I don't use Group Policy a lot here. I am only one admin in a much larger group, but I do need to know a bit about Group Policy for the MCSE tests. That is why, when I got an email from Windows IT Pro that they were hosting a web seminar on "How To Implement an Effective Change Management Strategy for Group Policy" I signed up.
The web seminar was ok, and I always enjoy hearing and seeing presentations instead of having to read yet another article or book. I think though, that the best thing I got out of the seminar was a link to one of the speakers websites, which I had not heard of before.
Jeremy Moskowitz has written a book or two on Group Policy, and comes recommended by another favorite Microsoft author of mine, Mark Minasi. He has a decent website called GPanswers.com with a newsletter which I just signed up for.
If Group Policy is something that you use and need help with, I recommend Jeremy's site as a good starting place, that is, of course, once you have finished reading all you can on Microsoft's site.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Wireless Networking Standards
I have to setup a wireless router here and wanted to do some reading while I wait for my items to arrive.
I found a decent beginners article on the TigerDirect Site that has some pretty good information, includging a nice breakdown of the differences between the four standard protocols; 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11n.
802.11a - Bandwidth up to 54 Mbps
Due to a higher frequency range, this standard may not have as much distance as other options. Was created about the same time as 802.11b
802.11b - Bandwidth up to 11 Mbps
Uses the 2.4GHz radio signal, which is common for other devices such as microwaves and wireless phones, so it may have trouble with interference from other devices.
802.11g - Bandwidth up to 54 Mbps
Uses the 2.4GHz frequency, but supports more users and has a greater signal strength.
802.11n - Bandwidth up to 300 Mbps
Uses the 2.4GHz frequency, and supports more users than 802.11g and has the best signal strength of the 4 options.
It is also important to note that 802.11g and 802.11n are backward compatible with 802.11b.
I found a decent beginners article on the TigerDirect Site that has some pretty good information, includging a nice breakdown of the differences between the four standard protocols; 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11n.
802.11a - Bandwidth up to 54 Mbps
Due to a higher frequency range, this standard may not have as much distance as other options. Was created about the same time as 802.11b
802.11b - Bandwidth up to 11 Mbps
Uses the 2.4GHz radio signal, which is common for other devices such as microwaves and wireless phones, so it may have trouble with interference from other devices.
802.11g - Bandwidth up to 54 Mbps
Uses the 2.4GHz frequency, but supports more users and has a greater signal strength.
802.11n - Bandwidth up to 300 Mbps
Uses the 2.4GHz frequency, and supports more users than 802.11g and has the best signal strength of the 4 options.
It is also important to note that 802.11g and 802.11n are backward compatible with 802.11b.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
How to Recycle Old Computer Parts
Each company I have worked for has had the same problem with inventory, what to do with old electronic equipment when you no longer need it. I have been allowed to take home many old computers and parts, but there is usually still a surplus even after the scavengers have picked away at the piles. So what is an overcrowded tech to do with all the leftovers?
I was recently contacted by an organization that will take just about anything, and try to refurbish it for schools. Refurbish? Recycle? That sounds great, but I was guessing that it would take a lot of work or lots of telephone calls or be a hassle somehow, right? No! This company is easy to use, easy to contact, and a pleasure to work with. We even got a note about a month after our first donation telling us where our old parts had gone and what they were doing now.
If you are in the Chicago area you too can use PCS for Schools. If not, check out their website for other locations and companies like them in other cities.
I was recently contacted by an organization that will take just about anything, and try to refurbish it for schools. Refurbish? Recycle? That sounds great, but I was guessing that it would take a lot of work or lots of telephone calls or be a hassle somehow, right? No! This company is easy to use, easy to contact, and a pleasure to work with. We even got a note about a month after our first donation telling us where our old parts had gone and what they were doing now.
