Do You Need to Upgrade Your Telephone System, or Can You Simply Maximise What You've Got?

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There are some people who would argue that the only way to adapt to the modern telecoms requirements that face most businesses today is to completely upgrade and overhaul on-site systems.

This can be a costly process and it might not even be necessary. Many companies are not currently maximising the potential of their existing telephone systems, which means that by tapping into this unused capacity it can be possible to save money and improve your available resources.

In order to achieve this and avoid a costly upgrade it makes sense to look for a provider that is willing to work with your business in order to meet your needs.

Of course, in some cases you will find that picking the right provider will actually let you fully assess the requirements of your business so that an appropriate telephone system and tariff package can be chosen.

While not all providers that encourage you to make a complete upgrade are unscrupulous, you should be suspicious of a company that is overly willing to dismiss the capabilities of your current set-up and recommend making an upgrade before they have taken into account what you have to hand and what you actually need to achieve with it.

If you are looking to upgrade from an older analogue landline service to a new network-based VoIP package, you may already have equipment that is up to the task of handling the changeover. Backwards compatibility and incremental improvements allow businesses to adopt new technologies with ease over time, rather than requiring an outright upgrade that has a high one-off cost.

Those businesses that do decide to upgrade a telephone system should make sure that they are choosing one which will be relatively future proof, allowing for further expansion and technological changes further down the line.

You can get advice on all of these important matters from your provider, although if the firm is unable to guide you adequately, or you find that there is a better deal elsewhere, it may be sensible to switch to a more accommodating rival.

Finding a provider that will be more sensitive to the needs of your business will not only streamline the process of upgrading or maximizing what you have already got, it will also help you to save money, because better cost efficiency should come from enlisting the services of a telecoms provider that knows how to communicate and assess what approach is required in a given situation.

Thanks to the power of digital communications it is now possible to outsource services such as system infrastructure to third parties, which helps to reduce the amount of money that your business needs to spend on the installation and maintenance of complicated in-house set-ups.

If you take the VoIP approach you will be able to add extensions and use computer workstations to host voice calls, with things like call routing, forwarding and answering services hosted externally. This should relieve the financial pressure on your business since the need for a high-end exchange located on site is negated.

Not every business will find this approach appropriate, but it does draw attention to the idea that a communicative telecoms provider will be better able to meet your needs than one which is simply trying to sell you packages that are only beneficial because you will be paying large amounts of money.

The route towards having an optimised telephone system that is operating at the peak of its potential is not easy, unless you choose a provider that will work with you to meet your needs.

Daisy Group can offer a range of bespoke telephony solutions to any sized business or organization. Find out more on their website at www.daisygroupplc.com.

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The Best Web Analytics Plugins for WordPress

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Online businesses have been gaining a lot of attention along with time. Most of the companies focus on increasing the traffic to their sites and blogging is one sure way to gain attention. When there is more traffic, the sales figure is bound to increase. This industry is not restricted to one particular location. In order to market your product effectively, you need to drive traffic to your site at all costs. When you use targeted keywords, there is a better chance to increase the traffic. If you surf the web, you will come across several sources which not only assist you in tracking the visitors, but you can also get targeted keywords. However, it would be much better if these options are available in the form of WordPress plug-ins. Here is a list of such top rated plug-ins.

1. Woopra Analytics plug-in – This is one of the plug-ins that include everything. It is packed with data and you can use it with ease. Woopra performs Web tracking and it also analyses data. This analytics plug-in has the ability to track information live along with various other Web Statistics. It consists of a rich interface and has the capability to manage several blogs and websites simultaneously. Woopra can analyze data to the core and has extraordinary search capacities. You will constantly receive updates and important notifications. It also allows you to chat with visitors. The good thing about this analytics plug-in is that the installation process is hassle free and it also updates information.

2. WP SlimStat- It is considered an effective real time WordPress plug-in. You will receive reports regarding the analysis of a particular data. The interface can be customized according to your requirements and it is quite simple and user friendly. It observes and provides crisp and clear information on the number of visitors who visit your website. SlimStat has the ability to filter statistical information based on different criteria. You can even track locations and get information about your visitors using world map that has zooming option. Reports can be generated in no time.

