Pictures from our Business Productivity Lunch & Learn
 

April has been an interesting month in the world of technology. Perhaps the most buzz in the technology world has been surrounding Apple’s iPad. I celebrated my birthday this week and, to my surprise, my wife bought an iPad for me! How cool is that?! I’m having a fun time playing with it, even though I’m still not sure why I need it or how to work it, but I’ll keep you posted.

Another interesting event in IT has been the recent trend of smaller companies moving to Virtualization technology. Virtualization used to only be cost effective for the big guys, but we’ve seen many of our small and mid-size customers save substantial amounts of money by combining Virtualization services with an All In agreement. Give me a call to see if we can do the same for you.

We had a full house for our Business Productivity Lunch and Learn this month. We focused on Microsoft Online Services and how they make sense for many businesses right now. At this Lunch and Learn, we raffled off a brand new Samsung Blu-ray Player and Charlie Dunlap from Front Line Sales was the lucky winner! Check out the sidebar for a few pictures of the event.

Our Facebook, Twitter, and Blog went live this month! In the future, we will be holding special promotions exclusively for our fans and followers, so check them out and tell us what you think! Click on the icons below and they will lead you to our new social networking sites.

Marty

New ways to connect with us on the web!

You've no doubt heard a lot about cloud computing (or the cloud). What you may not have learned is how this misty concept can help with the real problems of operating your business, especially in hard times.

In short, cloud computing offers attractive options for small and midsize businesses that need critical IT upgrades, but may lack the cash for a large capital investment.

Through the cloud, you can add new, vital applications or you can supplement the capacity of an existing infrastructure. Because cloud services are delivered via the Internet (often the Web) you only pay for the features and functionality you use and don't pay for extra hardware, software, staff and maintenance. As a result, your business can grow its IT capabilities, often at a lower cost than doing everything itself. And you can pull the cost from your operating budget rather than your capital budget.

So what is cloud computing exactly, and why is it significant to small and midsize businesses?

Understanding the Cloud
The cloud can deliver software-as-a-service (SaaS) or supplemental infrastructure capacity, such as data storage space or processing power, all on-demand via the Internet, usually the Web. Cloud services don't require that you purchase dedicated hardware and software or manage those particular applications. You simply pay for the functionality, sometimes as a flat monthly fee and sometimes by metered use.

For example, a small greeting card company might sign up for a cloud order-fulfillment system. The application would be hosted and managed by the provider, and it would be accessible to users through a Web browser. The company could sign up for the service instantly, without having to undergo a complicated implementation to house the application on its own servers.

Salespeople across the country could then access the fulfillment system from any Internet connection, no need to go through their employer's network or install software on their own computers. Multiple users can be quickly added or removed, as well.

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Quote of the Month
 

Just for Laughs
 

Like almost everyone who uses e-mail,
I receive a ton of spam every day. Much
of it offers to help me get out of debt or
get rich quick. It would be funny if it
weren't so exciting.

Bill Gates

Accent would like to welcome and introduce:

Aaron Becar
Help Desk Engineer