If you are in the Chicago area you too can use PCS for Schools. If not, check out their website for other locations and companies like them in other cities.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Blackberry Outage - AGAIN
It seems yesterday was another tough day for RIM, and a tough day for those of us who support these horrible little devices as well. As many of you must know by now, yesterday at roughly 3:30 pm most Blackberry customers were without service for several hours.
Now, I don't know about you, but this meant many calls from upset customers for me. And as a tech, there is nothing more frustrating than not being able to help folks who rely on you. This is the second time in about 10 months when I have been scrambling for answers to the question "why did my Blackberry stop delivering e-mail?"
I was already thinking of encouraging our users off the Blackberry, now I expect I will be a bit more animated about it. There are too many other devices out there now that do a much better job, have more features, and are just cooler technology. The iPhone comes to mind, but there are plenty of other gadgets out there that are better than the Blackberry, and seem to have less problems at this point.
For a really good review of some of the top Smartphones check this site out.
Now, I don't know about you, but this meant many calls from upset customers for me. And as a tech, there is nothing more frustrating than not being able to help folks who rely on you. This is the second time in about 10 months when I have been scrambling for answers to the question "why did my Blackberry stop delivering e-mail?"
I was already thinking of encouraging our users off the Blackberry, now I expect I will be a bit more animated about it. There are too many other devices out there now that do a much better job, have more features, and are just cooler technology. The iPhone comes to mind, but there are plenty of other gadgets out there that are better than the Blackberry, and seem to have less problems at this point.
For a really good review of some of the top Smartphones check this site out.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Still Studying . . .
Well, still studying for the 70-290 test and getting more and more frustrated. I am now reading my second book, it is a Syngress Book
and I am absolutely amazed at how much more information is in this book than is in the Microsoft Press book.
I guess reading multiple books though is the norm, based on the feedback that I see on Amazon's site for this book and others. Since I am fairly new to Windows Server 2003 I guess it only makes sense that I will have to read multiple books.
If anyone has any books that they recommend please let me know.
and I am absolutely amazed at how much more information is in this book than is in the Microsoft Press book.I guess reading multiple books though is the norm, based on the feedback that I see on Amazon's site for this book and others. Since I am fairly new to Windows Server 2003 I guess it only makes sense that I will have to read multiple books.
If anyone has any books that they recommend please let me know.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Deleting an Exchange Mailbox
I was asked today to delete the mailbox for a user who has recently left the company. Having never deleted a mailbox before, I thought it best to at least read up on it first before jumping right in and hitting the delete key.
A quick search brought me to a site I have used in the past to help with Exchange questions that I have had. Armed with instructions and pictures I was able to quickly delete the users mailbox.
We often have to change passwords around here, so I am very familiar with the ADUC (Active Directory Users and Computers) MMC, so that is how I accessed the Exchange delete tool. Please note that what follows is a very quick fly-by for my own record keeping. If you are going to delete anything from your Exchange environment, please do your homework. Read books, check out Microsoft's Exchange Support Pages, and by all means, talk to someone else who has been doing Exchange Administration for a while.
What I did after finding my user in the OU was to right click on the username, from that menu I chose "Exchange Tasks", from the pop-up menu choose Delete Mailbox and follow the prompts. It was that simple.
And, just in case you do this all by mistake, there are instructions on the post above as well as additional links for recovering deleted mailboxes.
A quick search brought me to a site I have used in the past to help with Exchange questions that I have had. Armed with instructions and pictures I was able to quickly delete the users mailbox.
We often have to change passwords around here, so I am very familiar with the ADUC (Active Directory Users and Computers) MMC, so that is how I accessed the Exchange delete tool. Please note that what follows is a very quick fly-by for my own record keeping. If you are going to delete anything from your Exchange environment, please do your homework. Read books
, check out Microsoft's Exchange Support Pages, and by all means, talk to someone else who has been doing Exchange Administration for a while.What I did after finding my user in the OU was to right click on the username, from that menu I chose "Exchange Tasks", from the pop-up menu choose Delete Mailbox and follow the prompts. It was that simple.
