Free monitoring tools for office network

Small businesses and offices usually share a single internet connection. The bandwidth allowed in the business is often shared among employees so that everyone could have online connection. While the main purpose of allowing employees to connect online is for business reasons, some employees might be tempted to use the internet for personal reasons such as watching videos, downloading movies, music or even playing online games. These online activities will not only decrease productivity but will also eat up bandwidth which will prevent others from properly connecting online.

To prevent this from happening, a network monitoring tool should be installed in the network. This network monitoring tool will be able to actively monitor the entire network in order to have real time information on who is currently online. This will aid network administrators in troubleshooting the network.

Network monitoring tools can also control internet connection of users within the network. Instead of freely allowing everyone on how they can use the internet, network administrators can limit bandwidth connection per user to avoid abuse of internet connection. Network monitoring tools could even be used for wireless connectivity where it could allow or prevent certain users from connecting online. Some network monitoring tools could even block certain websites.

Businesses don’t even have to spend thousands of dollars for an efficient network monitoring tools. Some will require a one time license fee while others are even free. Most are also user friendly which means it doesn’t need an expert in computer networking before the network tool could be used.

Netbooks for your office

A netbook is a small-screened laptop that focuses on mobility. Instead of the usual 14” laptops, a netbook could come in 7” screens. These laptops are small enough to be placed in a bag and could weight no more than 1kg. It’s a type of laptop that could do simple office tasks, connect online, listen to music and watch videos. Because of the advancement of technology, some netbooks could even handle HD (high definition) videos. All of these could be enjoyed without having to spend more than $400. The most affordable laptops could cost you no less than $500 and they could be bulky and heavy.

Even though netbooks could be a great addition to your office because it can be productive without being expensive, it does have some trade-offs. Aside from the small screen which could hurt the eye, the operating system (OS) of netbooks usually comes with Linux. Of course, Linux is not a bad operating system but there are applications that can only run in Windows or a Mac. Linux is also seen as “advanced” operating system which requires time before certain operations could be easily implemented. There are also netbooks that comes with Windows (usually XP) operating system but it could cost you additional $50.

If you’re looking for a relatively affordable laptop that’s completely mobile, could do basic office tasks with an impressive battery life, consider a netbook. As technology advances, the price of powerful netbooks is getting more affordable every year. Instead of bringing bulky laptops to office meetings, a netbook should be more than enough for mobile office productivity.

Project management for creative teams

Creative studios can be very stressful because there are a multitude of projects involved each with its own specifications deadlines and with the dedicated team to work on it.

When chaos reaches its peak a good project management software can sort things out.

As creatives consider each project unique, project management softwares should address unique issues and they should offer customized solutions. You won't use a construction project management software to manage a creative studio just as you won't use construction tools to work on an advertising campaign for a big customer.

A project management software for creatives has all the features to help the creative studio progress: timesheets, billing, time and customer tracking, job costing and Gantt charts specific to the industry. A management software will allow you to track a specific job and see the team who worked on it, the estimate and the actual time and also the deadline.

As soon as everything is in control, the creative minds can concentrate on developing amazing projects. Everybody knows their head is full of bright ideas and they cannot be required to focus on deadlines and other creativity killers so the project management will do all this work for them.

HTC Hero launched in London

HTC launched this week the ultimate Google Android device - the HTC Hero with a new user interface called HTC Sense. From July the HTC will be available in Europe and later this summer the Asian fans will be able to buy it.

HTC Hero is 4.4 inches tall, 2.2 inches wide and its screen is 3.2 inch HVGA touch with a useful antifingerprint screen coating. The phone is light and small in size but it will help its user reach and communicate via multiple media.

The device is completely customizable to everyone's needs: email, multimedia messages, Facebook and Twitter status updates. It also includes GPS, a digital compass, a camera, 3.5 mm headphone jack and a search button which allows searching the contact list or Twitter updates.

The new phone can be added the Microsoft Exchange support to the handset which is good news for corporate customers.

Designing office banners

A regular office may gain the attention of potential customers through expensive advertisements such as radio, TV and even online ads, but traditional banners ensure that the business is constantly marketed to consumers. Generally, they are very easy to be designed as it doesn’t require much experience to create one but a careful thought has to be made when creating an office banner. After all, the image of the company largely rests on how the banner is created.

When creating an office banner, here are two words you should not forget: simple and bold. By being simple, you avoid the troubles of creating too complicated banner that could confuse the customers instead of informing them who you are. Being bold simply means, your text could be read without any trouble. Use highly noticeable colours so that people can read your banner even in just one glance.

The size of the office banner is also important. This factor is actually often missed by some office professionals since they are accustomed of getting the banner close to them. Instead of ordering a banner that may not be read because of its size, ask for two or three samples in different sizes and try to see them from a customer’s perspective.

After you have created a good banner, consider how should display them. Sometimes, simply placing them on the wall will not do. Consider using alternative display styles such as using poles and placing them in your front office. Banner design companies often have a variety of display options so be sure to exhaust the possibilities.

Office security and its challenges

What should be done in the case of an internal fraud or theft set up by an employee? How should the bank employees or the staff of a money exchange office react when facing an unexpected and unfortunate event like an armed robbery? Who will react when pressing the red button to raise the alarm?

