Being in the IT service business means that we will inevitably be asked to fix home computers. As a courtesy to our clients, family and friends we try our best to be helpfully and help out as much as we can.  We do a lot of proactive maintenance to the systems that we manage to make sure they run well. So here is a list of things you can do to keep your personal computers run smoothly.

1) Firstly you need a modern operating system. We recommend Windows 7, if your computer is running Vista you really need to consider getting a new computer or at a minimum upgrade to Windows 7.

2) Anti-virus is extremely important good news is Microsoft has a great FREE option called Microsoft Security Essentials. Download and install from here

3) Windows updates – Microsoft releases update also known as patches for Windows and Office at least one a month. You can setup windows to automatically download and install these updates as well as reboot the computer. Go here to learn more about how to configure these settings.

4) Program Updates – As you install other programs like Adobo Reader, Flash and Firefox you will notice that these programs need updates as well. You can let these programs prompt you for update but this becomes rather annoying and many people tend to ignore the prompt or just turn them off.  This is why we love Ninite they have just released Ninite Updater for $9.99 per year this little application will keep an eye on these pesky application updates and let you update them in one shot.

5) Backup, this is something that everyone knows they need to do but it never gets done. The good news is for a home computer there are many cost effective options. We like Backblaze simple and easy to use offsite backup. Set it up now and you can sleep better knowing all your pictures are safe.

We hope you find these tips helpful let us know what you think.

Which one is right for your organization? There are a number of pros and cons to consider when answering this question.

It all depends on what options your organization is looking for in a mobile device. As an entertainment device, the iPhone is the clear winner. Even though its browser does not support Flash, it offers a great Web browsing experience, a huge app store, and the iTunes store offers all the movies and music you could want.

But for most of us, entertainment is not business. Communication is what counts–looking up contacts, scheduling appointments and sending emails. Generally the iPhone and Android devices have a brighter screen and they do a better job of displaying HTML-formatted emails. The Blackberry and some Android devices are outfitted with a QWERTY keyboard with actual keys, which many users feel is important for sending texts and writing emails fast.

Some organizations appreciate the fact that the iPhone and Android does not require a dedicated server as Blackberry does.

But is that really a good thing?

By requiring a dedicated server and related system maintenance, the Blackberry server also offers an unprecedented amount of control over the device and its usage. For example, all Blackberry Internet traffic can be routed back through your company’s network and protected by your company’s firewall.

However, the iPhone and Android with Active Sync allows basic control over device usage as well as network protection of its own, which usually suffices for most organizations.

Why is device control so important?

It’s your company’s data that is stored on these devices, and the loss of a device can put your confidential and client-related information into the wrong hands. A number of state laws now hold companies legally responsible for protecting the privacy and personal information of state residents, e.g. Massachusetts 201CMR17.

So which solution is right for your business?

Helix Systems’ experienced staff of IT professionals has the knowledge and expertise to help you make an informed decision. Give us a call and let us show you how we can help.

I have met with many business owners over the past few months that are unsatisfied with their current IT support provider. When asked why, we hear two complaints – response time and high cost. After being pressed about the cost, 9 out of 10 times, we learn they are paying their vendor hourly.

Here we explain why hourly IT support does not work! Why the business owner will always be short-changed. Generally speaking this scenario is called “Break-Fix”. Your IT support vendor is waiting for the call that something is ‘broken” and they are expected to “fix” it. In other words, they make money when something is not working. The more time they spend fixing the issue the more money they make and the more money you spend! Meanwhile not only are you paying for their time, your employees are sitting around waiting for the email server to work.

The key to a successful relationship with an IT vendor it making sure your goals are their goals, which is to get your technology to work all the time. The point is to pay for results not time! This is exactly what a flat monthly rate does, your vendor will now do everything in their power to proactively monitor and maintain your network. The results are less downtime for your business and a predictable steady cost, which is usually less then what you spent on the hourly guy.

STOP paying hourly and call us.

Okay, that doesn’t hold true with everything. But one thing it most certainly holds true with is monitors. For many years we have used dual monitors in our office and our homes. We often recommend it to our clients. At first when we would try to convince business owners to invest in dual monitors for themselves and their employees they were hesitant. After giving them a trial week with the dual monitors, we couldn’t get any back.