And, just in case you do this all by mistake, there are instructions on the post above as well as additional links for recovering deleted mailboxes.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Burn an Autorun CD
Most people probably know how to create an autostart CD, but just in case someone doesn't know, or just in case I need to do this away from my work PC, I am putting the basics down with links that I need/use.
I like to create all of my CDs using a great little tool called UltraISO. I didn't get free CD creating software with my laptop, and I know this program already, so it is what I use. You can use whatever software you want to setup your files for burning. I have used Nero in the past with some success, but I like this program a bit better.
Once you have all of your files ready to burn, you will need to add a couple of files, including WinOpen. You can get a copy of these files plus better instructions than I have included here on the Duckware site. There lots of options with this program, so check the website for all you can do with this.
I like to create all of my CDs using a great little tool called UltraISO. I didn't get free CD creating software with my laptop, and I know this program already, so it is what I use. You can use whatever software you want to setup your files for burning. I have used Nero in the past with some success, but I like this program a bit better.
Once you have all of your files ready to burn, you will need to add a couple of files, including WinOpen. You can get a copy of these files plus better instructions than I have included here on the Duckware site. There lots of options with this program, so check the website for all you can do with this.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Hamachi Instant VPN
Ever since hearing about this great little tool from Steve Gibson's Security Now! podcasts I have gotten a ton of use out of Hamachi.
I needed to access my desktop from outside our NAT at my last job. I needed to let an Exchange consultant into our server here for a one time fix. I needed to change a setting on my backup job here on a server, but I was at home. I wanted to check my email from an insecure wireless access point in a public location.
There are times when you need a VPN solution that is not over complex or expensive, like the instances mentioned above. I have found that in these times, Hamachi does everything that I need it to do.
If you are new to VPN entirely, I recommend this site to help you get your head around the idea. If you know what a VPN is and you know you need one, give Hamachi a try. It is easy to install, very easy to use, and best of all, it is free for personal use.
Also, I highly recommend a subscription to Steve Gibson's Security Now podcast for anyone new to computer support who needs to get up to speed on all things security related.
I needed to access my desktop from outside our NAT at my last job. I needed to let an Exchange consultant into our server here for a one time fix. I needed to change a setting on my backup job here on a server, but I was at home. I wanted to check my email from an insecure wireless access point in a public location.
There are times when you need a VPN solution that is not over complex or expensive, like the instances mentioned above. I have found that in these times, Hamachi does everything that I need it to do.
If you are new to VPN entirely, I recommend this site to help you get your head around the idea. If you know what a VPN is and you know you need one, give Hamachi a try. It is easy to install, very easy to use, and best of all, it is free for personal use.
Also, I highly recommend a subscription to Steve Gibson's Security Now podcast for anyone new to computer support who needs to get up to speed on all things security related.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Mac Inventory Software - iInventory v7.4
We need to be able to tell what software programs, and specifically which versions of programs, are installed on all of our Mac desktops and laptops, but the boss didn't want to purchase anything. So, here I am searching form something that will do the trick quickly and for free.
I found a program that I like, iInventory v7.4, but I will need to do some testing before the jury is in with their final decision. I am installing the client on two Macs right now. My two test systems are a brand new MacPro and a PowerMac, and so far so good.
I was able to create an agent to install on both systems, and was able to run and then import all of the information. The agent builder is easy to use, and the software itself is pretty intuitive. The software has a network scanning feature and says it is compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux which does indeed seem to be the case. The program comes with some canned reports, but they are very basic and I will need to create custom reports after I clean the data up a bit.
Overall, great tool for free, and I have the option to upgrade to a paid version if I need/want to.
I found a program that I like, iInventory v7.4, but I will need to do some testing before the jury is in with their final decision. I am installing the client on two Macs right now. My two test systems are a brand new MacPro and a PowerMac, and so far so good.