3. Web Ninja Google Analytics WordPress Plug-in- This is one plug-in which you can use for all type of requirements related to Google analytics. You can add Google Analytics JavaScript on all the pages of your site. You will be able to view all the statistical information and also individual stats and posts. You can configure Web Ninja according to your specifications. If you want to include JavaScript tracker code to one of the pages of your site, then it is advisable to place it at the end of the section. Some plug-ins place the tracker code in the head. As a result, your page takes a lot of time to get loaded.

4. Google Analyticator- This is one of the most reputed Google analytic plug-ins and has gained considerable amount of attention. This plug-in makes use of JavaScript code effortlessly. With this plug-in, you can avail a dashboard widget which helps you to track the number of people who visited your site in the last one month. Moreover, there is also a front-end widget which gathers and provides details of the visitors. You can also avail both download and outbound link tracking. So, it comes as no surprise to know that Google analyticator is a top rated plug-in with hundreds of reviews.

This is a guest post by Jena Branch of Buycox.com, a site that offers savings and current information on cox cable packages.

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3D Printers Will Change The World: Let's Take A Look Inside

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Do you remember when printers were first invented and everyone thought it was the greatest invention in the world? The ability to take something from a screen and turn it into a real life replica was pretty amazing. Everyone thinks nothing of a printer these days. You can walk into any library in the world and have something printed for a few cents. I bet you couldn't even imagine business being able to operate without them. At the moment most businesses definitely couldn't.

But there's a new kid in town. People don't really know about it because it's so new. It's now possible to actually print 3D models, from the computer to an actual living creation. There's some huge projects deep in development and soon they will revolutionize the way everything is built. Can you picture a massive printer that actually builds houses with the click of a button? Soon, my friend, they will be here. Let's have a look at some of the different techniques they use to print 3D models.

Fused deposition modeling

FDM is the technique that's used by the largest number of people at the moment. All the commercial machines will use this and if you wanted anything done, you'd use it too. They basically take a big spool of metal wire or plastic and it's melted then placed next to the nozzle of the printer. One layer is done at a time and it's hardened before the printer moves onto the next layer.

Inkjet printing

This one is a little like your printer at home, although it's a long time yet before you can turn your work into 3D models. Special inks are used and they are inclusive of resins and binders. Now layer upon layer is added to the model until your chosen 3D shape is formed. This is unfortunately the only way you can print something with custom colors at the moment.

Selective laser sintering

Sintering means the product is created from powders. You're probably wondering how you could ever create a solid object from powder, but this powder can be anything: metals, glass, even ceramics. The laser basically solidifies the powder as it draws the shape. As you can imagine, the laser involved has to be very powerful, so you'll only see this type of thing happening in industrial projects.

Digital light processing

Now we move onto liquids which are solidified by light. It's also a very powerful light and will only ever be seen on industrial projects. The light is not something you'd want to look directly at unless you wanted your eyeballs to melt. The best thing about this method is the accuracy you can achieve, so for more complex projects it's definitely top drawer. Think space shuttle parts.

And the rest

There's a few other ways that are not nearly as popular is the methods already mentioned. As time progresses they will keep coming and eventually we will find a great technique that's easy to use in a commercial setting.

The future is coming

As I mentioned before, when you think of printers in business it's hard to imagine them not being around. The exact same thing will eventually happen with 3D printers. It's going to replace millions of jobs around the world and will eventually replace most methods of manufacturing. When it does we will only need people to operate and perform maintenance on the printers. The world is going to change in the next 50 years and it's going to be an exciting time indeed. Let's hope we are all around to see it because we're going to be amazed. Now try to imagine what you could do to change the world if you had the power of a 3D printer at your disposal.

Jayden Corris is the author of the article who loves to writes guest blogs on technology and  business. He also writes guest articles for On Time Screen who deals with screen printing and printed t-shirts in Connecticut.

Malware Mucks Up Business

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Each year, businesses are hit with malware infections. Malicious software may damage computers, enable corporate thieves to steal proprietary data or simply slow the network to a crawl. Regardless of the motivation behind malware attacks and infections, large corporations are not the only targets of malicious software. Smaller companies are also affected every year.

Malware Affects Big and Small Businesses Alike

Though 50 percent of all companies affected by malware employ 2500 or more individuals, smaller companies must deal with the problems caused by malicious software, as well. Eighteen percent of companies that are affected by malware employ fewer than 250 people. No matter the size of the company, malware is always a concern.

Malicious software may pose a security threat to companies. Not only are trade secrets and proprietary information at risk, but individuals may also have their identities stolen though malware infected computers. Over 187 million people have had their identities stolen as the result of hacking attacks.

