Essentially, the plan addresses the who, what, where, why and when of recovery. Goal number one is to reduce the risk profile of the business. Goal two is to be well prepared so the impact of any disruption is minimized. Overall, the objective of the plan is to effectively minimize the chances of disruption and, if there is a disruption, to quickly implement the recovery and get the business or organization working again. The “why” is to maximize business continuity and minimize damages to company assets. Ultimately, the goal is to protect the organization from the key risks identified and to effectively implement the recovery strategies.

The “what” is a clear, detailed, but focused business continuity and disaster recovery plan, a plan that provides a successful road map to minimize business interruption and maximize business continuity.

The “who” refers to the teams. The recovery effort is focused through teams. While the Emergency Management Team is the leader of the recovery efforts, other teams could include: IT, telecommunications, facilities and power, customer relations, public relations, billing, customer service, and human resources.

The “where” is, of course, company facilities, but it’s also other alternate sites, location of all employees and the ability to find and communicate with employees. Effectively organizing and deploying employees is the most fundamental requirement for successful recovery.

And finally, there is the question of “when.” Unfortunately, hackers, hurricanes, fires and other risks seldom follow our agenda. The “when” we can control is the “when” of lowering the company’s risk profile by implementing solutions before the problem develops. “When”, of course, also has to do with the priorities of the recovery. These hopefully would be in place as a result of selecting effective strategies.

If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there. The business continuity and disaster recovery plan is the road map to get you to your destination of minimizing risks, mitigating damages and reducing your risk profile.

About The Author

Robert Mahood has significant technology and management experience in data communications, internet, storage, disaster recovery and data recovery. He is currently the president of Midwest Data Recovery. www.midwestdatarecovery.com

bmahood@midwestdatarecovery.com, 866 786 2595, 312 907 2100

Wireless Consulting and Solution Providers have always been important to african american small businesses and now after several years of having the most technologically advanced homes in our neighborhood, we are beginning to realize that our neighbors could benefit from the same technology in educating our children. With the future our african american children are facing being dependent on computers and broadband access it is critical to have the proper tools for our children to have the confidence necessary to face the future.

Psyche. There is a very good friend that is a Wireless Solution Provider in Chicago, whose wife “suggested” that he share his expertise with a neighbor who had been visiting his family’s computer homeschool. Well after one thing led to another he finally enabled about 18 african american computer homeschools in the Chicago area, thus becoming a african american homeschool resource for wireless.

This little story is related because while I myself was working in Chicago for 4 years, he came to me for assistance in selecting a networked computer system that would be affordable for his clients. I had success with using thin client computers before with african american owned small businesses, networking them through a small server and then upgrade them to an additional firewall for full strength protection. He tried this with one family and for around $1700 they received 2 thin pc’s and a server, they were excited to say the least. The thin pc benefits kept working for him and his clients over and over again when creating a computer homeschool.

Now I begin to work in North Texas and my sister “suggests” to me that I consult for a african american single mom in Dallas. *Side note… for those who perhaps may be uninformed about my use of the word “suggest” let me share with you how an african american woman “suggests” anything to men. First she will begin by asking you to handle a certain situation and if you don’t respond correctly (never have, never will, women are smarter) the next level of the speech will be at a volume that will make the suggestion clear.

Back to the benefits of thin client and how they make an excellent option.

Thin clients have no CD drive, floppy drive, and don’t look for a hard drive because it’s on the server the actual workhorse of the network. The point is that it is ‘thin’ and most of the really hard work is done by another computer with all the bells and whistles as it needs them to ‘manage’ the thin pc’s. That alone saves you money, and when it comes time to upgrade (and you know it’s coming), all your processing power is actually in the server that manages your network.

Even if you do have to replace one of your thin pc’s, it costs $500 or less and a full blown fat desktop starts at $900 on up. Installing thin client networks are a breeze, setup the server and load it with the software you need to use, plug in the wireless thin client pc’s and go for it! Lower upfront costs, easy to upgrade and install makes this a better option for today’s computing homeschool.

Daviyd Peterson: 10-year consultant, instructor, trainer
Helps african american homeschools bridge the digital divide by becoming computer homeschools. Free article on “Computer Homeschooling” and other related articles http://www.homeschoolwireless.com/homeschoolwireless.htm

Investments in shares of wireless technology companies and wireless service providers have been particularly profitable in the post-dot com era. The wireless industry is in a sweet spot of the technology space. Bountiful business opportunities exist as wireless usage continues to increase in both developed and emerging markets. And driving this usage higher are new products such as smartphones whose capabilities are being augmented by the deployment of third generation (3G) wireless networks.

Feature-Rich Smartphones.

Smartphones are more than mobile phones. A smartphone is a mobile phone with built-in functions of a personal digital assistant. Smartphones pack a diverse range of features and functionalities into the handset that makes them a mobile information center and entertainment device for the user.

Smartphones commonly include features such as web browsing, e-mail, and multimedia capabilities. Certain models have enough horse power to run complex software applications such as enterprise customer relationship software and car navigation programs.

A full-featured QWERTY-type keyboard, MP3 player, and Geo Positioning Systems capability are becoming common among higher-end smartphones. Instant messaging is a cool feature making its way into the mainstream.

Smartphones, A Growing Segment of the Handset Market.

Smartphones represent a small, yet rapidly growing, segment of the handset market. According to Strategy Analytics, smartphone sales at 17.5 million units in 2004 accounted for 3% of the worldwide sales of 684 million handsets. However, this represents a significant jump from the 8.2 million units sold in 2003.

The demand for smartphones is projected to grow rapidly in the coming years. By 2009, the number of smartphone units sold is estimated to reach 125 million or 16% of total handset sales worldwide. This implies a 48% compound annual growth rate in smartphone unit shipments over the 2004-2009 period.

Smartphone Early Adoption Led by Asia and Europe.

Adoption of smartphones has been particularly rapid in Asia and Europe. The aggressive deployment of advanced wireless networks in these regions has encouraged early adoption of smartphones.

The Asia Pacific region currently accounts for about 37% of global smartphone sales with South Korea and Japan being leaders in smartphone usage. The European market accounts for 27% of global smartphone sales. Analysts expect smartphone sales in Europe to exceed sales in the Asian market in the coming years. North America’s market share in smartphone sales was expected to reach 25% by the end of 2004.

Nokia, the 800 lb. Gorilla of Smartphones.

Nokia (NYSE: NOK) is by far the dominant global smartphone manufacturer. The Finnish company is currently estimated to command half to two-thirds share of the global smartphone market.

Nokia recently introduced its feature-rich Nokia 7710 smartphone in Europe and Africa. The wide-screen Nokia 7710 smartphone includes a full Internet browser, an integrated music player, a camera with 2x digital zoom, and a FM radio. One of the nifty features of the Nokia 7710 smartphone is its ability to make weblogging mobile. Users can post pictures and text from the Nokia 7710 smartphone directly to the web through the ‘moblog’ client.

Nokia is also expected to introduce the Nokia 3230 smartphone in the first quarter of 2005. The Nokia 3230 smartphone features a video recorder and ‘Movie Director’ that will allow 1 hour of video to be captured.

Nokia is now increasingly looking at software licensing deals to help differentiate itself from its competitors. Nokia has recently signed licensing deals with Macromedia and RealNetworks. Nokia is also said to be working on handsets that will receive wireless television feeds.

Smartphone Investment Implications.

The increasing adoption of smartphones augurs well not only for Nokia but also for other smartphone manufacturers like palmOne (Nasdaq: PLMO) and Research In Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM). palmOne recently introduced the GSM edition of its Treo 650 smartphone. Research in Motion recently released the latest model in its BlackBerry 7100 series, the 7100g.

The incorporation of additional features and functionalities that make smartphones the portable information center and entertainment device of choice has bullish implications beyond just manufacturers of smartphones.

Wireless service providers like Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) should see their average revenue per user being buffeted with increasing use of value-added services that smartphones enable.