I was able to create an agent to install on both systems, and was able to run and then import all of the information. The agent builder is easy to use, and the software itself is pretty intuitive. The software has a network scanning feature and says it is compatible with Windows, Mac and Linux which does indeed seem to be the case. The program comes with some canned reports, but they are very basic and I will need to create custom reports after I clean the data up a bit.
Overall, great tool for free, and I have the option to upgrade to a paid version if I need/want to.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Best Christmas Gift Yet
Of all the gifts I got for Christmas, I have to say that my favorite may just be the one that wasn't on my list.
We got a Tomtom One for Christmas from my DH's company, and I use it all the time now. I'll admit, when it comes to directions, I am not the best. In fact, I usually can't find my way home from a new location without a call to DH asking for help.
Imagine his joy at my getting this gift. Now, I simply put in the destination and the Tomtom One tells me exactly how to get home and even allows me to chose alternate routes if there is a street I want or need to avoid. Not only that, she will also tell me where all the Dunkin Donut shops are along the way. Now that is awesome.
As a busy mom with active kids, this is the perfect toy to have. I can put in all the locations of the football games, swim meets, mathlete competitions, band events and college visits and get there without having to google a location, printing a map and then trying to read a map while I drive, drink coffee and try not to hit anyone. Now I mount the Tomtom One on the windshield enter the address and go.
The Tomtom One comes with 4 voices by default, but more can be downloaded. We opted for a very nice British woman's voice, very James Bondish.
We got a Tomtom One
for Christmas from my DH's company, and I use it all the time now. I'll admit, when it comes to directions, I am not the best. In fact, I usually can't find my way home from a new location without a call to DH asking for help.Imagine his joy at my getting this gift. Now, I simply put in the destination and the Tomtom One
tells me exactly how to get home and even allows me to chose alternate routes if there is a street I want or need to avoid. Not only that, she will also tell me where all the Dunkin Donut shops are along the way. Now that is awesome.As a busy mom with active kids, this is the perfect toy to have. I can put in all the locations of the football games, swim meets, mathlete competitions, band events and college visits and get there without having to google a location, printing a map and then trying to read a map while I drive, drink coffee and try not to hit anyone. Now I mount the Tomtom One
on the windshield enter the address and go.The Tomtom One
comes with 4 voices by default, but more can be downloaded. We opted for a very nice British woman's voice, very James Bondish.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Free AV Tool - avast!
I needed AntiVirus (AV) for my new laptop, and since I hate Norton, I quickly uninstalled the free trial version that came pre-installed on my laptop and decided to give avast! a look.
I had read reviews and noticed that it had received several awards, and a quick look at their website indicated that I could use avast! 4 Home Edition free of charge. I quickly installed it, accepted the defaults, and have been happy ever since.
It has a very easy to use interface and works pretty well in the background without being too intrusive. The Home Edition comes with the following features: simple user interface, resident protection, P2P and IM shileds, network shield, web shield, automatice updates, integrated virus cleaner, and support for 64-bit windows.
I highly recommend this product if you are looking for a free tool to use on your home PC.
I had read reviews and noticed that it had received several awards, and a quick look at their website indicated that I could use avast! 4 Home Edition free of charge. I quickly installed it, accepted the defaults, and have been happy ever since.
It has a very easy to use interface and works pretty well in the background without being too intrusive. The Home Edition comes with the following features: simple user interface, resident protection, P2P and IM shileds, network shield, web shield, automatice updates, integrated virus cleaner, and support for 64-bit windows.
I highly recommend this product if you are looking for a free tool to use on your home PC.
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Basic Networking Helps
I have not had much opportunity to do much physical networking other than connecting to them in Windows, so I am trying to catch up and figured I may as well start at the beginning. For that reason, I have been reading the Ciscopress book CCNA ICND1 (yes, I do hope to someday become CCNA certified).
In the book, they recommend a website that I have just been looking through, which seems like a great place for beginners to start. The website is LearnTCPIP.com and it has video/powerpoint presentations on TCP/IP, Subnetting and some other beginner networking tutorials. Don't get me wrong, this is very basic information, but it does explain it well. I wish I had known of this site when I first started out.
