May 2010
   In this issue:
 
Note from the President
Windows XP and Windows 2000 Server Reaching End-of-Life Support
IT Business Risk Management
May Tech Tip
Employee Spotlight

 

May Tech Tip:

PC Keyboard Shortcuts You Need to Know
There are certain shortcuts I use all day, every day. Whether you're working with photos and music, or within documents or spreadsheets, these tips will help you be a speed demon.

  • Copy a selected item: Ctrl+C
  • Cut a selected item: Ctrl+X
  • Paste a selected item: Ctrl+V
  • Undo an action: Ctrl+Z
  • Select everything: Ctrl+A
  • Print: Ctrl+P


 

Note from the President

Hello All!

This is a BIG month.  A few HUGE events happened in May.

First, my daughter Courtney graduated from college this month. Congratulations Courtney! She graduated from California State University, Long Beach with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and a minor in Fashion Merchandising. This great on so many levels - She is my last college tuition! Yippee!  Not only is she done with college....so am I.  As well, she will begin working in our marketing department full time.  We are very excited about putting her new degree to work.

The second item has to do with our economic times. I know we are not out of the economic woods yet, but we definitely see an uptick. The last two months tell us that you business owners are ready to move forward with some of your business plans. We see openings of new offices, expansion of staff, replacement of older equipment, and projects being started. I hope this is a trend and not just a blip.

Lastly, take a look at the articles below.  Microsoft has made some VERY big announcements regarding the discontinuation of support for Windows 2000 Server and Windows XP.

I hope the next 30 days treat you and your business well.

Marty
Windows XP and Windows 2000 Server Reaching End-of-Life Support

If you’re still using Windows XP or Windows 2000 Server, please be aware that they will reach end of support on July 13, 2010. If you experience a problem, issue or outage on one of these products Microsoft may not be able to help you resolve your issues until you have upgraded to a supported level of product. Accent Computer Solutions stands ready to help you with transitions and upgrades. Call us today to find out how to be certain your network and desktops stay at the ready to support your business.

IT Business Risk Management
Don't stop fortifying against risk. Four ways to mitigate risk in a touch economy

riskEvery business deals with risk. But medium-sized businesses, with smaller IT staff and tighter operating budgets are often more exposed to risk than larger companies. This reality is never more evident than in a down economy: When the repercussions of a business disruption are as grave as they are, how do you insulate your business from risk?

"For mid-sized businesses, the financial impact of business disruptions is tremendous," said Anil Miglani, senior vice president, AMI-Partners. "We estimate that through security breaches and data loss alone, medium-sized businesses worldwide lost approximately US$4.7 billion in 2008."

According to strategy consulting firm AMI-Partners, in 2008 medium-sized businesses worldwide lost approximately US$4.7 billion due to security breaches and loss of data.

However, taking the right precautions with your IT infrastructure can help you steer clear of danger. Here are four steps you can take to mitigate risks to your revenue, your reputation, and your investment – all the things that keep you awake at night as you wait for this storm to pass.

1. Reduce the probability of downtime
Your order system goes down, leaving your e-commerce customers unable to place orders. In addition to lost revenue, this downtime can derail employees, leading to productivity loss. While you're focused on fixing the problem, your competition has a chance to poach your customers. Worst of all, failing to detect and fix the problem means it may happen again.

High availability of critical systems is the medium-sized business's highest IT priority, and it's attainable with a few key changes:

  • Invest in reliable servers. Look for servers that have been extensively tested and certified to run on the latest operating systems. Couple that with a comprehensive set of server management tools.
  • Virtualize. Virtualization can improve application availability, reduce costs and simplify IT management.
  • Build redundancy into your network. Look for routers and switches with virtual router redundancy protocol (VRRP) to eliminate single points of failure.

    • Read More

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Quote of the Month
 

Just for Laughs
 

You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.

Ralph Waldo Emerson


 



 

Accent would like to welcome and introduce:

Brian Juarez II
 Technology Consultant

"Go over, go under, go around, or go through. But never give up" is the maxim that Brian lives by. Through the support of his wife he graduated from CSU Fullerton, was a member of the Honors Marketing Club, and graduated with a BA Degree in Business Administration, Marketing. As an Educational Consultant for a supplementary literacy publisher, he increased sales in his territory by 400% his first year. He enjoys playing racquetball and walking on the beach.


Montie Whisner
 Technology Consultant

Montie graduated in 2003 with a degree in Network Communications Management from DeVry University. He has spent the last eight years as Solutions Consultant specializing in Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity, Virtualization, Document and Content Management. Prior to his work at Accent, he worked as Regional Solutions Consultant for IKON Office Solutions, managing complex document management and workflow automation projects. He enjoys playing sports (most notably Tennis, Golf and Softball). He has three children (one grown) who keep him very busy personally, and he is the very proud father to a 19 year old Navy Corpsman.

Accent Computer Solutions, Inc.
8438 Red Oak Street * Rancho Cucamonga, CA  91730  *  800-481-4369  *  www.teamaccent.com