on-site training program to get your company on board as painlessly and as timely as possible. And we continue that great service with phone support that knows you and your business, ongoing training through via inexpensive online webinars or onsite consulting, and annual User’s Group Meetings.

Getting your staff trained on the new software in a timely and comprehensive manner ensures that you get your return on investment as quickly as possible. All the cool features in your new software package aren’t going to be much use unless they’re being used. And that’s where Tribute excels – working with our partners to get the most out of the software to run their businesses successfully.

How to Fax Without Paper

Did you know the original fax machine was patented in 1843? However, this device may soon be obsolete with today's ability to share information instantaneously from the Web or the cloud onto computers, phones, tablets, and other mobile devices. While we may not yet be ready to ditch our fax machine completely, there are many programs and apps which allow you to save money on phone lines and paper costs. This article by Dave Smith of Inc. lists some alternatives for faxing without paper:

• Subscription services: These range from $5-$20 per month and are a good option if you regularly need to send faxes. HelloFax is one of the cheapest and most comprehensive services available now, starting at $5 per month and negating the need for a fax machine, fax software, printer, or scanner. For an all-purpose office communications solution, RingCentral offers a phone, voicemail, and fax package starting at $20 a month for 20 or more users.
• Pay-per-fax services: If you send fewer than five or ten faxes a month, pay-per-fax solutions might be best. No registration is required: PayPerFax charges 75 cents for the first fax, and 40 cents for each additional page; FaxFresh charges less—25 cents per page—but requires a $2.00 minimum for faxing.
• Smartphone fax apps: iFax Pro and Qipit are two free solutions for sending and receiving documents over an iPhone. After taking a picture of the document with a phone or camera, Qipit converts the photo into a PDF and renders it into a digital copy for "faxing".
• Electronic signature apps: With apps like EasySign, Zosh, and Sign My Pad, there's no need to print out faxes to sign them—just sign directly into the mobile device with your finger. Returning the finished documents is simple too, as both Zosh and Sign My Pad will send a PDF back to the original sender.
• File Sharing Options: It might be easiest to skip the fax and exchange the files directly. File-sharing services like Dropbox, YouSendIt, and zShare make it easy to upload and download files, and most of these services can be accessed by both computer and smartphone.

To read the complete article, click here.

 

 

 

Business Collaboration via the Web

Social networks have revolutionized the way people communicate and collaborate—not only among friends and family, but also in the workplace. Many companies are now implementing social communications in their business, especially those with multiple locations, to help them stay connected and simplify people's ability to share expertise, ideas and corporate information.

The good news is that there are a wide range of free or low-cost social collaboration tools to meet your business needs. This article for Open Forum by Leyl Master Black describes the benefits of eight popular tools for small business social communications, such as:

• Campfire - a Web-based, group-chat tool that can be password protected
• Present.ly - provides a secure and private way to share updates, images, documents, video and audio-clips with colleagues, without them being visible to the outside world
• Yammer - which allows you to set up a private social network for your business locations to communicate, collaborate and share expertise via an easy-to-use, Web-based interface
• and Socialcast – which allows companies to integrate their traditional systems (such as CRM and ERP) with its social software platform

The newly released Podio, unlike the more social networking focused collaboration platforms, follows Spaces, not users and allows you to add an infinite variety of free apps. With good write ups by Mashable, TechCrunch and GetApp.com, it's worth a look.

Along with all the tools to communicate with your colleagues and clients, there are now some handy ways to consolidate all your business & social network information in an interactive online contact card.

• Flavors.me is a simple and elegant way to aggregate all your online presence into one place. This site is simple to use and has a great tutorial that shows the unlimited creative ways to make your online home page.
• DooID has been around the longest and so is one of the most popular. The nice thing about DooID is that you are allowed more than one tiny section, basically expanding the idea of a mere signature area and turning it into a mini-website of links back to you.

NorTech Elects Tim Reynolds As New Board Chairman

NorTech's Board of Directors has elected Tim M. Reynolds, president of Tribute, Inc, to serve as the organization's new chairman. NorTech is a regional nonprofit technology-based economic development organization serving 21 counties in Northeast Ohio and is dedicated to promoting Northeast Ohio’s success, assets and skilled workforce.

NorTech’s mission is an apt one for Ohio as the technology career finder website, Dice.com, lists Cleveland and several other Ohio cities as the fastest-growing areas for technology-related jobs. President Obama, during a recent forum of more than 100 small-business executives at Cleveland State University, stated that northeast Ohio is reinventing “the rust belt as the tech belt”. As a catalyst for growing Northeast Ohio's emerging technology industries, NorTech is leading efforts to develop regional innovation clusters that create jobs, attract capital and have a long term, positive economic impact.

Tim Reynolds has been an active member of the NorTech Board and is a member of the organization's Finance Committee. He is also on the Greater Cleveland Partnership Board and Executive Committee, and on the board of the National Small Business Association, a Washington, D.C. - based advocacy group. Mr. Reynolds has previously served as Chairman of the Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE) and Chairman of the Northeast Ohio Software Association (NEOSA).

The success of NorTech’s initiatives is demonstrated by the appointment of Rebecca O. Bagley, president and chief executive officer of NorTech, to the US Department of Commerce Innovation Advisory Board by Commerce Secretary Gary Locke. (Click here to see some of NorTech's success stories.) The new Innovation Advisory Board will guide a study of U.S. economic competitiveness and innovation to help inform national policies at the heart of U.S. job creation, competitiveness and global strength.

Energy Management and Power Protection

We rely on energy to power the computers and equipment in our businesses. It is critical to run these systems as efficiently as possible while making sure that the power source is reliable, with minimal interruptions.

In today's post we have collected some resources to help you with various aspects of energy management and power protection.