Another site that I have found to be very useful is the Petri IT Knowledgebase. There is a wealth of information here, and my favorite post, and honestly one of the most useful for gaging how I am doing on learning all I need to know is this series on Interview Questions.
In the book, they recommend a website that I have just been looking through, which seems like a great place for beginners to start. The website is LearnTCPIP.com and it has video/powerpoint presentations on TCP/IP, Subnetting and some other beginner networking tutorials. Don't get me wrong, this is very basic information, but it does explain it well. I wish I had known of this site when I first started out.
Another site that I have found to be very useful is the Petri IT Knowledgebase. There is a wealth of information here, and my favorite post, and honestly one of the most useful for gaging how I am doing on learning all I need to know is this series on Interview Questions.
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
I Want One
I am a pretty hard core PC user. I have dabbled with Macs in my different jobs, but really only put hands on them when I have to fix a problem. However, with the introduction of their new Mac Pro, I just may have to change all that.
A collegue pointed out this blog post over at ZDNet, so I had to check it out. It is true, Apple has released the "Fastest Mac Ever."
This new Mac Pro has 8 processor cores. Yes, that is correct, I said 8 processors. And as if that is not enough, it can also house up to 4TB of INTERNAL storage, and oh yeah, 32GB of RAM. Evan if I combined all the desktop computers in my house (and actually that is a few computers and parts) I don't have that kind of power.
Now, the price is still a bit high for me to justify buying as my personal laptop, but given the fact that this beauty is a portable server, the price doesn't suck.
Yep, I am in love.
A collegue pointed out this blog post over at ZDNet, so I had to check it out. It is true, Apple has released the "Fastest Mac Ever."
This new Mac Pro has 8 processor cores. Yes, that is correct, I said 8 processors. And as if that is not enough, it can also house up to 4TB of INTERNAL storage, and oh yeah, 32GB of RAM. Evan if I combined all the desktop computers in my house (and actually that is a few computers and parts) I don't have that kind of power.
Now, the price is still a bit high for me to justify buying as my personal laptop, but given the fact that this beauty is a portable server, the price doesn't suck.
Yep, I am in love.
Friday, January 04, 2008
Facebook Widget Troubles
It seems Facebook is the latest toy that hackers are using to spread adware and malicious code.
According to an article posted yesterday at NetworkWorld, there is a widget called "Secret Crush" that you can add to your Facebook account. Just like most widgets, in order to use it you have to forward it on to some of your friends and encourage them to use it as well. After forwarding it on, it is supposed to tell you your secret crush.
The article says that the widget doesn't work and never does tell you about a secret crush. Instead, you are rewarded with spyware software that sends you ads.
One more way for my kids to wreak havoc on my home network. . .wooo hooo.
According to an article posted yesterday at NetworkWorld, there is a widget called "Secret Crush" that you can add to your Facebook account. Just like most widgets, in order to use it you have to forward it on to some of your friends and encourage them to use it as well. After forwarding it on, it is supposed to tell you your secret crush.
The article says that the widget doesn't work and never does tell you about a secret crush. Instead, you are rewarded with spyware software that sends you ads.
One more way for my kids to wreak havoc on my home network. . .wooo hooo.
Thursday, January 03, 2008
There are days in this IT life that I hate. Like days where I spend 8 hours or more trying everything I can think of or read about to get a hard drive to boot, only to have it boot once and mock me the other 7 1/2 hours.
There are days like today though, when the simple task of running and terminating cat6 cable is enough busywork to keep me happy.
In truth, neither my previous Help Desk position or my Lab Manager job required that I lay cable, so I have never had the simple pleasure of runnig wire and creating wall jacks (keystone jacks). So I did actually learn something today. I found lots of very helpful information at the Lanshack site, so I highly recommend you go there to start. The information listed below will probably not be helpful on its own.
