http://itleaders.com.au/ Sat, 04 Feb 2012 23:12:53 IT Leaders Pty Ltd and Leading Cloud and StreamLeader Articles http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1274 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1274 Last Revision 1/2/2011 Backups are insurance Backups are the second most important thing you can do with your valuable data. second only to creating it in the first place! This article will either give you confidence in your current backup system, or else a degree of certainty on why it needs urgent attention, and how to attack it. A backup system is every bit as essential as having the correct business... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1272 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1272 It can be very challenging for business owners and managers to understand an appropriate annual budget for technology. Often there is no budget set, or the budget tends to be based only on the previous year’s expenditure. This tends to result in SMEs having ongoing trends of over or under spending on technology, and on urgent decisions forced by downtime occurrences (eg server or PC failures). Ultimately you want IT to... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=3035 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=3035 Providing effective technology support to SME business clients is no easy task. We need to not only provide fast and accurate repairs to problems, but we also often need to be able to explain these issues simply to the clients. Often all the client knows is that their computer is broken for the third time, it's very frustrating, and its holding up their work. Many clients expect a computer to work like a TV. They want to... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5781 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5781 Some purchases can actually help you save time and money. Such is the case with a specialised computer and software solution called a server. A server makes file sharing easier, security tighter and backups easier. It is an investment that pays off well over time. But before you buy your server, consider these five points. In 2010 these five point have become SIX points due to the prevalence and suitability of Cloud Computing... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=2142 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=2142 Disc Rot What is Disc Rot and Why Should I Care? Disc rot is something that gives the lie to the widely-held belief that storage discs such CDRs (Compact Disc-Recordable) and CDRWs (Compact Disk-Rewritable) are a highly reliable medium for backing up data - that they will, in fact, last for 100 years. The horrible fact is that research shows some discs will start to fail in as little as two years, EVEN when stored in ideal... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=9218 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=9218 What is Cloud Computing? (...in plain English!) Cloud computing is just the provision of computing resources over the Internet. In plain English, this means that an IT provider sets up servers, applications and storage in their data centre, and customers make use of these facilities over the internet, without needing to have any servers themselves, nor any knowledge of how to maintain that infrastructure. What is a Virtual... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=7804 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=7804  If you’re like me, you are fed up with trying to remember passwords. And you’ve probably noticed that its getting even harder because a lot of websites and business databases are insisting that you use complex passwords of over 7 characters, and must include some numbers and capitals, etc etc. It is important for security that you don’t use overly simple passwords and also that the same password... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5956 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5956 Here's a scary revelation: 44% of Australian SME Businesses don't have faith in their backups. In this recent article published on Smart Company, it is revealed that SME businesses really don't understand their backup systems or know that their backup system is inadequate. Planning a good backup system should be done carefully, with your unique business needs in mind.  Here are some basic backup... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5955 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5955  This article was produced in conjunction with our expert power consultants, QLD Power Protection. What is a UPS? Uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) are power conditioning appliances that regulate the voltage and purity of power flowing to your attached office equipment.  UPSs have built-in batteries to kalso eep your equipment running when the mains power fails. There are different types of UPS and the... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=4550 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=4550 Email marketing may well be a hugely effective form of online marketing, but to avoid huge penalties under spam legislation, your recipients have to agree to receive your material. This is why email marketing is fantastic at building repeat business among established customers, rather than acquiring new ones. But that is not a negative. Far from it. It means you are communicating your offers and marketing message to the people who have... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5039 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=5039 What is Phishing? Phishing (derived from "fishing") is an electronic attempt to obtain information of value from people fraudulently.  It often takes the form of emails that appear to be from legitimate sources (For example your bank, ebay, Google Adwords) and attempt to trick the receiver into visiting a website and entering some personal information such as lging information, credit mard numbers... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=3987 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=3987 IT Leaders recently conducted an SME technology survey aimed at enterprise managers and owners. Here are some key findings you might be interested in: The Top 3 concerns with an IT provider were: 1. fast resolution to issues, 2. consistency of service, 3. You having to spend as little management time as possible on following up IT issues. The Top 3 areas of IT frustration: 1.Staff Complaints about slow or non-functional technology 2.... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=3498 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=3498 Websites work internationally 24/7 to advertise a business and its capabilities and successes, whereas traditional marketing works for specific periods of time and geography only. This is a great reason to make your website the centre of ALL of your marketing campaigns. If you ensure that all other marketing efforts point back to the website in addition to whatever else they are trying to achieve, then the value of every other piece of... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=2117 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=2117 Spyware is burning your money - be AWARE.   Spyware - A Plague on YOUR Computer First written and published for National Accountant Magazine in June 2005. Updated in June 2007. Viruses are given plenty of media attention, and most people know the importance of AntiVirus software. Although Spyware is not as publicised, IT Leaders estimates from our onsite work, that Spyware is costing small businesses far more... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1273 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1273 Cut price and direct computer retailers have made a huge impact on the IT industry, with the continual downward trend in hardware pricing proving fantastic for consumers and businesses alike.However, problems arise when the service side of IT is stripped away from the bare mechanics of the hardware and software. When computer  equipment is sold like kitchen appliances, small businesses buy the wrong... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1609 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1609 Free RSS Feeds Now Available You can have these and all the latest business technology articles published automatically and FREE on your website using RSS feeds. All you have to do is go to the IT Leaders website, scroll to the bottom and click on the RSS / XML feeds button. http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1438 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1438 It used to be easy to tell which PC and Server processors (CPUs) were faster; the higher the clock speed the faster the processor (eg: 2GHz versus 3GHz). But with clock speeds basically at their maximum due to heat issues, processor manufacturers turned to other means to get faster results, like adding multiple CPU cores and tweaking processing methods. To the business buyer, this has lead to significant confusion as to which processor... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1439 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1439 In the never-ending race for faster processing ability, Intel has come up with a lot of buzz words to explain it's newest technology.  Recently it has become quite confusing so I have summarised several commonly used terms in this article.  This article may not read easily to the lay person but will be of use to those who wish to cut through a salesman's fluff and see the real value of these... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1316 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1316 Every man and his dog seems to be writing websites these days. This can make it very confusing for business managers to select the right solution for their business. Some key points follow. What do you want to ACHIEVE?   Many business people purchase the wrong website for their business simply because they have no clear understanding of what they want to get out of having the website. With the advances in technology... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1276 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1276 Spam is another name for unsolicited email, and unfortunately it's a part of online life. Despite new strict laws in various countries (including Australia), there are still massive amounts of Spam clogging up email systems daily.  This article will help you understand why Spam exists, and how to minimise its impact on you or your business.     Here are some... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1275 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1275 When Good Data Goes Bad:   what to do with a dead drive Picture this:  you are 95% complete on a stocktake for your large convenience store.   Your computer has been getting slower over the last week, and occasionally rebooting itself. You're also vaguely aware that it sounds a bit different, and think that it might need a service, or grease and oil change...or something.  Suddenly... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1227 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=1227 Do you Need AntiVirus Software? There are approximately 500 new viruses and virus variants EVERY MONTH.   Firstly, lets confirm that without a doubt you DO need antivirus software for any computers that have Internet connectivity.   The lost productivity for most businesses from one virus is far higher than the cost of the software.     How to Protect Your Business. Firstly,... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=15029 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=15029   What should be included with regular IT maintenance?   Maintenance is important to keep your computer systems running well. As this article on IT budgeting describes, a lot of productivity can be lost (and money wasted) with poorly functioning IT systems - well beyond the cost of the maintenance. Most IT firms offer some kind of computer maintenance or server maintenance service, but it might surprise... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=14657 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=14657 Most IT firms offer some kind of "maintenance" service, but it might surprise you to know that there is no standard as to what a maintenance regime consists of. It is therefore always wise to ask what is done during their maintenance schedule. The following should always be checked / fixed in a maintenance schedule . They may not need to be done every single month, but they should be checked. Fragmentation... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=14293 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=14293 Dear clients,   Please be aware that there is a phishing attack happening on Skype currently. This is similar in nature to the many emails you have seen that try to get you to click on links that go to malicious websites. What makes this unique is that it is not via email, it is a recorded message that you receive from a caller you do not recognise on Skype.  The message that plays to you tells you: ... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=12921 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=12921 What is Virtualisation and how can it help business owners? Server Virtualisation has gotten a lot of press over the past few years, but like most new technologies, this 'IT gibberish' takes some translation for business owners to see the benefits. Traditionally a business will run a different server for every one or two server roles. For example, a typical situation for a smaller SME would be to have one... http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=7805 http://itleaders.com.au/?process=views/article.php&articleId=7805  May 21, 2009 - 2:33PM Australian scientists have unveiled new DVD technology that stores data in five dimensions, making it possible to pack more than 2000 movies onto a single disc. A team of researchers at the Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, have used nanotechnology to boost the storage potential nearly 10,000-fold compared to standard DVDs, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal...