Archive for January, 2010

Don’t Get Locked Out

Sunday, January 31st, 2010

This past week at our Clifton Park NY office a person came in who had changed their password and when they attempted to get back into their computer, found they could no longer access it.

Fortunately we had the techs with the proper tools to help the person, so it just cost them a little time money and definitely unneeded stress.  To help others Eliminate the HI-Tech Frustration in their lives, we have documented the instructions.

Note, you need to be using Microsoft Windows 7 as the operating system to take advantage of this feature.  Windows 7 comes with the ability to create a password reset disk in the event you forget your password, it gets reset and no longer works or for any other reason.

With the password reset disk a major issue and/or cost is averted.  All it takes is a few minutes of your time and following the instructions on this page.

To create a password reset disk in Window 7, follow the steps below.

1)     Have a USB drive or removable memory handy

2)     Click on the Start button

3)     Click on the Control Panel button

4)     Click on the User Accounts button (If you are using Category view, click on User Accounts and Family Safety first)

5)     Insert your memory into the computer

6)     Click the link “Create a password reset disk” in the left navigation bar

7)     Choose the proper drive from the list

8)     Enter your current password

9)     Click Next

10)  Remember to stop the USB or memory service before you remove the memory device

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A Good Example of a Bad User Interface

Sunday, January 24th, 2010

The user interface and information provided by Time Warner for their cable and video recorder seems to date back to the dark ages.  How such a large company can produce something so under-whelming in 2010 is a wonder.

Many times on a Sunday looking ahead to the week, I am amazed to find that their guide stops at Wednesday.  How can it be they do not know what is on Thursday night.  I could even guess and probably be 75% correct.

Why is it that the description is so poor for many shows (sometimes only displaying the title of the program)?  Shouldn’t they know what the program is about?  Wouldn’t it benefit their customers to provide more information?

The ability to record shows is also very limiting.  Why is there no function to record only new episodes?

If this were 2000, well maybe an excuse could be given.  But with all the great examples of information services and user interfaces and the resources available to Time Warner, such a poor user experience is inexcusable.

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Who’s In Control??

Wednesday, January 20th, 2010

Using Technology to Take Control of Your Life and Eliminate HI-Tech Frustrations

Many of the executives I speak with on a regular basis are frustrated and stressed out because of all the demands on their time.  Between training staff, putting out fires, making sure nothing falls through the cracks, answering the phone and handling email, there seems to be no time for planning and as Michael Gerber says, “Working on the business, not in the business.”

And as much as a help hi-tech tools like BlackBerry’s and text messaging are, they can also be detrimental to your success and the success of your business if they are controlling you and your time.

Picture this: you finally get some quiet time for business planning and development.  You instruct your staff that you are not to be interrupted unless there is a fire.  You are doing pretty well, you’re on a roll when all of a sudden you get the famous “you’ve got mail” sound from Microsoft Outlook.

Like many people, you open your inbox to see what it is.  One of your customers needs a quote.  So you stop what you’re doing and send them the quote.  You get back into your business focus and all of a sudden realize you may have put in an incorrect price.  You start to panic a little and take a look.  Sure enough you gave them your price instead and just lost any profit from this sale and possibly future ones as well.  Now you’re totally frustrated and ticked off, and planning is done for this day.

Disabling automatic sending and receiving email in Outlook puts you in control and gives you a second or third chance to review email before it is sent.

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Let Technology Help You

Friday, January 1st, 2010

BlackBerry’s, iPhones, Google’s android and other smart-phones are great for keeping journal entries.  While you can certainly purchase specific applications, creating either a note or a daily appointment works great for monitoring your progress.

Assign different ring tones to your cell phone so you will be able to distinguish if the phone needs to be answered.

Turn off the phone while reading, meditating, concentrating or exercising.  Everyone needs “me” time.

If you’re driving and the weather is not good or the traffic is heavy, turn the cell phone off.  A distraction for even the briefest of moments could contribute to an incident.

Set your email not to automatically send and receive email.  Take control by manually checking your email when it is convenient for you.  Set aside specific times of the day which work best for your schedule.

Think before you press the send or submit button.  Make sure the message you are sending will be beneficial.

While technology is great, it is meant to compliment our lives, not intrude upon them.

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