Then too, the increasing adoption and usage of smartphones will require the rollout of 3G wireless networks in earnest, translating into business opportunities for wireless network equipment providers such as Ericsson (Nasdaq: ERICY).

Notes: This report is for information purposes only. Nothing herein should be construed as an offer to buy or sell securities or to give individual investment advice. This report does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation, and particular needs of any specific person who may receive this report. The information contained in this report is obtained from various sources believed to be accurate and is provided without warranties of any kind. AlphaProfit Investments, LLC does not represent that this information, including any third party information, is accurate or complete and it should not be relied upon as such. AlphaProfit Investments, LLC is not responsible for any errors or omissions herein. Opinions expressed herein reflect the opinion of AlphaProfit Investments, LLC and are subject to change without notice. AlphaProfit Investments, LLC disclaims any liability for any direct or incidental loss incurred by applying any of the information in this report. The third-party trademarks or service marks appearing within this report are the property of their respective owners. All other trademarks appearing herein are the property of AlphaProfit Investments, LLC. Copyright © 2005 AlphaProfit Investments, LLC. All rights reserved.

Sam Subramanian, PhD, MBA is Managing Principal of AlphaProfit Investments, LLC. He edits the AlphaProfit Sector Investors’ Newsletter?, a publication that discusses investments using Fidelity mutual funds. For the 5 year period ending December 31, 2004, during which the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index declined 6.9%, the AlphaProfit model portfolios increased by up to 186.2%, an average annual return of 23.4%. To learn more about AlphaProfit and to subscribe to the FREE newsletter, visit http://www.alphaprofit.com .

Lost & Found for the 21st Century

In today’s hectic world more and more people are turning to those handy gadgets and mobile products that can be taken with them anywhere they go. The more things consumers own, the more they’re prone to lose them. This in mind we actually went out and tested a new service on the UK market from Want it Bak. Lets see what Londoners are really made of.

We left a Palm m130 PDA on the Jubilee Line of the London Underground, a Sony Ericcson Mobile on the number 15 bus route, a Blackberry "email on the move" gizmo down in a local pub in South West London and a rucksack sitting in Starbucks Chancery Lane area. Lastly we left a digital camera sitting out in the open in Hyde park. Not the easiest thing leaving items lying about in this highly security conscious world we live in these days.

Here in the 21st century our lives have become more and more reliant on mobile items. As we go through our days, keeping a mental log of everything we have and where we have it becomes more and more difficult. It is inevitable that some things get lost. In fact as stated in a recent research "Around 62,000 mobile phones were left in London taxis during the last six months. That’s an average three phones per taxi, according to a survey of licensed London cabbies by the Taxi Newspaper and Pointsec Mobile Technologies. Absent minded and drunken travellers also forgot 4,000 laptops and 5,000 PDA’s when exiting cabs".

So what can we do to have give us some reassurance that we have at least a chance of getting our valuable or even sentimental items back.

In steps lost and found for the 21st century in the form of Want it Bak. The service is based around the belief that most people are actually honest and will do the right thing if a method is offered to them. This feel good factor is enhanced by the added incentive of a reward for doing the right thing.

Anything you can imagine, mobile phones, keys, cameras, PDA’s, laptops, binoculars, backpacks, passports, briefcases, wallets and purses, golf clubs, power tools, textbooks, credit cards, cheque books… you get the picture, it can all be protected using their simple system.

How does Want it Bak work? Simple. You purchase a range of security tags each with their own unique id number. You register them with Want it Bak and that’s it. If you ever lose the item and someone finds it they contact Want it Bak directly using their website or their 0800 number and they arrange a courier to pick it up and return it to the owner for a small admin charge.

One of the best things about this service is the confidential nature of it. The "Finder" never knows who the owner is and vice versa. Reassuring for owners of expensive items, they can now safely retrieve their possessions.

“It’s a great incentive for people to do the right thing”, says Chris Cameron from Want it Bak, “Our research shows that most people are actually honest and the biggest barrier they have to returning items is the hassle of finding out who it belongs to, arranging delivery or pick up, getting the time to drop the item off at the local police station. Now they don’t have to do anything except ring us or visit our website, and they get a Reward for their troubles”.