Here is how you terminate a cat6 cable with a Keystone jack:
1. Strip back some of the protective coating from your cat6 cable. (As shown to the right)
2. Untwist your paired wires so you have 8 individual wires.
3. Lay out your cables so they match the picture of either the 568-A or 568-B standard that should be somewhere on your jack or patch panel. We used the Cat6 Keystone Jacks from CablesToGo and they were great to work with (shown above). My husband swears by the cheapies they sell at Menards here in Chicago though, and I will admit they look nicer, but are harder to read.
4. Using a punchdown tool or a screwdriver, push the wire all the way down to the bottom of the jack. We bought a cheap punchdown tool that made this job a breeze ($14 from Newegg.com
).
5. Trim the ends of you wires if you didn't use a punchdown tool.
6. Place the plastic protective cover on the jack.
7. Mount your keystone jack in a wall mount of you choosing.
There are days like today though, when the simple task of running and terminating cat6 cable is enough busywork to keep me happy.
In truth, neither my previous Help Desk position or my Lab Manager job required that I lay cable, so I have never had the simple pleasure of runnig wire and creating wall jacks (keystone jacks). So I did actually learn something today. I found lots of very helpful information at the Lanshack site, so I highly recommend you go there to start. The information listed below will probably not be helpful on its own.
Here is how you terminate a cat6 cable with a Keystone jack:
1. Strip back some of the protective coating from your cat6 cable. (As shown to the right)
2. Untwist your paired wires so you have 8 individual wires.
3. Lay out your cables so they match the picture of either the 568-A or 568-B standard that should be somewhere on your jack or patch panel. We used the Cat6 Keystone Jacks from CablesToGo and they were great to work with (shown above). My husband swears by the cheapies they sell at Menards here in Chicago though, and I will admit they look nicer, but are harder to read.
4. Using a punchdown tool or a screwdriver, push the wire all the way down to the bottom of the jack. We bought a cheap punchdown tool that made this job a breeze ($14 from Newegg.com
).5. Trim the ends of you wires if you didn't use a punchdown tool.
6. Place the plastic protective cover on the jack.
7. Mount your keystone jack in a wall mount of you choosing.
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
Fun with E-cards
So today was mostly about moving wires and jacks around for an office move that has to happen today, and other than getting to punch down a couple of jacks for the first time (phone and network), I don't have much tech info to share today.
I did however find a fun site that will let you send E-cards to your family and friends using their photos, or your own flickr photos. The site is delivr. I used a stock photo they had and emailed a Happy New Year card to my parents who quickly told me how much they enjoyed it.
Next up, making a personalized thank you card to my brothers to thank them for hosting the Christmas festivities! I could sure waste a lot of time with this fun gadget!
I did however find a fun site that will let you send E-cards to your family and friends using their photos, or your own flickr photos. The site is delivr. I used a stock photo they had and emailed a Happy New Year card to my parents who quickly told me how much they enjoyed it.
Next up, making a personalized thank you card to my brothers to thank them for hosting the Christmas festivities! I could sure waste a lot of time with this fun gadget!
Monday, December 31, 2007
Free Wireless Headset
On one of those rare days off, I was watching TV when I happened upon the Rachel Ray Show. I think it was a rerun, but what caught my attention was a segment that mentioned a great website that will give you a FREE headset for your phone.
The name of the site is FreeHeadset.org and that is their web address as well. You will have to pay for shipping, but on the headset that I ordered, that was only $4.74 For most of the newer phones and Blackberry devices it looks like they have a free option and also a higher end device that is not free.
If you aren’t already using a hands free headset while you drive and talk on the phone, please do. Here in Chicago you can actually get pulled over and issued a ticket for not using a hands-free device, and I have heard that many other states are moving in that direction also
The name of the site is FreeHeadset.org and that is their web address as well. You will have to pay for shipping, but on the headset that I ordered, that was only $4.74 For most of the newer phones and Blackberry devices it looks like they have a free option and also a higher end device that is not free.
