Small Business » Communications

DiVitas' mobile desk phone

When we tested the DiVitas Mobile Convergence Appliance in May 2007, the value proposition was straightforward. By leveraging VoIP, wireless LAN connections, and dual-mode Windows Mobile phones, the DiVitas solution allowed mobile users to save precious minutes on their voice plans and even turn long distance into local calls. It was all about the mobile phone bill.

By Brian Chee | 17 February, 2009 09:49

Tags: mobile

Hate Microsoft Outlook? How to fix top annoyances

Microsoft Outlook is a nearly ubiquitous presence in PC computing -- and, seemingly, a universally reviled one. Outlook has countless features, ranging from e-mail gathering to calendaring, contact tracking, to-do list creation and more -- yet its tendency toward bloat, sluggishness and unreliability can make it maddening to use.

By Preston Gralla | 14 January, 2009 08:50

Tags: microsoft outlook

Seven Lessons That SMBs Can Learn from Big IT

Just because you don't have a large enterprise doesn't mean you can't run your IT operation like the big guys. Here are seven ways to help your SMB--a small or medium-size business--implement some of the lessons big IT operations have learned over the years. Using these tips, you should be able to improve productivity, cut costs, and keep your business running smoothly.

By David Strom | 14 November, 2008 10:26

Tags: corporate issues, desktop pcs, firewalls, internet, mobile phones, networking, smartphones, storage, VoIP

Wikis that work: Four IT departments get it right

When you're one of just two technology managers tasked with supporting a geographically dispersed user base, any kind of self-help technology that takes the burden off IT is welcomed with open arms. That's why Ernest Kayinamura of Enel North America and his lone counterpart have actively embraced wikis as a way to make IT materials more accessible to the end users they support.

By Beth Stackpole | 14 November, 2008 09:35

Tags: it management, it strategy, wikis

Five ways to bulk up your network for telecommuters

Whether they're in branch offices or home offices, workers are increasingly telecommuting instead of working in a traditional centralized office environment.

By Brad Reed | 23 October, 2008 08:41

Tags: broadband, data protection, Network management, telecommuting

Building a new window into crime

By combining business intelligence and two foundations of Web 2.0 -- search and mapping -- a police department in the US state of Kentucky has built a brand-new window into crime. This Web-based BI portal allows patrol officers to enter data -- or even pieces of data such as a few numbers from a license plate -- into a simple search interface and retrieve information from their own databases and those of neighboring towns.

By Heather Havenstein | 12 September, 2008 10:18

Tags: business intelligence, mapping, mashups, police, search

Information overload: Is it time for a data diet?

CIO Jeff Saper drives a hybrid car, favors service providers that use alternative energy and has launched many green IT initiatives at his strategic communications firm, Robinson Lerer & Montgomery in New York. But he's also concerned about a type of pollution that even Al Gore has yet to tackle: digital pollution.

How to safely use Facebook and LinkedIn at work

The virtual flood gates have been opened and social networking is rushing in from the personal lives of employees and into the workplace -- bringing a host of concerns along with it.

IT pro's vacation planner: Must you unplug to unwind?

Rod Masney believes it's a key part of his management role to encourage his employees to really disengage from their in high-pressure IT jobs -- to take a week or two at the beach or that long-awaited European tour.