25 August 2009
One of the issues we face in business by using digital systems for handling our data is keeping the data secure. This issue of security has increased further by computers being connected to internal networks and to the internet.
There is a range of ways that data might be lost or inadvertently exposed to the outside world and you may not have considered them all.
When considering this security most people will think primarily of shadowy, criminal hackers sneaking around the internet attempting to break in. However more businesses lose data as a result of hard drive failure or software bugs.
In many cases, data loss or leaks of data result from mistakes made in business processes rather than malicious entry to the system.
There is a complex web of legislation in Australia that governs what data companies must keep for their records and the security precautions they must take to ensure security of that data for their customers. However the Federal Privacy Act is exempt for businesses with a turnover of less than $3 million. Surely though smaller organisations should be just as keen from a public and customer relations point of view to take privacy seriously and be compliant with this act?
One of the publics greatest concerns is probably centred around the retention of their credit card details. Because data storage has become fast and cheap, many companies keep a lot more information than they used to. Many smaller companies use a payment gateway on the internet for credit card transactions (which is a similar equivalent to using an eftpos machine on the counter), as this avoids them ever holding this sensitive data on their own system.
Businesses need to consider carefully from the outset what information they collect from their customers and how they can secure the retention of it.
18 August 2009
Clients often tell me that their computer is starting to run slowly.
There are a range of causes, but one of the common things I find when I look at the machine is that there is anything up to hundreds of files and folders sitting on the desktop.
File management is a critical yet simple skill with any computer, but one of the most overlooked ones!
When a computer ‘boots up’, it has to load into RAM (memory used whilst you are doing things on the computer) everything stored on the desktop. So if you keep saving (or dumping) things there, you have less and less memory to use. If you have lots of RAM, then really having a few files there whilst you are working won’t make any real difference.
But even if you have plenty of RAM and you have hundreds of files there, not only do you have an incredible mess, your computer will become terribly slow.
If you use a MAC, another common problem is a large amount of files and folders in the user folder. This can cause real issues with the computer including corruptions of the user account.
Try to think of it this way – imagine if you had a big storage cupboard at work. Instead of building shelving and storage bays, you just left it bare and each time you got something you opened the door, threw the stuff inside and quickly shut the door again.
Then when you wanted something you rummaged through everything just piling things up all over the room.
How long would it take you to find what you wanted, and how often would you fail to find what you needed?
A simple filing system will solve a lot of problems in the long term as well as save time, which of course in business means saving money too!
11 August 2009
Even the simplest mobile phone can be used as an effective business aid.
The power of text messaging should not be underestimated!
6 August 2009
There are times when you wish to remove a page that google is displaying and returning when someone does a search.
Below is the basic information and links to google information on doing this.
Webpage Removal Tool
Google provides a tool for removal of web pages that are already showing up on searches.
You need to create a google account if you don’t already have one (it’s an excellent idea to have a google account as it gives you access to many services and is free).
Go to the webpage removal request tool
Select one of the 3 reasons for removal, fill in the details of the address for the page to remove and submit.
One problem that may occur is that after you remove the page it still shows on searches!
This is what google has to say about the reason:
After we delete the cached copy of a page, the page’s title and URL will continue to display for the same search queries until our robots revisit the site. Users will still be able to visit the live page. But because the relevant information has been removed from the live page, this page will not return as a result for searches on related keywords after our next crawl.
I haven’t been able to find out just how often a spider from google will visit your site, however from experience I can tell you that within days of putting pages up I have found them indexed and showing as a result in google.
More Google information on removing pages and sites
Robots.txt files
These files are used to tell google and other search engine spiders not to index a site or a page on a site.
How to create a robots.txt file
On this page you can find the actual code you need to put into a file, or you can use a tool google provides to create the file if you don’t feel you have the technical skill to create one yourself.
Adding a site to Google
You don’t need to do anything to add a site or page to Google as the robot spiders do trawl the net all the time, however you can choose to do so.
One last helpful link from Google on good design for search engines.
4 August 2009
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Mobile phone technology has become something most people can’t even imagine living without.
Nearly every teenager seems to have one constantly in their hands, and even people who shy away from computers tend to be adept at using their mobile. |
| “Smart phone” type mobiles are becoming increasingly indispensible. Smart phones are mobile phones with extra capabilities such as email, calendars, keyboards or touch screens, cameras, media and office software.
Imagine you own a business that provides an on-site service and you have a team of service agents who are out on the road all day. |
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Once that service technician left the office, you had no idea where they were and when they would return, so taking urgent calls from clients meant you had to just say you would call them back or book them for some day in the future.
Some interesting case studies show how such a business can use smart phones to provide a combination of GPS (know where the service people are), calendars (organise the day’s work), email and messaging (progress reports), and invoicing and credit card payments. |
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Two big issues every business faces concerns cash flow and effective time management.
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| Smart phones can assist relieving pressure on both issues.
If an urgent call comes in from someone with a job right near where a technician is located by GPS, or a technician completes their calls earlier than anticipated, they can be directed straight to the new call, increasing efficiency. |
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The technician produces an invoice on the spot and receives payment. The invoicing data is then directly transferred to the base accounting system when the technician arrives at the office at the end of the day, without the need to sit and enter the data again.
How can technology increase your time efficiency and cash flow? |
| Blackberry
CNet review of smartphones
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Apple’s iPhone
Telstra One Experience
You compare mobiles
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1 August 2009
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