Come find out more about Wild Apricot

On September 13, 2013 I will be facilitating a meeting revewing Wild Apricot.   Here is a quick overview of the event, 

Do the following features interest your nonprofit?

• An easy solution to run your website, something everyone in your organization can update.
• A mass email solution that allows you to track all interaction with your constituents.
• Accounting and web payment processing that integrates with Quickbooks and other accounting programs.
• Blogging, Forum, and Member Area functions native to the system.
• A no-maintenance system that is hosted for you, for a low monthly fee, between $25 an $200 a month based on the size of your organization.

Wild Apricot might be the answer.

Wild Apricot is web-based software for small associations and non-profits to help manage membership, website, events and other activities. It is "cloud" software, meaning it runs through a web browser without needing to install anything on your local computer. It is built for small organizations, under 5000 members.

Join us for a free session to find out more!

Thanks to T4T for hosing the session,  if you would like to attend, please register here,

Save your nonprofit time, money and hassle with a single website donor/member management solution

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. 

Retiring Windows XP and Office 2003

In approximately 220 days, support for Windows XP and Office 2003 will end.   Most Small and Medium business support groups will start phasing out support in October of 2013.   What this means to you,

- Security Risks

- Compliance Risks

- Lack of Independent Software Vendor Support

- Lack of Hardware Vendor Support

Here is even more detail, 

- Retiring Windows XP (Microsoft)

- XP's retirement will be hacker heaven

- Support ends in 2014 for Windows XP and Office 2003 (Microsoft)

If these were big enough issues, the looming issue is 41% of all Windows users still use Windows XP.

I see three possible outcomes to the Windows XP end of support.

- Nothing happens immediately, but over 3 - 6 months software starts to change and is no longer compatible with Windows XP drivers.

- In the months leading up to the retirement date prices for other Operating Systems (Windows 7, Windows 8) increase and you pay more to upgrade.

- Hackers and other folks aware of the end of support date store up viruses, malware, etc. and then set them loose on the unsupported Windows XP user base.   With such a broad installation base this could be a potential nightmare.

What should you do?

In my opinion, upgrade now.  Avoid the risk of lack of support, gain the benefit from improved performance, and mitigate your risk. 

Warning, certain Xerox scanners/photocopiers can switch numbers on scans

I came across this article recently, and it is my worst nightmare come true.  I have always been a little circumspect when coping and scanning documents, but never thought that it would actually happen.

Based on this report, certain Xerox photo copiers have a habit of changing numbers.  

 The full story is here,

 Xerox Work Centers Switching Numbers when scanning

Here is a sample of the problem, 

This looks like a limited problem on a couple of models of Xerox machines, but once this becomes better distributed I can only imagine the fall out.   The site article is definitely worth a read, and Xerox is very focused on resolving the problem, but one can only imagine the problems that might, or have arisen from the issue.  

Be sure to review the list of the affected printer/copier/scanners.   The last thing that you would want is to have this issue befall you after it has been discovered.

B.Y.O.D. What does it mean? Can it help me?

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) is a growing trend in business today.   The idea behind BYOD is you bring your own computer, phone, or other electronic device and use it at your job or business.  For more detail, here is a further explanation from Wikipedia, 

"Bring your own device (BYOD) (also called bring your own technology (BYOT), bring your own phone (BYOP), and bring your own PC (BYOPC)) means the policy of permitting employees to bring personally owned mobile devices (laptops, tablets, and smart phones) to their workplace, and use those devices to access privileged company information and applications. The term is also used to describe the same practice applied to students using personally owned devices in education settings.

BYOD is making significant inroads in the business world, with about 75% of employees in high growth markets such as Brazil and Russia and 44% in developed markets already using their own technology at work. In most cases, businesses simply can't block the trend. Some believe that BYOD may help employees be more productive. Others say it increases employee morale and convenience by using their own devices and makes the company look like a flexible and attractive employer"

Wikipedia

BYOD growing as a trend in small to medium size businesses.  It is an attractive option that allows business to spend less on hardware, improve employee morale, and focus on other capital intensive functions.

At the same time BYOD presents a security risk, specifically accessing confidential and proprietary information on a personal device, the additional cost of supporting several different types of devices, and the challenge of software use.

If you want to find out if BYOD might be a good fit for you and your business, feel free to contact me. 

Part 1 of 3 Do you really need Microsoft Office?

It used to be that there were not a lot of options if you need a Microsoft Office compatible software system, but now wide range of options exists, here is a quick overview,

-          LibreOffice and Apache OpenOffice, both are installed on your PC, both are free.

-          Kingsoft and SoftMaker Office, both are installed on your PC, both are low cost(cheaper than Microsoft Office).

-          Google Docs and Zoho, both are web browser based and both, are free, or low cost.

All of these systems provide reasonable alternatives to Microsoft Office, and in the coming week we will review the pros and cons of each system.  We will look at, specfically, where each package rates on a scale of 1to 10 for usability, interoperability with Microsoft Office, and value for cost.