The “Finders” themselves are offered a basic reward of £10 gift pack of Want it Bak Labels. Additionally the finders may also receive gift vouchers, shop discounts, trial packs and much more. Customers may also offer an optional CASH reward to Finders as a thank you to the person for taking the time to contact Want it Bak.

Want it Bak organises Couriers to pick up and delivery directly to you your lost item. As a customer of Want it Bak you are only charged if an item is lost. No ongoing monthly subscriptions or fees. Just a basic Administration charge when an item is found of £25 which includes next day courier delivery UK wide. A small price to pay for the return of your personal items.

"This service is invaluable" say Russell Lewis of Chelsea, an actual benefactor having signed up from the start. "A few weeks back while travelling home in a Black Cab I left my portfolio containing vital customer information and demonstration CD-ROMs. It would of taken me weeks, if ever at all, to redo everything. Before the end of the day Want it Bak had taken a call and I had arranged for it to be sent straight back to me. This is an amazing service, it was all so easy."

So how did we go with our test? Well Want it Bak claim an 80% return rate, which works out to about 5 out of 6 items. It seems Londoners are more honest that we thought. The camera was found by someone in Hyde Park and within the hour Want it Bak had taken the call and arranged return. When originally registering this item we had offered £50 cash reward to the finder.

The "finder" Sam, an office worker was very impressed "I was out walking at lunch time and came across the camera just sitting there. Having personally lost my camera while holidaying in Greece earlier in the year I knew how annoyed the owner would be. The Want it Bak labels were visible enough and probably prompted me more to the right thing than if they hadn’t been there. The whole process only took me a couple of minutes when I got back to the office. Want it Bak arranged a time for the courier to come and they picked it up from me at work. Few days later my reward and £50 cheque turned up in the mail. Fantastic."

The PDA & Blackberry were also found by good Samaritans and returned. In fact the only thing still outstanding was the rucksack left in a Starbucks, strangely enough the least expensive of the 5 items. No doubt the cause of a police call out during these troubled times. The mobile phone turned up a couple of days later. No bad 4 out 5. Well done London.

Like most things these days there are no guarantees of course, but just the knowledge that for a small price you can have an additional type of insurance that works when you need it to.

www.wantitbak.com for more information.

We have finally advanced to a time when technology can greatly improve graphics and printing. The technology we have at our disposal now is so advanced we are able to produce inkjet printers capable of printing proofs so accurate they can actually represent the end product. This type of advanced technology has provided businesses with a major advantage over the competition in todays cut throat business world.

The printer industry has come a long way since the antiquated days of dot matrix printers. Even the early inkjet printers suffered from numerous problems such as clogging the print heads with dried ink when not in use and constant ink leaks. The amazing advances in inkjet technology has allowed many businesses to become far more self sufficient in terms of producing their own brochures and sales material.

For example, the new Epson Stylus Pro series printer uses chrome seven color ink advancement technology. With this product, users are still able to make use of the usual CMYK colors; however they also now have the option to utilize light cyan, light magenta, and gray. The addition of these three extra colors is anticipated to greatly enhance the overall picture quality the printer is capable of producing. The inkjet industry has come a long way indeed and now even home users can achieve more fantastic graphical output than they ever thought possible.

While the inkjet industry continues to evolve and develop a number of companies are making the decision to specialize in the inkjet industry. Xennia, an independent company, is just one of these companies. Since they moved to inkjet specialization, Xennia has built a solid reputation for their expertise in all aspects of the inkjet process. This company’s ability to keep up

with the constantly changing aspects of the inkjet industry is just one of the many reasons they have seen so much success. Regardless of whether the consumer is looking for information on ink, printheada or print media and platforms; Xennia is sure to have made ground breaking advancements. Xennia also offers classes to better enable individuals and corporations to fully understand the ever changing technology in the field of inkjet. Making use of the cutting edge technological services available at companies like Xennia is just one of the ways many corporations are finding to stay ahead of future competition.

