How To Purchase Technology Wisely

One of the frustrating aspects of technology for small business owners is the rate at which it evolves. After having purchased a new server, they soon may find that the software they purchase shortly after requires more horse power than the server can deliver. It may be as simple as more memory or more involved like the latest operating system. The key to purchasing hardware and software is knowing what your future plans are for your technology. It is not a decision to make in the now but with an eye squarely focused on the future.

There are many things to consider when ordering a server. The standard requirement for minimum memory of a server depends on many things, the type of server, the type of role it will server, the amount of applications it will run and the number of people accessing what on the server. That also applies to the drives, not only how large, but how many, how fast and configured to operate in which manner for the sake of redundancy and disaster recovery. Then the question becomes, should the technology support 64bit technology, should the operating system be 34bit or 64bit? This question can be answered once it questions of server role and use is determined. But since technology only moves forward, 64bit should be seriously considered.

End of story, picking a server is not as easy as picking a car. The roads have remained essentially the same since Roman times; technology has evolved since you read the first sentence here. The best a small business owner can do is take stock of what are the most important roles technology has on their business now and what new roles would they like to see it take on in the future. The goal should always be to use technology to facilitate and expedite the delivery of the core business. A small business owner’s best bet is to make a wish list and go over it with a technology consultant that can guide them towards their goal of making a sound technology investment.

Are the systems you have in place now keeping up with your company needs and usage? Did they last as long as you thought, longer or less? What is the best and worst part of buying new hardware for you?

What Is An Email Blacklist And How Not To Appear On One

No one ever wants to be on a blacklist. Somehow the imagery of someone possessing a list of “persona non gratas” and your name being on it, gives everyone the shivers. With a universe as large as the Internet, there are bound to be a number of blacklists. Some blacklists are more limiting than others, but none more than the dreaded email blacklist.

When email began to take over as the most prevalent method of communication, some enterprising individuals took it upon themselves to cease the opportunities and bury as many people as they could with email hawking their replica watches, questionable medications, and social opportunities for the loneliest of men who knew no better. After a bit of time, there was a populace backlash. They gave the nuisance email a name, spam, and the guilty purveyors of such a thing a place on the Internet, the blacklist. A universal blacklist was created of the IP addresses of the servers from which the email were being sent. Computers around the world were now alerted to ignore and reject any email from them. Since then, there are a set of rules to play by when doing mass emailings so that one does not unintentionally become blacklisted. Of course, the easiest way to avoid such a fate is to use an outside service for any and all email campaigns. The companies that run these services maintain a strict watch on their traffic and client usage and guarantee that your email campaigns will deliver successfully without hitting any blacklist trip wires.

End of story, being on almost any kind of blacklist is not a good thing. Using an email campaign service is a good way to pursue that type of marketing strategy without putting you at risk for disruption of all your other email communications. Most email campaign services also have a way to manage your email lists, campaign types, send out polls and much more. The added services and features and ease of use are always a bonus to what you would be able to accomplish without the campaign service.

Which email campaign service do you use? Do you use it to prospect, client newsletters, both or some other use? What feature would you like to see added to what you are using now?

An Explanation Of “Clouds” And What It Could Mean For Your Business

The term “cloud” seems to be thrown about quite a bit, and can be a bit confusing to those that were not looking for a weather report. The simplest, and most pertinent, explanation of “cloud” in terms of technology is merely that there is an outside component to the internal network. For example, if your email server is located and being maintained, or hosted, at an outside location, then that server is in the “cloud.”

The nomenclature actually began with a non-descript Visio graphical representation of the Internet. With no clear visual choice for the representation of “The Internet” a cloud was chosen, hence forth we refer to the “cloud” to refer to services and technologies we connect to on the internet. Spam filtering is one of those services that can be done in the “cloud”. The advantage here is that the technology is maintained by those that are dedicated to just that. With other spam solutions, it is usually a local application that must be managed and maintained by the user for individual use. With “cloud” spam filtering, the filters can be maintained and applied to a whole organization, uniformly. Additionally, filters can be put in place for outgoing email, to prevent the risk of any email activity that would result on being put on the dreaded email blacklist, making all other email impossible to send as before.

End of story, a “cloud” is only intimidating if it is grey and hanging over your day. Otherwise, it can be a great way to add services and technologies to your computing environment without large investments in time, hardware, software, or even technical skill. Spam filtering, being one of those services that are available in the “cloud” among the many others, can be a valuable addition to companies that find a universal spam solution would work best for them, or want to reduce the risk of the being blacklisted.

What, if any, cloud applications or services have you considered for your business? Did you go with it or decide against it? Was it the right decision for you?