Malware Threatens Productivity Levels

At the very least, loss of productivity may occur due to infected computers rendered inoperable or slow at the workplace. No matter the size of the business, training employees about the cost of malware, as well as how to avoid malware infection, is important. When training employees about mitigating risk of malware infections, it is important to discuss that malware is spread through infected websites that install the malicious software on the computer through the web browser.

Although most malware is spread through webpages, a computer could also be infected via email attachments. During training, be sure to cover that an estimated 1 in 239 emails contain malware in attachments. Train employees to avoid websites that are not work related while on the job. In addition, train employees to never open email attachments unless they know and trust the sender.

Security Awareness Training Can Help Stop a Growing Problem

Malware is a growing problem. Between 2010 and 2011, the incidence of malware increased by nearly 41 percent. Training employees and ensuring that the latest anti-virus sofware is installed on all company machines will help to mitigate the risk of malicious software infecting the company network.

Malware is Everywhere infographic brought to you by Inspired eLearning. Visit their site to learn about security awareness training and more tips for avoiding malware.

Essential Blogging Tips Every Local Business Should Know

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Professionals and Armatures both use blogging as an important tool to promote their websites and to make money while doing so. It is important to know how to manage time doing the right things that will increase traffic and flow of money. The basic assumption is that doing a lot of research for writing articles and blogs and using other social marketing tools will increase the traffic flow to one’s website. This is not entirely true, as one should know when to use the right blogging tools to make it easy for bloggers and their websites.

There are multiple blogging tools available and different tools have different features. Different bloggers employ different tools for various purposes. For bloggers who have been blogging for a while will know that different blogs have to be employed for blogging and some of the best blogging tools available are:

Gravatar:

Gravatar is an open source software that lets the user set up his or hers profile pictures to appear besides a person’s name and details, while commenting and posting on a blog. Gravatar is also known as Avatars that help bloggers identify their blog posts in blogs and from various forums the blogger has visited or posted comments on.

MailChimp:

MailChimp is a management system for emails that tracks down all the emails sent form the users account. MailChimp also provides statistics for the number of emails sent on any given date and it will also give information on the number of emails that have been opened and how many emails end up as spam.

Real Time Analytics:

Analytical tools are most essential when it comes to blogging, and Real Time Analytics is one of the best analytical tools available. A blogger cannot measure the amount of traffic flow to determine on how much the blogger is profiting, what is attracting traffic and what articles and blog posts are being viewed the most.

Ping Optimizer:

Excessive pings for a blog makes it high risk for the blog from being banned entirely from a pinging service. Excessive pings will appear as if the blogger is trying to spam. Ping optimizer is one of the best Max Blog Press plug-ins available, it helps the blogger to keep control and keep track on the number of pings.

Social Sharing Buttons:

In order to share a bloggers web content with others to maximize the bloggers web presence, it is absolutely necessary to employ share buttons as a feature on the blog. These share buttons can be placed any were on the web page according to the bloggers convenience, on top of the given content or below it and can be place on either sides.

Here are some important blogging and SEO tips for small business and local business:

Analytics:

Analytics helps a web site owner to discover content and data relating to the owners website. The various features included in an analytics plug-in are the amount of time each person has spent going through the owner’s website and it also takes into account the number of visitors to a particular website.

SEO:

As most of us know SEO is the full for search engine optimization, but very few know what it really means and how to benefit from it. In simple words SEO is used to promote one’s website by increasing the traffic flow to the website and for the website to increase the page rank of the website. A web site with a good page rank is likely to appear on the first page of any search engine.

Patrick Hudson likes writing articles related to Technology News, Gadget Reviews and How To. He also does guest posting for buycharter.com - a site that offers savings and current information on charter cable, as well as charter.com services Gravatar: phudson126@gmail.com

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Need Of Internet: How Did It Started?

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Can you still imagine living in a world without Internet? Probably not. In the fast-paced society people live in nowadays, it's quite difficult to adjust to a life without such a convenience. True enough; the Internet had somehow dictated the way people deal with their day-to-day activities.

Processes and systems are a lot more integrated and polished because of the Internet. Virtual connections aren't seen as a luxury anymore. Instead, it is a default necessity especially for professionals.

But, have you tried asking about its origins? Let's trace how the need for Internet came about.