The printing world is evolving right before our eyes. In 2003, the inkjet industry celebrated a ten year anniversary for the introduction of dpi inkjet printers. Over the last decade, the inkjet industry has emerged to become a giant in the printing industry. With the current rate of expansion who knows what tomorrow will bring? It will be interesting to watch the inkjet story unfold.

This article was provided courtesy of Inkjet Printables.com. On the website you’ll find tons of useful information on inkjet accessories and tons of other inkjet consumables.

Ok, you’ve got your site built, you have traffic coming to it, a good product at a reasonable price…. hmmm… what else do you need?

What else could increase your conversion rate?

Audio!

All right I know what you’re thinking… “Why should I go to all of the trouble of adding audio to my web site?”

Because it can increase your sales by up to 35%!! That’s why.

Adding streaming audio it isn’t as hard as you have been led to believe and you don’t even have to pay a monthly fee either. You can start with sound recorder (Pre-installed on every Windows computer) and the free microphone that came with your computer.

Some of the things you can do with audio to enhance your site are:

* Create audio greetings

* Create audio testimonials

* Narrate tutorials

* Create audio ezines

* Add audio files for your visitors to download

* Create audio articles

* Add your band’s music clips as tempting teasers to get buyers

* Read children’s stories

* Tell Jokes

* Sing…

* Add music as a background to your web site (Tastefully - please!)

This list goes on and on.

Let’s quickly cover a couple of the items on the list and see what the advantages are.

Create Audio Greetings:

Well, I think this one is fun. Don’t you often wonder what that “Guru” sounds like? Or even what a web master who has created your favorite web tool or ebook?

Adding an audio greeting is actually about the easiest thing to do if you want to improve your sales. For most web sites, when done tastefully, the sales can jump up to 35%! People just trust you more and feel like they know you a little better if they hear your voice.

Also, excitement is contagious. If you are excited about your product, ezine or membership site you can hear it in your voice when you talk about it. SO CAN YOUR CUSTOMERS! And more importantly, your potential customers.

Audio Testimonials:

What can I say about this compelling reason, but this… what would be more believable to you - a web site with a bunch of written testimonials or a web site where you can hear the actual voices of current / previous purchasers explaining what benefits they got from the product? How do you even know for sure the written testimonials are real?

It’s hands down the one with the audio.

All you need is Audacity (Which is free at http://audacity.com) to edit down too long testimonials - actually, is there such a thing as too-long testimonial? Maybe not - and the ability to have customers send you .wav files and a small picture of themselves.

NOTE: You can get a free script from Will Bontrager at http://willmaster.com that will allow you to accept files from your customers OR you can set up a seperate ftp account at your server for customer uploads. See other articles in this series to learn how to implement this.

Piece of cake!

There are a couple of other steps to adding the audio to your site, but I will get to that in other parts of this article series.

Create Audio Ezines:

Have you ever heard Jim Edwards “I Gotta Tell You” ezine? (http://igottatellyou.com) Or watched the multi-media ebook and ezine how-to tutorials in Epublishing Express? (http://epublishing-express.com)

It is so much more compelling to hear someone explain exactly what to do than read a dry ezine (No offense to all the other thousands of ezine writers out there) or ebook (Ditto to you ebook writers) and you learn much faster.

Did you know that you only retain about 10-15% of what you read once? But that retention goes up to 60% if you hear it at the same time and flies up to 80% for a multi-media presentation.

How many fewer customer service calls and emails would you get if you customers were retaining 80% of what you were teaching them? I can tell you… a lot!

Think of all the extra time you would have to promote your business, create new products (Audio and multimedia products of course!) Heck, even spend more time with your family and hobbies.

How much happier would your customers be if they were able to duplicate your success and complete your tutorials, assignments, or follow your direction?