If you aren’t already using a hands free headset while you drive and talk on the phone, please do. Here in Chicago you can actually get pulled over and issued a ticket for not using a hands-free device, and I have heard that many other states are moving in that direction also
Thursday, December 27, 2007
New Laptop
I finally feel whole again. I have gone a whole year without a laptop and darn it, I didn't like it! I think that every tech, from the Helpdesk Technician to the CIO needs to have easy access to technology. I happen to think that giving a tech a laptop is the best thing you can do to encourage them to become a better tech. But I digress . . .
I did a post a few weeks ago about all the laptops that I was considering, and I still think those are some of the better options out there, but I settled a bit.
My dear husband was in Wal-Mart the day before Christmas (yes, I am one of THOSE people who got a laptop from Wal-Mart, my head is down in shame . . . but only a little) and saw a deal that he could not pass up.
I got an HP Pavilion DV6629WM. It has a beautiful 15.4" display and came with a digital camera and printer. Unfortunately, it did come with Vista Home Premium, which I am not entirely thrilled about, but I can always downgrade if I really need to.
I did a post a few weeks ago about all the laptops that I was considering, and I still think those are some of the better options out there, but I settled a bit.
My dear husband was in Wal-Mart the day before Christmas (yes, I am one of THOSE people who got a laptop from Wal-Mart, my head is down in shame . . . but only a little) and saw a deal that he could not pass up.
I got an HP Pavilion DV6629WM. It has a beautiful 15.4" display and came with a digital camera and printer. Unfortunately, it did come with Vista Home Premium, which I am not entirely thrilled about, but I can always downgrade if I really need to.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Office Demos
It is almost Christmas, so I have set aside my studying for a few days, but still needed to work on some training for Office 2007 and stumbled upon a site many probably use all the time, but was new to me.
Microsoft has really become more user friendly in the past couple of years, and one sure sign of that is the wealth of information they have on their Office Online sites. In addition to some really great trainging materials, the also have some great demos.
I took some tips and created an article for our newsletter, but I will also be sending my customers more often to the Office site so they too can get the information that they need.
I often find that desktop support takes up a large part of my day if I let it, and I also have found that the more training and guiding I do is less time I have to spend later answering the more basic how-to quetions from my users.
By the way, I also have some users who are still using Office 2003 and one or two stuck on Office 2000 and there are links from them from this site too.
Microsoft has really become more user friendly in the past couple of years, and one sure sign of that is the wealth of information they have on their Office Online sites. In addition to some really great trainging materials, the also have some great demos.
I took some tips and created an article for our newsletter, but I will also be sending my customers more often to the Office site so they too can get the information that they need.
I often find that desktop support takes up a large part of my day if I let it, and I also have found that the more training and guiding I do is less time I have to spend later answering the more basic how-to quetions from my users.
By the way, I also have some users who are still using Office 2003 and one or two stuck on Office 2000 and there are links from them from this site too.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Last Minute Gift for the Geek Girl
I am browsing the net this afternoon while I wait for a backup to finish so I can do some testing, and I stumbled upon a last minute gift idea for the geek girl on your list.
This little pink toolkit is awesome. . .and so cute. I just love it. I am sure that any techy girl on your list would love this gift. That is, unless she already has a great set of tools.
While you are on this site, another great gift for the woman on your list would be the Ambient Fire DVD. I have a fireplace in my family room, but can't wait to try this DVD on the TV in the bedroom.
And while you are at it, you may as well spring for either the Fireplace Jar Candle or the Fireplace Scented Tealights. This should really set the mood.
This little pink toolkit is awesome. . .and so cute. I just love it. I am sure that any techy girl on your list would love this gift. That is, unless she already has a great set of tools.
While you are on this site, another great gift for the woman on your list would be the Ambient Fire DVD. I have a fireplace in my family room, but can't wait to try this DVD on the TV in the bedroom.
And while you are at it, you may as well spring for either the Fireplace Jar Candle or the Fireplace Scented Tealights. This should really set the mood.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