The answers to all these questions are given by the company which will offer top expertise and support for security issues. Because security means more than just an alarm system or an inventory for the company assets, any office and individual should be prepared to manage the crisis in the event of an unexpected incident.

For example to avoid the internal theft, fraud or corruption, offices can reap the immense benefits of having the staff screened and properly trained on how to avoid or identify these issues. Expert staff screening provided by specialised companies can increase the security and stability of your business. Courses like: kidnap mitigation and hostage survival, security awareness or natural disaster survival can minimise the risks and the loses during unexpected incidents, in or outside your office.

Continuous ink in printers

Ink is a very important component for a printer which is why businesses will not think twice of purchasing replacement inks when they ran out. Inks are not affordable as they come in replacement cartridges specifically designed to fit on the printer design. This trend will continue and will require vast amounts of resources if the office is aggressive in using the printer.


But there is a solution in the form of continuous ink system. As the name suggests, this form of ink cartridge will help businesses save on ink. Instead of small cartridges replaced in the printer, the printer will be connected to a continuous ink system which contains large volumes of ink. Without using any cartridges, the business will not have to purchase replacement cartridges but will only have to pay for the ink. Since they will purchase in volume, the price of ink would be a lot more affordable. The price per page will be a lot lower in this system.


For the printer to become receptive to this system, the printer has to be converted first. This is only a few adjustments within the cartridge area so that the ink will flow from the system instead of the cartridge. At first glance, this looks very simple but it can destroy your printer permanently. For that reason, it is very important to bring the printer to the seller of the system. This may require additional fee for installation but a small fee for proper installation of the system is worth it to prevent destruction of the printer.

Virtual offices for real business

Instead of spending millions of dollars in equipment and employees, companies would consider outsourcing the office task by connecting to a virtual office provider. Through a virtual office, a company would have physical representation and presence in order to effectively communicate with their clients.

A virtual office would usually have the following:

• Local business address
• Local phone number/Fax Number
• An assistant
• Office equipments

These office equipments are offered in two options: the first option is to have a “shared” virtual office. That means the virtual assistant will be working for other clients as well. On the other hand, you can ask for a dedicated virtual assistant so that the employee will concentrate on a single project only. Of course, a dedicated assistant will mean additional payment.

Selecting a virtual office could be a bit challenging especially when a company tries to seek assistance online without any physical contact. However, they can ensure the legitimacy of the operation by asking documentation that ensures that they operate a legitimate business in the area where they operate. In terms of security, be sure to ask the virtual office provider to sign a non-disclosure agreement or NDA. This document will be your protection against illegal information selling in the future.

A virtual office could save a business considerable amount of time and resources. A business just has to make sure they select the right provider who could do the task while ensuring the business security.

Wireless storage devices

Network Attached Storage or NAS is a highly recommended device for home and small business use. This device will service as a small server wherein networked computers could immediately store important data to prevent data loss in case the computer crashes or will not be accessible. NAS is also useful for small businesses to ensure availability of data in the network.

A few years ago, NAS is only limited to USB or network connection. However, Wireless NAS is increasing in popularity as powerful wireless connectivity is now available. Leading the group in Wireless NAS is the Time Capsule by Apple. With storage capacity of up to 1TB (Terabyte) users could wirelessly transfer and extract data from the storage device.

There are also manufacturers who ventured in wireless NAS for PC users. Manufacturers such as Iomega, MediaGate and D-Link are currently offering wireless NAS for PC. The storage capacity is almost the same with Apple as well as its price (up to $350 for 1TB of storage). Set-up is also straightforward but drivers are needed in each computer before it could detect the wireless storage device.

The speed of data transfer varies per wireless NAS. These storage devices use the standard 802.11 a/b/g/n for wireless connection. However, it’s highly recommended that wireless network devices in each computer would have the capability for 802.11n which is the fastest wireless connection. If you’re wireless connection is not “n” Look out for “Dual Band” feature of the wireless storage devices so that it could accommodate slower connections.

Office communication and Twitter

Twitter is an increasingly popular online service that allows users to post updates up to 140 characters. Its popularity came to a point of crashing the website a few times when it was first introduced but it eventually gained stability because of increased interest and investment.

At first glance, Twitter can be considered as a fad for younger generations as it only offers 140 characters (not words) or less. But when you take a look at it from a business perspective, you’ll realize its purpose could mean increased efficiency in communication not to mention savings.

The main selling point of Twitter is through its various channels for updates. You can update you Twitter directly from the website, your mobile phone and a Twitter client which is basically a small instant messaging application but only for Twitter. That means any massage on the road could be posted automatically via Twitter.

Twitter will allow users to “follow” each other. This means you’ll be able to subscribe to the updates of a Twitter user. In your business, you can ask everyone to follow your updates for messages as you follow their updates for additional information as well. Through your Twitter client, you’ll see their real time messages which could be seen by everyone. It’s like an instant message board that you can monitor in real time.

Aside from inter-office communications, you can also use Twitter to follow other businesses. There are experts who use twitter to reach to their readers so you can use this to get a little bit of information every now and then to help your business prosper.