Again - a lot! How many more of your customers would buy other products from you if you were successful in teaching them or helping them with your first product? I think you can see where I am going with this…

So, know that you know how important audio is how do you get started? The first thing you can do is go to http://easy-web-site-audio.com and sign up for the free Audio Tips Ecourse and get a new tip every three days on creative audio uses.

That’s a good start
Remember those audio testimonials?

Here are some other free resources for all of you ebook and ezine writers to get you started: (Some long links may wrap)

Microsoft: http://microsoft.com (Free)

Additionally you can access lots of free content add-ons, tools, and tutorials when you go straight to the media section on the Microsoft web site.

Find it at Media Player v.9: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/default.aspx (Free) Here you can upgrade to Media Player 9 (To store all of your audio files you have made in the easy access audio library) which is free.

Media Player 9 is the preferred media player for listening to streaming audio along with Real Player which is also free.

There are a lot of add-ons for the program, especially you want to get the one that converts your MP3s into smaller WMA files and save space on your computer. (It is a free teaser, they will probably try to get you to buy the full Plus! collection, but you don’t have to!).

Visit http://www.microsoft.com/plus for more information on the PLUS! product if you think in addition to converting audio you might want to let the kids play around with Media Player too.
Remember all that extra family time you are going to have since you won’t have hardly any customer service issues?

Real: http://real.com (Free)

Get the Real Audio player basic program which allows you to play Real Audio formatted files. A lot of online content is in this format.

Don’t forget if you are adding Real Audio to your web site to get the free “Producer” which converts other types of audio files (> wav and .MP3 for example) into Real Audio files for uploading, streaming, etc.

Producer Basic (Free): http://www.realnetworks.com/products/producer/basic.html

If you want to stream from your computer or server (Warning advanced topic!) you can use the free Helix Server Basic. Helix Server Basic (Free): http://forms.real.com/rnforms/products/servers/eval/mbps.html

Also use the free PresenterOne to add audio and video to your PowerPoint presentations and stream them from your web site! http://www.realnetworks.com/products/presenterone/index.html (main page) and the free version is at:

http://forms.real.com/rnforms/products/tools/presenteronebasic/in dex.html (Approx. 20mb) since it requires Producer (Real Audio product with a free version see above) it includes it in the installation.

So if you are thinking of enhancing your PowerPoint slides and are going to download this, you don’t need to download Producer separately.

Shoutcast: http://shoutcast.com (Free)

Start your own radio station for free. And obviously link to it from your web site and broadcast tutorial and educational content on your niche topic. Free to record and free to broadcast.

Live365: http://www.live365.com (Fee)

You can also start your own radio station starting at only $7/month.

Pirate Radio: http://pirateradio.com (Fee)

Purchase software for $29 one-time fee that will having you broadcasting in about 1/2 hour.

Keep your eyes peeled for more audio/video/multi-media related articles in this series. We will be talking about different types of audio files, conducting interviews, recording tutorials, adding audio testimonials to your web site, and more.
By the time we’re done you will be an audio / video master!

“Techie” Teri Mramer is the busy web master at TreeFree Publishing, The Editor of Epublishing Express- The only ezine that teaches ebook and ezine publishing with screenshots and videos! http://Epublishing-Express.com Also author of “Easy Web Site Audio!” The Easy Web Site Audio tutorial! e-Manual comes with 15 how-to videos. Add audio to your web site in about an hour! http://Easy-Web-Site-Audio.com

There are plenty of articles out there about how to prepare for the CCNA exam. However, there are also things you can do to increase your chances of success on exam day during the most important part of the entire process — the time that you’re actually taking the test.

I’ve taken many a certification exam over the years, and helped many others prep for theirs. Here are the five things you must do on exam day to maximize your efforts.

1. Show up on time. Yeah, I know everyone says that. The testing center wants you there 30 minutes early. So why do so many candidates show up late, or in a rush? If you have a morning exam appointment, take the traffic into account. If it’s a part of town you don’t normally drive in during rush hour, you might be surprised at how much traffic you have to go through. Plan ahead.

