Introduction
Welcome to the Get-it-sorted.com newsletter. I hope you find it informative and useful. Please feel free to pass this newsletter onto your friends and colleagues.
You have received this email because I thought you might find it useful. I would appreciate your feedback on the newsletter and if you have any questions you would like answered in future newsletters then please let me know.
World Wide Web
Did you know the world wide web was invented in 1989 by
Tim Bernes-Lee, well actually he invented HTML (Hyper-Text Markup Language) which is the mechanism by which web pages are rendered (and how this newsletter is formed!).
He created the web by allowing the publication of documents which linked to other documents and these documents could be located on different machines
and different networks, creating a mechanism for "surfing" the information. His next aim is to create a "semantic web" this would be a web where instead of entering a query "hotels in palm springs"
you could enter a more specific query into your search engine "all hotels with rooms under $180 which are available on 14th August for 7 nights" and
the search engine would be able to return the available rooms and rates for all the hotels within your search criteria
- The new "semantic web" would be a more structured approach and would allow extensive data mining.
Faster but is it better?
With all the talk in the I.T. World about
dual core processors and
gigabit networks, what does this actually mean, do we really need all
this new power? What actual business benefits does one get for all these advancements? Well we take a more pragmatic approach, what are the
costs vs. benefits of having all this speed? Doing things faster doesn't always mean they are more efficient, for example, if you run a gigabit
network and have a new super backup tape drive, then you would expect your backups to fly and be finished in a fraction of the time compared to what
it used to take. BUT the backup load on the server being backed up can be considerable and it's more than likely especially if the server is heavily
loaded or rather old - you would end up overloading it and if it's a web server or application server then this could mean it goes off-line during the
backup period. Where as taking a slower backup allows the system to continue to run with minimal impact. Basically it's all about matching your I.T.
with your current infrastructure and equipment and ensuring it all fits together nicely - sure technology advances and it's nice to have the best and
latest but if this means it doesn't fit into what you already have then it is going to be wiser to plan an upgrade to that outdated server to match with
the new technology or to simply find a solution which fits in with the speeds and capacities of the technology already in place.
Planning an upgrade is the most important aspect, ensuring that it is going to be able to deliver what you are expecting and so you have time to
investigate the potential issues which you want to avoid - like the backup routine overloading the server.
It's often not about having the latest technology which can make you feel safe and secure in the knowledge you couldn't have spent your money on anything better,
but about the knowledge and care in which an upgrade is planned is implemented.
Piecemeal acquisition is one of the main issues with getting I.T. to work for you, running a business demands solutions often at short notice and having to plan to have a solution
can be restrictive to the business but proper planning is essential. Buying consistent hardware which matches your I.T. strategy means that you can run your business in
a reliable and consistent manner - for example, purchasing a laptop would seem to be a fairly easy choice when choosing it for personal use but when choosing it for business use things get a
little more complicated because it's the business requirements which override the user "requirements".
These needs can be as simple as having a consistent supply of reliable hardware which has a good track record for support and replacement for
failed parts. The last thing a business needs to be down because the laptop or computer which looks just fantastic but is in the repair shop.
Strategy is the key to a reliable I.T. infrastructure which works for you. Having consistency amongst your desktops and laptops in operating systems and software that is loaded on them results in a lower cost in the long run because the support and management of the systems is less than having mismatched systems.
Last month I talked about printers and computer power consumption, by choosing your printer manufacturer carefully and ensuring that the products they offer meet your needs as well as your pocket - you can reduce your long-term exposure to increasing costs through faulty hardware, expensive consumables and lost productive time.
One of the most important costs to a business is the lost time spent dealing with issues - which can either be mitigated or eradicated.
Inside Track
Domain Name Service
The Domain Name Service (DNS) is the system by which all internet computer and service names, like the world wide web are resolved and their hosts found. But did you know that the WHOIS database holds all the domain names which have been registered and is the authoritative source for those internet names.
The
ICANN (Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers) is based in Washington USA and acts on behalf of the whole computer using community. However in recent years there has been a movement to remove this USA domination and have the ICANN run and answerable to a consortium of representative countries. The USA is currently reluctant to relinquish this control. The ICANN are the people who decide on what the TLD (Top Level Domain) names actually are, eg. .com or .info, and recently they have been debating the use of .xxx for adult content websites - this has the advantage of being easily blocked and controlled - so that this aspect of the internet can be brought under control, but there are concerns that this would actually encourage adult content sites and not actually benefit the internet community as a whole.
Domain and Internet services
Domain Registrations
We are now able to act as a domain name registrar for most domain names and registrations start from £15 +VAT for two years (£7.50 per year +VAT), if you are thinking of getting or changing your internet presence then please feel free to
contact me to discuss this further.
Web Mail
We offer competitively priced web mail services to your own domain name at £25. To view a pdf about webmail then
download and view it here.
WHOIS Privacy
The ICANN require all domain names to have valid contact details for billing,administration and technical purposes for all domains in the WHOIS database - this database is viewable by anyone on the internet - if you would like to keep your information private then for an additional charge of £7 per year we can ensure you are not listed in the WHOIS database.
Web Hosting
We are able to offer webhosting at competitive rates on both Linux and Windows Platforms - please feel free to contact us with your requirements.
Full Price List
