ATECH MSP Blog

Believe it or not, the Internet we rely on so much is only accessible by half of the world today. It can be hard to grasp, considering the effectively-constant access that we have, but more than three and a half billion people in the world lack the means to access any of it. However, Google started to change that years ago, when it created an R&D facility known as Google X.

If someone has spent any time around a computer, they will have (at least anecdotally) become familiar with the dreaded BSoD - the Blue Screen of Death. This fatal error has been the cause of much lost productivity and expensive support calls over the years, but despite its notoriety, not many know why it happens at all. That’s precisely what we’ll cover below, along with a few ways to diagnose the root problem.

The facts are that data is lost, data is stolen, and you have no idea where it has gone. You may come to find out where subsequently, but many times, personal information isn’t much like a cat: once it goes away, you’ll likely never see it again. Today, we will look at the seedy underbelly of the Internet in search of our lost and stolen personally identifiable information.

Every IT infrastructure needs a server to ensure that information is spread properly throughout the network. However, while servers were once tied to the business’ location, now they are also able to be virtualized in a cloud solution. This brings forth the question: which is better for your business’ needs? Let’s determine that by comparing and contrasting these two server options.

The cloud has transformed the way people work; and, as a result people rely on it for more than ever. Some businesses have all their computing resources in the cloud, while many others utilize it for software as a service, communication tools, and other major parts of their business’ IT. The more businesses start relying on cloud-hosted computing resources, the more these cloud resources are being wasted. Since they come at a premium price, businesses are beginning to discover that they are wasting money on their cloud.

Internet scams are major threats to individuals and business because all it takes is one wrong click of the mouse and a user is embroiled in an unenviable situation. One such scam that is happening today is designed to catch users with their pants down, so to speak.

Now that the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)--the most comprehensive individual data protection law in history--has gone into effect, it is important to know where your business stands in regard to your potential liability. One technology that has a rather lot of ambiguity surrounding it is blockchain, which is essentially an encrypted and distributed digital ledger. How is the development of blockchain, which is built on the idea of security through transparency, going to fare under the guidelines of the new GDPR regulations?

The public cloud is a massive industry with around $150 billion in annual revenues. Nearly half of that revenue is tied up in software as a service which has grown by about 20 percent a year for the past five years, and now makes up for over a third of all applications used in the world. Today, we will take a look at software as a service (SaaS) and why you should consider it, if you don’t use it already.

One of the most important parts of the medical field is maintaining efficiency and data access for both its patients and medical professionals. It’s not a surprise that the best way to achieve this is through medical technology solutions--a specialized field of IT solutions that is showing incredible growth, particularly in recent years. We’ll go over a couple of predictions we have concerning the future of medical IT, including how the field will grow and what methods will be adopted.

A justifiable fear drives the data backup market. With all the emerging threats coming from the web, it’s hard to imagine that any company that uses the web for more than just email wouldn’t have a strategy in place to quickly replace lost data. A high percentage of small businesses fail as a result of data-loss incidents so when it comes to the continuity of your business, how you recover your data can be as important as protecting it in the first place.

It’s a scene familiar from many science fiction movies: a simulation pulled up on a screen, the effects of some proposed action being predicted and demonstrated, telling the heroes that their plan just might work. As it happens, this kind of process is no longer relegated to the sci-fi genre, and is used practically in many industries. Here, we’ll discuss the phenomenon of the digital twin.

The analysis of data is important for every business. Some data is more important than others, but ultimately, if you want your business to thrive you will want to know exactly how your business is doing so that you can make educated decisions that won’t waste your organization's time and money. Today, we will look at three reports that every business, no matter what size or what industry it operates in, should be running.

Have you noticed that the difference between this year’s latest and greatest smartphone isn’t much different than the one you shelled out big bucks for last year? You aren’t alone.

Managed IT services are a great way to make your small business take advantage of a smaller budget while still getting all of the services that are critical to everyday success. One of the best ways you accomplish this is by using proactive maintenance to ensure unforeseen issues are accounted for. If a managed service provider only solved issues after they appeared, then it wouldn’t be any different from your typical break-fix IT solution. We take proactive measures to save your business in the long run.

If you need to make something very clear about a document, adding a watermark to it is an excellent route to take. Microsoft Word 2016 (if you have Office 365, this applies too) makes it especially easy to do so. For this week’s tip, we’ll review the process of adding a watermark to your Word documents.

Spreadsheets are great for organizing information, but they aren’t particularly interesting to look at--especially if you aren’t using Microsoft Excel to the best of your ability. Today’s tip is dedicated to going over some of the more obscure Microsoft Excel tips and tricks that will help you stylize your spreadsheets and make them more dynamic.

A lot is being made about running smarter businesses. Many businesses are looking to their data to try and work out how to build a better business. Two terms you typically hear during this conversation are business intelligence and business analysis. Today, we will take a look at the two terms, decipher their meaning, how they are different from one another, and how they can help you determine the resources a business needs to improve itself.

You can never be too careful about what you install on your computers. In this most recent example, Google Chrome users are finding themselves targeted by a new type of malware called Nigelthorn.

Managed IT service is a great way for the small business to save money on their IT support costs while still getting the coverage they need. One of the ways that an MSP is able to keep their costs down is by proactive maintenance. If an MSP had to fix every computer problem a company had after it became a problem, the service would largely be untenable for the small business. Today, we look at the proactive maintenance feature of our IT management strategy and how our clients save a lot of money as a result.

Ahh, the Internet. It’s an incredible tool that helps people all over the world get work done on a daily basis. It’s often thought of as a tool to achieve a means, but like any other tool, it works best alongside others just like it. Plug-ins are additional ways that web-based applications and software solutions help make your use of them even better.