First off, I’d like to say that Windows 7 is already the fastest-selling version of Microsoft Windows to ever come to market. In just 8 months’ time, Microsoft estimates that over 150,000 (million!) copies have been sold or shipped installed on new computers since October 22, 2009.

By comparison, over 600 million copies of Windows XP have been sold since its introduction in 1991, and even as late as last month (June, 2010) it was still the most prevalent operating system in use worldwide, being used in nearly 55% of all systems.

Poor market reception of XP’s successor, Windows Vista, along with the coincident economic downturn of the last several years have left users, both small business and large corporations in an unusual technological predicament – having held on to an aging and often vulverable operating system much longer than they would have in a more ‘normal’ technological enhancement cycle. So, it’s little wonder that some estimate 75% or more of enterprises are evaluating Windows 7, and small business owners are nearly as willing to go with Windows 7 too.

I have been installing and servicing Windows since before Windows 3.0 came out in 1990 (it was hiding under early versions of Excel back then), and am always surprised that some clients believe they can continue to use the same software FOREVER, and only upgrade because they can no longer buy a computer with the old stuff on it. Equally perplexing is the lack of understanding, and sometimes frustration or even anger (!) that old computer hardware will not support new versions of Windows or the applications that most people really do care about.

If an analogy is any help, we certainly expect to replace automobiles, home entertainment systems, and household appliances, even power tools, as new developments in safety, reliability, energy-savings, convenience or features come along. Think about the cell phone you have today versus the one you had 3-4 years ago, or even 9 years ago…a big difference, eh?

So, let’s look at what really is behind the move to Windows 7.  Let me summarize what I think are the most important reasons to plan to move to Windows 7 before the end of the year:

1. It is much faster to start and shut down Windows 7 than XP, much less Vista. This is a real concern for laptop and netbook users, and most desktop users, too.
2. All the new PCs and peripherals (printers, scanners, all-in-one units, 3/4G mobile adapters, monitors, cordless keyboards, broadband routers, digital cameras, smart phones, touch-screens) come with Windows 7 drivers or built-in support from Microsoft. Connecting to projectors and wireless networks has never been easier.
   You can expect would-be iPad competitors to use Windows 7, too because of the built-in touch-screen support.
3. Online security has always been an issue with Windows XP, while Windows 7 has controls to greatly reduce vulnerabilities to many insidious virus attacks (Fake AntiVirus Pop-ups anyone?) that plague XP, despite constant updates to try to patch the holes.
4. Support – As of July 13, 2010 there is no more support for Windows XP Service Pack 2 from Microsoft, and SP3 support ends in 2014. Sure, few users ever call Microsoft directly, but most all my clients expect updates to address the issues that pop up in Windows XP. So, for users that need to move to SP3 now, it’s a great chance to spend time and money more effectively by moving to Windows 7.
5. Migration assistance: The “XP Mode” in business-class versions of Windows 7 can be used to run older applications that you still need for your business with very little complication…if you must. This is most important for those that need to use multiple, older versions of QuickBooks, or legal time-and-billing software, for example.
   Also, Microsoft makes available, for free, the Windows 7 Easy Transfer tool, which actually can pick up almost all your files AND personalized settings, even all of your Outlook e-mail accounts and messages, from either Windows XP or Vista, and bring them into Windows 7.
   I’ve used this myself and it work remarkably well, greatly reducing the time it takes to move to Windows 7.

In future posts, I’ll discuss the specific requirements for a computer to run Windows 7 – both the minimum and the “real” requirements, along with some of the features that I and my client are finding clever, helpful and even fun to use.

MTH

Before I stepped into Salesforce.com consulting, I worked in a small office.  There was little shelf space, one cabinet, and a server with a small hard drive.  Everything including tech magazines, software manuals, and files were scrutinized and, if deemed important, some limited real estate was dedicated to its storage.  Same held true for electronic docs.  It was beautiful efficiency and we could quickly summon anything important.

The company was successful and so we moved to a larger office and everything got bigger including physical and digital storage.  We started keeping everything that could be remotely useful “just in case”.  This new system served our needs, more or less, as anything we wanted was there in the office…  but it was all prohibitively tucked away in our vast stores of everything that fell into the category of “this may be important some day”.