2. Use paper, not the pad. Some testing centers have gotten into the habit of handing exam candidates a board that allegedly wipes clean, along with a marker that may or not be fine-pointed. You do NOT want to be writing out charts for binary math questions, or coming up with quick network diagrams, with a dull magic marker. It’s also my experience that these boards do not wipe clean well at all, but they smear quite badly.

Ask the testing center employee to give you paper and a pen instead. I haven’t had one refuse me yet. Remember, you’re the customer. It’s your $100 - $300, depending on the exam.

3. Use the headphones. Most candidates in the room with you understand that they should be quiet. Sadly, not all of them do. Smacking gum, mumbling to themselves (loud enough for you to hear, though), and other little noises can really get on your nerves in what is already a pressure situation. In one particular testing center I use, the door to the testing room has one setting: “Slam”.

Luckily, that center also has a headset hanging at every testing station. Call ahead to see if yours does. Some centers have them but don’t leave them at the testing stations. Wearing headphones during the exam is a great way to increase your powers of concentration. They allow you to block out all noise and annoyances, and do what you came to do — pass the exam.

4. Prepare for the “WHAT??” question. No matter how well-prepared you are, there’s going to be one question on any Cisco exam that just stuns you. It might be off-topic, in your opinion; it may be a question that would take 20 of your remaining 25 questions to answer; it might be a question that you don’t even know how to begin answering. I have talked with CCNA candidates who got to such a question and were obviously so thrown off that they didn’t do well on any of the remaining questions, either.

There is only one thing to do in this situation: shrug it off. Compare yourself to a major-league pitcher. If he gives up a home run, he can’t dwell on it; he’s got to face another batter. Cornerbacks in football face the same problem; if they give up a long TD pass, they can’t spend the next 20 minutes thinking about it. They have to shrug it off and be ready for the next play.

Don’t worry about getting a perfect score on the exam. Your concern is passing. If you get a question that seems ridiculous, unsolvable, or out of place, forget about it. It’s done. Move on to the next question and nail it.

5. Finish with a flourish. Ten questions from the end of your exam, take a 15-to-30 second break. You can’t walk around the testing room, but you can stand and stretch. By this point in the exam, candidates tend to be a little mentally tired. Maybe you’re still thinking about the “WHAT??” question. Don’t worry about the questions you’ve already answered — they’re done. Take a deep breath, remember why you’re there — to pass this exam — and sit back down and nail the last ten questions to the wall.

Before you know it, your passing score appears on the screen!

Now on to the CCNP ! Keep studying !

Chris Bryant

CCIE #12933

About The Author

Chris Bryant, CCIE? #12933, has been active in the Cisco certification community for years. He worked his way up from the CCNA to the CCIE, and knows what CCNA and CCNP candidates need to know to be effective on the job and in the exam room.

He is the owner of http://www.thebryantadvantage.com, where he teaches CCNA and CCNP courses to small groups of exam candidates, ensuring they each receive the individual attention they deserve. Classes are offered over the Internet and in select cities. Chris has custom-written the Study Guide and Lab Workbook used in each course - no third-party training materials or simulators are used. You’re invited to visit our site and check out our CCNA and CCNP courses and study aids, and to sign up for our weekly newsletter written personally by Chris. Chris is always glad to hear from Cisco certification candidates at chris@thebryantadvantage.com.

With all the technical terms out there, it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with inkjet jargon. Unfortunately, understanding the differences between the various terminologies is a must in todays advanced technological age. Below are a few of the more commonly used inkjet jargon terms you might come across and some information that will help you keep it all straight in your head.

Sometimes you might see the term CMYK. This strange looking word is simply an acronym to identify the colors Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black (blac*K*). These are the standard colors used by printer industries. For example magazines and brochures use these colors frequently to produce glossy photography prints. CMYK allows printers to use all four colors combined in a mixture to create multiple hues and tones.

The next commonly used word you might run across in inkjet jargon is DPI. Again, this is simply an acronym that is short for Dots per Inch. This is a measurement term defining the resolution on the printer. A printer’s resolution will have values ranging from high to low. High resolution is defined as a DPI of 1200 and above. A lower resolution would be anywhere from 300 DPI and below and would generally produce a printed picture with noticeable pixel dots. Low resolution is not usually recommended for high quality graphical or photographical output. The best possible photo output comes from using the highest DPI values.

