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PLUSS
Corporation Newsletter November 04
2.)
PTM - Quick Tips
3.)
President Bush recently signed into law an economic
stimulus provision
4.)
Network Connectivity and reasons for Failure
5.)
Snake Oil Sales Peak in the 21st Century
6.)
Control
& Effective Management of your Business
(Part III of 8)
7.)
Applied Cryptography - I know what you did last
session
9.)
Product Showcase for November
PLUSS Corporation would
like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!
PLUSS Corporation will
be closed November 25th and November 26th.
Several of our
consultants have been training onsite this month and have reported back great
enthusiasm with our constituents. It is
exciting to see our customers succeed, we love being a part of this!.
PTM has released the beta version of the new 32-bit Echelon Suite, the replacement for Part Time Manager (PTM). There are several beta
sites currently running the software to help with development. Stay tuned for more information on this
revolutionary
business management solution.
PLUSS Corporation is
proud to acknowledge that Jeremy Martin has achieved the
credential of Certified Ethical
Hacker or CEH from EC-Council. This credential proves that he possess the knowledge and skills to effectively audit
network security and
security policies. Jeremy is now working for the Computer
Hacking Forensics Investigator or Computer
Hacking Forensics Investigator or CHFI. This allows PLUSS Corporation to offer
courses in professional hacking, computer forensics, disaster recovery,
advanced networking, and a boot camp for the CISSP.
For more information
about the CEH and CHFI, please visit http://www.eccouncil.org
PTM
*
(Q.O.D.) From the PTM
main menu. Transaction Invoice Register
*
(Q.C.O.K) From the PTM
main menu. Receivables report for invoices
paid from date to date
* In K Customer
Maintenance at: Acct. Type R/W/F/L WO Type R/W/F/L
The first field, Acct.
Type, is used to set the basic pricing level for invoices and work orders. If
you want to price parts you sell to this
customer at a different price level
for work orders then enter that price level at the WO Type R/W/F/L field.
Comments from Timeclock users:
Bringing Touch Screen
Timeclock into my business has increased labor revenue10% these past 6
months.!!! Previously it was too easy
for parts to be missed and not billed to
the customer. But now with Timeclock and the Group and Sub-Group feature my
employees can
apply them directly to the work order, we have realized $450-$600
a month in part sales that where not getting billed.
Southwest Truck, Tucson,
AZ
3). President Bush recently signed into
law an economic stimulus provision
President Bush recently
signed into law an economic stimulus provision that will benefit you and others
in the computer and information
industries.
The recent tax law changes include an extension (until Dec. 31, 2007) of
Section 179 of the U.S. tax code, allowing small
businesses to expense up to
$100,000 of their capital purchases each year. Rather than having to depreciate
capital purchases over many
years (the number of years is set by the IRS, with
five years for hardware and two years for software), small businesses have the
option to
deduct up to $100,000 in the year of purchase. As such, this
provision will help you sell or purchase your products and services, because
approximately one-third of a small business' capital expenses in an average
year are for IT hardware and software.
If you are also a small
business, you can use the extension for your own capital investments, too
(please consult your tax advisor to see
how you can take advantage of Section
179 to reduce your 2004 tax liabilities). Take advantage of this great benefit.
HARDWARE
4.) Network Connectivity and reasons
for Failure
There are many network/computer issues that may
rise up in a shop environment.
These issues range from network slowdowns to loss of data. It is very important to have a cable company test the network
cabling and switches on an annual basis. You
also need to test for a dual ground on the electrical circuit and any possible
interference coming through the cabling. Interference can be caused by a number of sources such as
cable being to close to florescent lights, electrical wiring, and more.
For example, welding equipment has been known to cause noise interference
so severe, that data is destroyed and computers cannot see each other on the
network. Attenuation or network cable length beyond the capability of
the cable creates signal degradation and is a common cause of network failure.
90% of the network problems we come across are due to hardware failure.
The other 10% break down to network configuration or Operating system
failure. Once the hardware and
network architecture is properly setup and functional, the foundation for any
system will be manageable.
Read more: http://www.pluss.net/htmlsupport/hardware/connection.html
Jeremy
Martin CISSP, ISSMP, ISSAP, CEH, CCNA, Network+, A+
MISCELLANEOUS
5.) Snake Oil Sales Peak in the 21st Century
Let's say you own and operate a Heavy Duty Service Shop, you are advertising for a technician. An ASE Certified technician from the Lexus dealership arrives at your office for an interview. What would you do? It's not that this person isn't knowledgeable in what they do, but somehow they don't quite fit your shop do they?
Yet this is what is happening in the world of technology. Someone says they work with computers and it is automatically assumed that they can handle a full network. Setting up and maintaining a PC based network is not child's play. Time and time again we see poorly setup networks that end up destroying a business' efficiency and self-reliance. This situation is a result of no strict guidelines or requirements; virtually anyone can pass himself or herself as a computer tech. We want to help you locate a local qualified hardware technician and eliminate the "Snake Oil Salesman".
The
sad reality is; over 85 percent of the Hardware Technicians we work with are
not qualified or knowledgeable enough to setup a true
PC based network let
alone support it. Customers pay these
unqualified Technicians to setup the network and then end up paying our
staff
to troubleshoot the issues created.