As recently as this weekend my wife, not a techie by any means, was using the dual monitors in our home to do some work and within two hours she was emailing her boss as a “must have” for the office. Just imagine how nice it would be to compare spreadsheets with two full screens. Imagine quoting an article while having it open on the screen to your left and typing on the screen to your right.

Monitors today range from $100 to $300, making dual monitors a minor investment (especially considering the years a monitor lasts). The increased productivity you or your employees will receive from the addition of another monitor more than justifies the cost. There have been many studies done that indicate dual monitors increase productivity from anywhere from 9 and 50 percent.

Bill Gates uses three monitors while he works and look how well that turned out for him…

I definitely understand the manta “if it ain’t broke” and in some instances you shouldn’t fix it. Although with regard to technology I think the phrase “if you don’t move forward, your falling behind” is more applicable.

While Windows XP probably works well on your machine, wait until you see it running Windows 7. It’s hard to believe that Windows XP is over ten years old. A lot has changed in technology and how small businesses use technology over the past ten years. The beauty of Windows 7 is that it breathes life into your machine. No new hardware is required and it can revive machines that are even a few years old; faster boot up time, quicker responsiveness and an unparalleled search are just some of the new features.

For $150 per machine you can upgrade from XP or Vista to the latest and greatest from Microsoft. However, any custom business applications should be tested by your IT provider on Windows 7 before any upgrades are rolled out. Most Microsoft business applications (ex: Office) will work fine and the transition will be smooth. For more information or for any questions, please contact us.

Lately, we have been getting many questions from business owners about Hosted Exchange versus In-House Exchange. As an IT professional, who has been in the business longer than I’d care to admit, this was very exciting news! Not so long ago we had to explain the benefits of Exchange to our customers and now they are bringing it up in conversation, asking for specific solutions. This definitely makes a more interesting conversation. Many of the clients that we have been talking with seem to like the Host Exchange concept and think it’s the way to go mainly due to the fact that is “cheaper” then building and maintaining an in- house Exchange environment. But the truth is it’s not always that simple; there a two factors in determining which exchange solution is right for you: How many users? What is your upfront and long term budget?

We will start by analyzing two companies, Company A and Company B. Company A has three employees, while Company B has twenty five employees. For comparison purposes, all employees in both companies have blackberries (because, let’s face it who doesn’t nowadays?) and require 5GB mailboxes per employee (standard). Now let’s take our calculators and do some math.

Company A

Hosted: The industry standard per mailbox is generally around $10. To be even more specific, Intermedia (Our favorite Hosted Exchange provider) charges $10.30 per mailbox and $32.85 for three mailboxes. Then add in a blackberry per employee at $9.95 a pop, for a monthly total of $29.85 for all the employees. So our monthly total for 3 users with blackberry support is $62.70 that adds up to $752.40 annually.

In-House: Considering the cost, generally, there is really no good reason for a 3 man shop to have an in-house Exchange server. You will be wise to stick with hosted Exchange.

Moving right along….

Company B

Hosted: Intermedia has a plan for 25 users at $270 per month add in Blackberry’s for $248 per month for a total of $518.75 per month. That comes out to $6225 a year.

In-House: Presumably if you’re a 25 person shop, you already have a server. Therefore to consider the true cost of bringing Exchange in-house, we need to look at the difference of software with Exchange versus software without Exchange. Lucky for us, Microsoft has a product suited perfectly for small companies, perfectly named Small Business Server (“SBS”). The cost to buy SBS and the appropriate Exchange licenses is $4,300 (includes Exchange and Blackberry licenses for 25 users). The same set up with a standard server (not SBS and no Exchange) is $1,200. The difference between the two setups is $3,100, approximately six months of hosted exchange.

It’s important to consider set-up and maintenance for Exchange. If you’re a 25 person shop, hopefully you have someone maintaining your IT infrastructure. The cost to implement SBS with Exchange should be a flat rate negotiated with all your other needs. Generally any IT solutions provider worth their salt should be able to maintain this SBS set up for around $350 a month (includes backup and spam filter for all users).

In conclusion, in-house Exchange is cost effective (if set up and maintained properly) and can give you granular functionality that you may not have in a hosted Exchange environment. Obviously we did two extremes in the examples above and there is a lot of middle ground. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us for a free evaluation of your needs.