Salesforce.com , as far as storage space is concerned in this analogy, is bigger than the Mall of America.  It has the capacity to store hundreds of data points on every record and millions of records.  It also has a powerful search engine that can rifle through fields, tabs, and records which seems to lend itself to the unwritten policy that if any information may be important some day, then record it – just in case.

The point is to challenge the natural inclination to be a data pack-rat and ask:

• Is an organization more effective after sub-sub-sub-segmenting data?
• Is it possible that all of the people who are keying in the data can be impossibly consistent?
• Has a situation been created where it is needed to run many, many reports?
• After reviewing these reports, do you understand, more or less, the state of your organization’s finances, pipeline, customer support, or sales?

Consider what the decision making process would be like if this was the situation:

• Your staff could run a few simple reports that provide reliable, specific metrics that are clear and actionable.
• You have a report that provides key performance indicators such as how many customers are new, renewed, or lapsed.
• A report showing how many people came to the last marketing event, and how much did your organization net after expenses.
• If you are a nonprofit, (yes, thousands of nonprofits use Salesforce.com too, it’s not just for businesses!) you may want to know how many volunteer hours did each person work.
• A report that lists how many high-dollar acknowledgment letters need to send this week?
• Can you make a simple business rule about who to send your next mailing to based on purchase history and create the mailing list with ease?

When tempted to track an extraordinary amount of data (read minutia) on a minority of records (read inconsistency), consider the alternate path of running your organization with a system that contains essential data across all records that is reliably input.  Imagine being able to run reports that are simple, important, and actionable now.  It may feel that your organization is tracking less information, which is true.  It is also true that with this lower data overhead, fewer input mistakes, shorter learning curve, that your leadership can make decisions based on that information and realize that less will become more.

About the Author: Ray Simon is a Certified Salesforce.com Consultant that has worked with businesses as well as non-profit organizations to customize Salesforce.com to meet their needs and train staff on best practices.  He can be reached at rsimon@enpio.com

WHY DO I LOVE BNI?
You asked me why, why I love BNI.
I love it noon and nighty-night-night.
It shines so bright,
Don’t ask me why I go, Giver’s Gain, don’t you know?
It’s for the guys and gals, and those referrals…
Darling….

CHORUS:
I love BNI,
Oh, BNI… BNI Em-bar-ca-de-ro.
I love BNI Em-bar-ca-de-ro
Closed business, sausages,
And referrals all the tiiiiiimmmmmme!
Show up, stand up, Givers Gain for breakfast right here!

We meet on Wednesday morn, if it’s cold or it’s warm
At the home for our swarm is right here.
It’s here we inform, it’s here we transform
We meet as a life form
For the beauty, splendor, and wonder of

CHORUS:
B-N-I,
Closed business, sausages,
And referrals all the tiiiiiimmmmmme!
Show up, stand up, Givers Gain for breakfast right here!

By Gil Zeimer, BNI Embarcadero President
www.zeimer.com

• Status Update
• Link in Your Blog and Slideshare
• Join Some Groups
• Answer Questions
• Connect Frequently
• But Recommend Only People You Can Vouch For
• Schedule Some Time
• Invite People

John Jantsch guest blogged for Chris and wrote about referrals.

When it comes to getting a significant amount of business by way of referral some companies are better at it. It’s not that they have implemented a better process for asking clients and partners to refer them, it’s that they are simply more referable.

In the business of referrals, trust is the most important reason a recommendation is made and, conversely, lack of trust the single greatest reason referrals don’t happen. There are countless ways that companies build and break trust with their customers, but most can be summed up with the term ‚”honesty.”

Here’s something your customers won’t ever tell you but that you had better understand: Your employees probably treat your customers about the same way you treat your employees. Let that soak that in for a minute.

Read the full article, “What’s Your Referability Factor?“

“I made my way to Kay’s cozy office…classical music purrs from speakers…Kay hands me green tea…I’m impressed at how her language gets to the heart of my concerns…It feels genuine, since Kay uses my own words..drifting deeper, deeper, deeper…I am able to relax each part of my body…the whole process provides a calming ritual that makes me feel like I’m in control. I spend the next few nights listening to the CD in bed…If you want to try getting hypnotized into a good night’s sleep, contact Dr. Kay Heatherly at 415-922-1664”

Here’s more from The Bold Italic.