No single creator

Experts and scholars advised that the creation of the Internet can't be attributed to one person or organization alone. Reading through the history tells people that it's actually a brainchild of numerous individuals from all over the world.

From the 60's to the 70's, the term Internet was just used to denote computers linked together to form a network. The networks were initially meant to serve scientific and military purposes. It was Tim Berners-Lee, however, who was responsible for creating the "world wide web" which is the basic software used to access and categorize online documents. During this time, "Internet" and "world wide web" mean two separate things. Further developments on the networks and World Wide Web then gave birth to what we now call the Internet.

Need to connect

While the Internet serves many purposes nowadays, it's initial goal is to connect computers. The purpose then expanded to greater heights as people found new needs.

If one would look at a single theme behind the need for the Internet, it's easy to pinpoint that it all boils down to convenience. People found a need for the Internet because of many conveniences such as connection, faster processing of systems, and quicker access to information.

Over time, technological innovations enable people to talk to others who are located in different parts of the world. Although interactions weren't real time at first, however, everything when on thorough enhancements. Today, virtual communication is so close to offline person-to-person conversations.

With the advent of real-time connections, people were also enabled to create, store, and retrieve files and images online. Medium progress showed people using emails as a means to communicate. Later on, the demands of technology became higher with people requiring mobility. This eventually gave rise to the use of mobile devices to get Internet access. The rise of which, removed previous limitations that the virtual world can be accessed only through computers.

Levels of needs

As technology experts see, there seems to be no stopping major technologies such as the Internet. Although the development of the Internet was fast-tracked, there would surely be more to come. As new needs arise, there would be demands for more dynamic Internet options. Eventually, it will be a cycle of development that will continue to loop as long as people find more needs. In time, the Internet might be replaced with a wider network that would further serve demands of changing lifestyles.

Author’s Bio:
Krystine Joy Sitjar has been studying IT processes and developments for years. His articles on Internet trends and processes have been published in many publications both offline and online. Although a self-confessed Internet fanatic, this savvy writer still believes that waking up with your loved one beside you is still the best gift the world and the World Wide Web could offer.
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The New Apple Maps App

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So there has been a lot of words about the new Apple iPhone Maps application. Some seem to be completely enamored by the product, while others say that the cool technology doesn't quite make up of the antiquated maps. Most of the criticism isn’t coming from users of the IPhone 5, where product satisfaction is still very high. iPhone users do show some sign of apprehension, but overall the app does not seem to be hurting sales or the iPhone, which was released almost 2 weeks ago.

Apple recently released the iOS 6, which incorporates the new map functions, as well as slight changes that you can imagine come with software updates. While the numbers of satisfaction are similar, a small .1 dip occurred, going from a 7.75 user rating with the iOS 5, to a 7.65 with the iOS 6. Those numbers aren’t dramatic, but a drop is still a drop. Some speculation is because of the flawed maps application. This is also the first time Apple has used its own map function, having previous operating systems using a Google based mapping system.

The fact that Apple stopped using the Google based has not gone unnoticed either. The higher ups at Google have noted that Apple probably would have been better off not changing to it’s own mapping system, and sticking with Google. That is a good point, considering that Google Maps has become one of the widest used and trusted GPS based applications. Though, in a time in the digital market where everyone is trying to stay self sufficient, that would be a hard sell to Apple developers.

It is fair to say that Apple has also done something cool with the Apple map application, and can maybe take some of the pressure off. The new app does feature a 3-D view option, and while it might not be super useful, it does have a pull with users. Apple does have a history of being on the cutting edge, and this might be a rare miss for them, but until sales dramatically drop, specifically due to this issue, there is no need to panic

So is there any real need for the folks at Apple to start worrying? Steve Wozniak sure isn’t worrying, admitting that there is an issue, but nothing that they think will affect the sales of iPhone and Apple products. There are also other navigation apps available and in the pipeline for Apple, so there is a fix out there for Apple users. Though the map application should not be overlooked.

Apple will continue to be a mobile tech giant, and there is no need for them to panic. We will see how quick Apple will put out an update to this app, as there are definite fixes that need to be made. Regardless, sales for the iPhone 5 have skyrockets, and there is no need to think that will stop anytime soon. 

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Peter is a tech enthusiast, mainly being an Apple fiend. On top of that, he is a media blogger, often writing about the best options in Direct TV entertainment packages , as well as entertainment reviews.