What about Duplexing? The word Duplexing refers to the capability of the prtiner to print on both sides of the paper. This ability is beneficial in a number of ways. Not only does Duplexing conserve on paper, but it is better for the environment as well. While duplexing is not an inexpensive option, it is used infrequently in today’s business world. In most situations, duplexing can be achieved manually by placing even and odd numbers first and then flipping the pages over. This will allow the user to print on the other side regardless of whether a printer can duplex or not.

The term inkjet printer has been around for awhile, but if you’re not computer savvy you might not know the difference between an inkjet printer and dot matrix printer. An inkjet printer produces printed characters by spraying ink in a line of dots to form characters. Early inkjets were somewhat inefficient due to the fact that they had a reputation for clogging. The newer models, however; are designed to deliver high print seeds, superb graphics and crisp text. The technology present in modern inkjet printers has become so advanced that photographic inkjet output is on a par with that of photolabs.

Finally, another common term used is interface. This term refers to the type of connection the printer is able to obtain from the computer. Much older computers use a parallel interface. Today, this type of interface has become a thing of the past as new interface technologies such as USB and Firewire have taken centre stage purely due to their speed and reliability.

Taking the time to better understand inkjet jargon can prove to be particularly beneficial when you are considering purchasing a new printer. Don’t let yourself fall for salesman jargon and buy the wrong product simply because you didn’t understand the terminology used. Knowledge is power.

This article was provided courtesy of Inkjet Printables.com. On the website you’ll find tons of useful information on cheap inkjet cartridges

Have you heard the buzz about VOIP (Voice Over Internt Protocol)? Basically, it’s like communicating over the phone without a phone. Instead you plug your microphone into your computer log on to a website and “boom” you’re talking baby. You may be saying “Hasn’t this been around for a while?”, and you’d be right. But with the advances recently made to internet technology this once “nice to have” product available to everyone, dial-up or broadband. No long distance charges, no entry fees, no codes to remember and even better, with the better services, you can share applications and web browsers.

The ease and convenience of unlimited global calling from your computer. In addition to voice communication, you can send and receive group or private text messages. When you make a presentation to a group, everyone can see the same visual on their own screen.

VOIP technology is turning telephone technology upside down! VOIP will soon become the preferred method of communication. This technology allows business managers to conduct meetings with full audio-visual interaction from the safety and comfort of their office or home. Uses are limited only by your imagination.

Here are a few of the uses we have discovered VOIP applications being used for:

• One-On-One Tutoring

• Online Computer Classes
• Communicating with kids in college
• Business Teleconferencing
• Board Meetings
• Blueprint review
• International calling (no extra cost)
• Establishing online communities
• Supporting International Downline Members
• Online Church Services

And the list goes on…There is no need for anyone to know that you are working from your home. One person I spoke with is using the system to conduct a computer class. She simply announces the class topic, dates, times and price. When people sign up she sends them an email with her link and a passcode. No one even knows that she is working from home or that she is the only person in her organization. The technology is reliable, clear and rivals or exceeds any of the online learning environments offered by “online schools”. Another person is using the system as a means of conducting one-on-one tutoring sessions. Because of the fact that she is no longer constrained to people in her “immediate area” her business has expanded and she has actually had to turn away clients.

There are several service providers and the best by far that we have discovered is ICon Communicator by Madison Dynamics Incorporated. The voice clarity is incredible and the options available set it apart from the rest. The prices are more than reasonable and are often lower than their competition for the same number of “seats” (Seats ore the number of people you can have online with you). You can review their service offer at www.MDIVOIP.com.

Other capable service providers are Go To Meeting and Intranets.

About The Author

Yvette McDonald has been an IT Analyst for 14 years and has designed an programmed on platforms from the AS/400 to the Internet.

biz@yomack.com

Mobile Phones May Be The Next Target