A long-term energy management strategy will save your business money and reduce energy use. The SBA has a list of energy management steps for small- to medium-sized businesses here.

Computer Power Management features — standard in Windows and Macintosh operating systems — automatically place monitors and computers into a low-power "sleep mode" after a period of inactivity. ENERGY STAR has an informative FAQ document here with lots of information on power management for computers.

In an ideal world, electrical utilities would deliver clean, reliable power to business critical
systems. Unfortunately, this is not the reality. It is imperative to have a power protection system for your key servers and other equipment. Emerson Network Power has written a useful white paper with five questions to ask before selecting power protection for critical systems.

On this blog we have written before about backup power sources for small businesses. Click here to read our blog article.

Spiceworks is a free network management software package used by IT professionals to inventory, monitor, troubleshoot, report on and run a help desk for their IT networks. Spiceworks has recently teamed with Eaton Corporation to provide free power management software that allows users to remotely monitor and manage your uninterruptible power systems (UPSs).

The Versatile QR Code

Have you seen these funky little squares popping up nearly everywhere looking like your teenager’s pop-art project? They are QR Codes (short for Quick Response Codes) and were originally created by Japanese company Denso-Wave to keep track of inventory in the mid-1990s. However, with the popularity of smartphones, QR Codes are being used by businesses as a low cost tool to attract customers and share information.

QR Code is capable of handling all types of data, such as numbers, alphabetic characters, symbols, binary, and control codes and when accessed by your phone can link to anything from your website to contact information to your GPS location.

The creation and placement of QR Codes is simple and cost-effective and the use is growing exponentially. In fact, this data prepared by BGVision, speaks to the escalating global growth of barcode scanning. And for the first time, the US is now leading in the number of scans. It takes less than a minute to create the QR Code using Kaywa, QRStuff, or one of the many free QR Code generation services.

 

Woody Myers explains QR Codes in his blog, The Raco Pulse, and has links to some good articles regarding their use.

Helen Leggatt of Biz Report reveals 10 ways you can use QR Codes now ranging from marketing to charitable efforts.

Bernard Martin, author of the blog Manufacturing Supply Chain, has a great article on the combined use of Twitter and QR Codes in Managing your Mobile Sales Force.

QR codes are malleable and can be redesigned in truly extraordinary ways, while still maintaining their scan-ability. The truth is, QR codes no longer have to be checkerbox in appearance. This article by Hamilton Chan for Mashable explains how you can colorize and customize your QR code.

The uses of QR Codes are limited only by your imagination. You can use them to link to specific instructions or spec sheets on how to assemble products. Embed QR codes on your sophisticated equipment with links for spare parts, SOP’s, maintenance procedures and trouble shooting aids. Use to link to your company’s service and repair hours and schedule. It’s time to check out this inexpensive format for disseminating information and advertising your product and services.

Ten Ways to Boost Your Wireless Signal

When you rely on your wireless network at work or at home, it can be frustrating to deal with a poor connection. Luckily, there are many ways to extend your wireless signal, and most of them simply involve a bit of tweaking to your wireless network or adding some affordable components.

This slideshow from PC Magazine lists the following ten ways to extend your Wi-Fi signal:

1. Change the channel: Use a free tool like inSSIDer to change to a less crowded channel.
2. Update router firmware: Go the router manufacturer's website and search for the firmware, then upload it through the router's interface.
3. Update adapter firmware: Network adapters on PCs and laptops also are subject to firmware updates.
4. Change position: Ideally, a Wi-Fi router should be in a central location.
5. Try DD-WRT: Adventurous types can try the open-source DD-WRT software to improve router performance, but doing so may invalidate your router's warranty.
6. Set up a second router as an access point or repeater: To do so, you need to connect the second router's LAN port to the primary router's LAN port.
7. Antennas: Some routers support an external antenna, which can often be upgraded.
8. Repeaters/Extenders: Most vendors offer devices that act as repeaters or wireless extenders. These may extend your signal, but they can be tricky to setup, can cause interference with the signal and can be expensive.
9. New Router/Adapters: Getting totally new routers and adapters can be expensive, but worth it if wireless connectivity is crucial to you.
10. Single Vendor Solution: Try limiting your network devices to one vendor (your router or adapter, antennas, repeaters and access points)

For more details, click here for the complete article.

Latest Developments in Mobile Payment Systems

We have reported previously on this blog about services which allow you to process credit cards using just your cellphone.

In the last year, this technology has progressed rapidly. Generally, these payment systems can be divided into two broad categories:

• Payment systems that utilize a mobile network to initiate or authorize a transaction.
• Contactless systems that use a mobile phone in lieu of a traditional credit card.

Services that allow you to process payments include Square, PayPal Mobile, and Intuit GoPayment as we mentioned in our original article, along with VeriFone’s PAYware Mobile.

Services that allow you to pay for goods using just your phone use Near Field Communication (NFC). The idea behind NFC is simple: Rather than swiping a credit card, simply wave your phone at a payment terminal. These systems are already being implemented: Last fall, Visa worked with the transit and port authorities in New York to install Visa payWave terminals at select New York City subway stations. And Apple and Starbucks currently accept mobile payments at their stores.

In addition to convenience, another advantage of modern mobile payment systems is environmental. Processing the payment electronically reduces the need to print a paper receipt. And because a single device can act as a credit card, a subway pass and possible even an event ticket, using a mobile device for these transactions eliminates the need for extra cards and saves money and resources.

Understandably, one of the main concerns with mobile payments is security. It’s important to remember, however, that the credit card terminals and systems that we currently use every day are often insecure, yet millions of users use them anyway. At this stage, nothing indicates that any aspect of mobile payments is inherently more insecure than any other system.

Click here to read an article on this sublect by Cristina Warren of Mashable.