CHEAP INK  is easily found, if your printer model is just a little older & if it’s popular enough they’ll make knockoff ink; within a year of the initial manufacture. Some would argue that knockoff ink isn’t as good – I’ve had good luck. The high priced inks that Epson and HP sell are great quality, but you pay the price … literally. Personally, I purchase my ink from a company called shop4tech.com; they’ve been sending me 15% and 25% off coupons (they might go the way of economic downturn), however until then I’d sign up!

Then there is the refilling option of used cartridges at Wallgreen’s and Office Depot. If you do choose this route, and can keep an eye on the ink level (ask and I can see if your system is set up to monitor the ink level), it’s better to re-charge ink cartridges when they’re not quite empty. HOWEVER I’ve heard several “a refilled cartridge leaked all over my printer” story; personally I’m not convinced that the skill of the person refilling the cartridge is as high as I’d like. However the lead guy in the photo department at Walgreen’s on Castro x 18th looked really reliable!

What kind of printer should you buy? If space is a factor then the all-in-one’s can be good, but just remember if and all-in-one breaks, the whole unit may not work. If space isn’t a factor I always recommend separate machines: fax, scanner, printer but depending on how much you use it the all-in-ones can be great.

Did that help? If so or not feel free to email me and I’ll be glad to offer advice.

A few easy steps to attempt a repair: (1) make sure the printer is powered on and plugged into your computer since that can be a simple fix. (2) If you can find the manual (or google the manual) and learn how to print a “test page” this might tell you if the printer is working properly. (3) And/or try powering off the printer and the computer and powering them both back on.

(4) Or is it the printer? Are there any red lights on the printer? Is the printer flashing any lights? This might indicate that it’s a problem with the printer and the manual can help you decode what the printer is blinking at you about.

(5) Larger Fix: Try going to the Apple menu (upper left hand corner of your screen) –> system preferences –> printing or print & fax. Then: (a) Click on the problem printer and click the minus – sign, then (b) click the plus + sign and see if the printer is listed and attempt to re-add the printer.

Restart your machine and keep your fingers crossed. Usually most printing problems are the “drivers” which a geek can easily re-install. If you feel brave ask me about deleting preference files!

Traditional media-focused PR is certainly taking its hits – newspapers, magazines, investigative reportage are all slowly changing. And many folks who worked in these fields have had to change with the times. They all explore the on-line media world, find and nurture respected industry bloggers, and start social media campaigns for clients. And the faster the industry changes, the more obvious it becomes that just knowing new technology and new media is not always enough.

Communications and messaging will only be enhanced with the new media. However, we must remember that Facebook, Linked-in and blogging are only a few elements of the communications mix – brochures, annual reports, promotions, trade shows, one-on-one briefings will be around for years to come. Communicators need to have enough experience to know how different audiences are getting information and how it is influencing their decision making process.

Another note frightening new communicators: good journalism will never go away. Even though the general public is reading shorter and shorter tweets and blogs, it does not mean everything that was taught in journalism school goes out the window. On the contrary. To be effective in the new media, we need to go back to the basics of journalism and choose our words carefully for maximum effect. If the quality of writing does not engage the new media audience, our efforts can easily be clicked into oblivion.

The key to all media – both traditional a new — is content. This is where seasoned PR folks have the most to offer. They understand how to message and create content. They understand how a client’s message fits in with the other news trends of the day and how it relates to what else is going on at the world. The key to making the most of new and evolving media is to craft great content and deliver it through the channel/media that’s most appropriate for the audience. And PR pros have been doing that for years. They bring years of writing, communicating and analytic experience to the table. While social media provides a valuable tool, the people using it need to know when and how to use it effectively. Even though a company has a facebook page or a blog, they will not necessarily meet business goals unless there is careful consideration of the principal goals of communication. New campaigns need to have strategic plans, a well-investigated knowledge of key audiences, an analysis of various communications tools, and honed skills to manage communications.

And these days, the old guys have moved into the new millenium faster than the time it will take the young bucks to get decades of experience in the field.

Phil Siegel is principal at MediaWorks and an old buzzard who has stepped into new media to offer the best PR available.