October 1, 2013

Is Storage Trendy? Or Just Following a Technology Trend? Top Storage Trends
Ok, I know. Talking about storage solutions or what the top storage trends are is not exactly the #1 topic on people's minds. In fact, I would say that we all take storage for granted...that is, until we RUN OUT of storage or a hard drive crashes or our storage solution is incredibly slow. And, many of us simply don't…
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August 2, 2013

Coffee, Conversations and Commerce – The Barista Banter
There is something to be said about coffee. Not only does it get your brain firing on all cylinders (sometimes over-firing so don’t drink too much), but it also is a conversation starters. In fact, coffee seems to grease the gears of conversation. In recent years, the coffee house has become an “office away from the office” – a casual…
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July 23, 2013

On Infographics, Cloud and How NOT to Run a Small Business
Infographics seem to be one of the best ways to convey a message. More often than not, infographics compile industry statistics and tend to tell a compelling story. Some infographics can be complex while others are simply fun to read. One of the reasons for their success is due to their visual nature. As a result of high-resolution smartphones, better…
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June 4, 2013

To Boldly Go Where No MSP Has Gone Before
I'm a big Star Trek fan. I have watched reruns of the original Star Trek series many times over. I liked Star Trek Voyager and Deep Space Nine, and, most obviously, Star Trek The Next Generation. (Oh, and I do recommend the latest Star Trek movie.) Where am I going with this? Ideas evolve. Technology improves. New strategic teams are…
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May 21, 2013

14 Things to Consider When Choosing a Cloud Provider – Part 2
In Part 1 of my 2-part series “14 Things to Consider When Choosing a Cloud Provider” I walked you through several important evaluation criteria that you should consider when choosing a cloud provider. The topics covered in Part 1 are: Performance, Breadth of Service Offering, Ease of Use, Price, Support, SLA and Security. Do note that these items are not…
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May 14, 2013

14 Things to Consider When Choosing a Cloud Provider – Part 1
You should all know by now that the cloud is here to stay. It may be in one form or another and in various flavors (infrastructure, platform or application) and it may not be called "cloud" in a few years, but the concept of on-demand, pay-as-you-go, Internet-delivery, scalable, as-a-service functionality will persist. It's efficient, it's cost effective and it is…
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April 29, 2013

What Has Happened to Continuity?
Was it something I said or did? Why aren't you talking to me any more? Did I not do everything you asked? No, I'm not talking about dating here, although, in some way I sort of am. I am talking about being "dumped" by a brand. This is particularly painful if you are a blogger or content creator. Breakups are…
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March 22, 2013

15 Top Cloud Computing Use Cases
Cloud computing is established. And it has been proven by small and large businesses alike. Over the past 5 or so years, I have seen all types of companies adopting cloud computing as both primary and secondary sets of on-demand compute. Some cloud computing use cases are pretty traditional (e.g., a simple web presence) while others become extremely complex and…
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February 14, 2013

The 10 Best (and Worst) “Cloud Computing Explained” Videos on YouTube
Cloud Computing has been around for many, many years now. Ok, at least 5 years using the name "cloud computing." Ever since this new way of consuming compute, networking, storage and other infrastructure resources got off the ground, no pun intended...well, sort of...people and companies have tried to explain what exactly it is. From the barrage of written definitions "officially"…
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October 24, 2012

Agile Development & Big Data Management – Perfect for the Cloud
I’m a firm believer that cloud computing helps companies innovate. It provides resources, services and infrastructure at a fraction of the cost and in less time than it would with a traditional infrastructure rollout. By dramatically reducing internal times to deployment and capital expenditures, businesses are given the ability to iterate more quickly, be more competitive in releasing products and…
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October 9, 2012

10 Tips to Help You Understand Your Business Needs Before Focusing on Cloud
I think that perhaps all of this cloud hype is doing businesses a disservice. It’s everywhere. Even people on the street are talking about how their stuff is “in the cloud.” If you aren’t using cloud, you are behind the times and your technology is old and out of date. Cloud will make your teeth whiter, help your kids get…
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August 16, 2012

Cloud Means Freedom – Evolution & Revolution
When you think about earth-bound items, you think of things that are landlocked, tethered to a solid object or constrained by physicality. We, as a species are largely terrestrial, grounded with our feet on the ground and limited by gravity. For centuries if not millennia, humankind has dreamed and endeavored to break away from terra firma and soar beyond what…
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