Even worse is the fact that these un-qualified technicians also talk
customers into purchasing
extremely expensive Hardware that is loaded with
unnecessary extras that do more harm then good. Using an unqualified and
un-professional Hardware Technician may
seem like it will save some money because the hourly rate is cheaper, but the trouble
and expense
caused exceed any front-end savings.
Your Hardware and Network setup determines the success and efficiency of your Business Management Software. Do not skimp in this area, but also recognize that you do not need all the bells and whistles available. Hardware is outdated the minute it hits the open market, plan on upgrading every two years for financial and for usability reasons but only purchase what you need.
Next month we will have some questions that you can ask when looking for a local Hardware and Network Consultant, along with some helpful hints. In the meanwhile feel free to call our staff - Hardware Consultation and Evaluation is at a reduced rate through the end of 2004.
Pamela R. Cowley, Director of Business Services
6.) Control & Effective Management of your
Business (Part III of 8)
In the last two newsletters I have provided stimuli to get you thinking
"outside the box" about your company. I
have heard from many
PTM users regarding this series and I am hearing several
common comments from the user group.
See if any of the following statements
have come to mind for you. "There is a whole lot more about business
than I realize"; "What I know about my company may not be as
important as what
I don't know"; "The more I try and understand my business the more I realize
what I don't understand". These
statements lead into the next area we will explore. Keep in mind that in the following months, even though we will be
exploring different
areas, they are all connected in one way or another. This months article will explore what I feel
is extremely important in the industry today:
ANTICIPATING CHANGE
As we all know, industry and business in general is changing more rapidly now than ever before in history. Why? Technological advancements such as computer and Operating System (OS) changes, peripheral changes, Web interface lookups and ordering, Website sales, increased competition, etc. Microsoft founder Bill Gates was recently quoted as saying "In the future, there will be two types of business, "E-Commerce business" and the other, "out-of-business". The frightful part about that statement is that some day it will more than likely be true. In the meantime, we all need to "Anticipate Change". If we fail to recognize and predict necessary change and then modify our business practices accordingly, we could jeopardize the ability to compete and thus force our businesses to fail completely. Most successful companies in the country are all about change and they are constantly making adjustments in their daily business practices to accommodate what the future will bring in the way of growth. They understand that not changing can develop into a false comfort level and a false sense of security. Even more importantly, they understand when it is time to let go of the past and look forward to change. We at PLUSS have found that a company that refuses to change has lost the feeling of "potential" and is hanging on to what is "comfortable". Why does a business refuse to change even when they know it is badly needed? The problem more than likely started when they attempted change in the past and did not achieve desired outcome. Add that failure to other failures and they have just given up trying. Through the failing process they have built in "fear of failure" and lost the vision of potential. What causes most business people to quit experimenting with change is that when there was an opportunity with potential, they failed in achieving desired outcome. When taking action with an opportunity that has potential, not all are going to be successful. However, the actions that are successful continually build belief that our desired outcome is real and achievable. The real difference between success and failure of new ideas is to never give up. We need to always view our potential as high and continually improve the action we take to generate the desired outcome. What we create then are a never-ending loop of successful outcomes! Remember these four words for next month: Potential, Action, Outcome, Belief!
Kenny Nau, Director of Sales
7.)
Applied Cryptography - I know what you did last session
While Janet was sitting in a cyber cafe sending emails to friends and surfing the web, there was a person sitting three tables away reading each email she sent before they ever got to the email server. During this period of time, the thief was able to get access to her bank account, passwords to several business websites, and her credit card number. Now imagine that you were the one sitting in the cafe. This scenario is not far from reality and the main reason that using cryptography is so important in today's technological world. Identity theft is a growing problem and there are ways you can help protect yourself from becoming the victim.
Most people think that cryptography is an island in the magical land of make believe. However, cryptography is very real and not as complex as most would have you believe. If you use the Internet, you are probably using some sort of applied cryptography in your day-to-day functions. When accessing your bank account to retrieve your monthly balance to purchasing automotive parts from a supplier, you are using cryptography. Companies use cryptography to make insure sensitive data stays intact and confidential between the intended parties. Cryptography is the art of converting messages into a secret code or cipher. This process alters a plaintext message using an algorithm to create a ciphertext/encrypted message.
Read more: http://www.pluss.net/articles/Applied-Cyptography-article.pdf
Jeremy
Martin CISSP, ISSMP, ISSAP, CEH, CCNA, Network+, A+
PRODUCTS AND SALES
The
time of the year is coming when you need to start thinking about tax forms like
the W-2 and the 1099. The W-2 has
changed since
2003 and last years envelopes will not fit. To order your forms, please contact PLUSS
Publishing at
1-800-835-9609 ext 232.
9.)
Product Showcase for November
Software Familiarization CD's for new employees. These CDs contain videos that help employees learn the basic features of the PTM software.
Special price of $95.00 through the end of the year 2004 (regularly $295.00)
****
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PLUSS
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5565 Hwy 2
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Columbia Falls, MT 59912
